Bacon grease; what do you do with yours?

M

mariadnoca

Moderator
I've been making a lot of flat bacon of late and find myself with a container full of drippings that needs to be rid of. Back in the old days when there were other folks to feed, I'd save some and add it to flavor other stuff. Now, I pretty much just need to toss it. It doesn't seem right to pour it in some plastic thing to toss. How do you deal with it?

 
Mine goes into a soup can covered with a snap on lid then stored in the freezer. Have similar cans

of home-rendered beef suet, duck fat and chicken fat. Nothing works quite as well as these ingredients when going for a particular flavor profile.

Also, good luck finding potatoes cooked in beef fat anywhere else. I think Joe probably has a gallon or so of duck fat at his home but cooking breakfast cereal in it just seemed a little out of control to me. ;>D

 
I strain mine into a clean empty coffe can, and keep it on the counter. I do toss it

if I don't use it within a certain amount of time.

Didn't think of freezing it, but that's a great idea.

 
Alton Brown says you can put cooking oil in your yard because it's 100 percent biodegradable, unlike

motor oil.

 
Ours goes into an empty coffee can that we keep under our sink with a tight fitting lid

we use it for cooking oil, bacon grease and just today I tossed some pomegranate juice that I was trying to make into pomegranate molasses and it turned into brittle on me. When it is full, we put it into the garbage....after calling our City landfill staff to see if it was OK.

 
Mar, can't open your AB post -- I think maybe the percent sign did something?

I was trying to think how I might put it in the yard or if that would somehow work. How did he say to use it in the yard? I'm on a flat bacon kick now after the above post reminded me of it. So I have *lots* of grease.

I like the idea of freezing some -- never thought of that and other than opening a can, just to have a can to pour it in...not sure what to do with all of it.

 
3 gallons and counting. And don't knock duck fat Cap'n Crunch til you've tried it!

 
True confessions: I've been hanging around organic gardeners too long. I've started burying grease,

oil, stock bones and other kitchen garbage not suitable for composting. I save it up in a bucket in the freezer and bury it 2 feet deep. I simply can't bear to throw all that energy away when it could enrich my soil.

Randi used to say God forbid I'm ever a suspect in a murder case. The cadaevor-sniffing dogs would have a field day on my property!

 
From the Alton Brown "Fry Hard I" episode, he says that he puts old

grease in a corner of his yard. No mention of mixing it with compost, etc.

The annotation comes from AB's book "Good Eats, The Early Years" and it includes recipes, commentaries and footnotes out the yin/yang.

I won this huge Good Eats book, 3 sets of Food Channel DVDs and a cloth grocery bag, all thanks to Traca for recommending this org "Share Our Strength". I made a donation to them and they picked my name to gift with these presents.

 
Home Fries

1 pound of red-skin or Yukon potatoes
3 Tbl butter
2 Tbl bacon grease
1 medium onion, diced
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper

The day before:
Boil potatoes until slightly soft when pierced with knife. Cool and refrigerate.

To cook:
Heat fats in non-stick pan.
Saute onions until soft. Remove onions, but leave as much fat in pan as possible.
Dice potatoes into 1/2" cubes and cook for 10 minutes over med-low heat with a lid ON.
Uncover, stir around and add onions back in. Season and cook 5 minutes longer with a lid OFF.

 
I was just talking to a woman today who uses hers in cole slaw. She

Said to fry a half pound of bacon, crumble it, add a cup of vinegar and add that to a head (or so) of chopped cabbage. She said it was an old German recipe that gets raves every time she makes it. The fat and the vinegar make the "dressing". 'Worth trying!

 
I've done something similar, but hot. It's a Patricia Wells recipe. Coo salt pork or pancetta

in a big saute pan until fat is rendered. Turn up the heat and add a shredded cabbage, salt and pepper. Toss to coat with fat. Add vinegar, which will boil up, and cover quickly. Let the cabbage steam down.

It would probably be good cold, if not too cold. Regular bacon would be good too.

 
bacon fat storage and use

I put the bacon grease into small paper cups (let it cool a little before you do this) then cover w/ plastic wrap and put in the freezer. Use for the start of soups instead of butter or oil, also for the start of chile or other bean dishes. Take out the paper cup and it will defrost very quickly and you can scoop the bacon fat out. Or, I have cut off the paper cup w/ a scissor and then use a knife to cut off the bottom where any particles might have settled. It gives a nice subtle flavor to whatever you use it for.

 
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