Or am I going to die a horrible death! I think I must be lacking in fat or something because I've been eyeing up the dripping in the supermarket lately. LOL.
Is lard or dripping really that bad?
*Waits for the food police to come in and shoot me*
maxwell.inc,
Mar 28, 11:40pm
No its not a sin... Dripping, lard and butter are all I use to cook in.
And no its not bad at all. . pop into the food lies or Coconut oil thread if you want to learn more about fats and grains (can be found using search on side and any time for last posting)
fruitbat,
Mar 28, 11:43pm
Normally there's enough fat in the meat... I start say a lamb roast off with a bit olive oil and water in the pan, season the meat, by the time it is cooked the roasting pan is full of juice and fat from the meat.
tahnasha,
Mar 28, 11:44pm
Cool, I've been reading up on lard and dripping this morning, and I think I should go back to basics and cook like my grandmother use to cook.
I've only managed to get through part of the way through the food lies thread, very interesting reading.
tahnasha,
Mar 28, 11:46pm
fruitbat, I do a similar thing, but it just doesn't taste the same as I fondly remember my mother and grandmothers roast to be.
I was always fascinated by the dripping tray, LOL
maxwell.inc,
Mar 28, 11:48pm
Good on ya chook.
tahnasha,
Mar 29, 12:12am
Mmmm, so I've just scanned my pantry, and I'm not sure where to start. So nothing in packets? Like those Cook in the Pots.
So I've just looked in my mothers old Aunt Daisy cookbook, and doesn't actually seem too hard. OMG, haha, I've just found out how my mother use to make her yummy salmon rissoles.
I think I'll pass on how to cook the swan though. LOL
alebix,
Mar 29, 12:40am
I always use dripping in my roasts... makes them so much more yummier.
fifie,
Mar 29, 12:42am
Everything is fat free these days, nothing wrong with a little bit of fat in moderation lol, it adds to the flavour. Can't beat a good munch on some nice tender hogget chops with the crispy bit of fat up the side to chew on, or the crispy pork crackling on the Sunday roast.
maxwell.inc,
Mar 29, 1:05am
Guess it depends just how much back to basics u want to get
Regarding the packet powder mixes and such. . just have a peek on the back... today actually I checked the gravy packs (instant) and found that in most cases the first ingredient is Maltodextrin ...
"Maltodextrin is a polysaccharide that is used as a food additive. It is produced from starch by partial hydrolysis and is usually found as a creamy-white hygroscopic spraydried powder. Maltodextrin is easily digestible, being absorbed as rapidly as glucose, and might be either moderately sweet or almost flavorless"
Now tell me does this have a place in "gravy"? :o)
Our pantry pretty much has an assortment of spices and herbs (Dryed) and fresh ones in the freezer... an assortment of vinegars, shelf stable oils (sesame etc) ... good quality - non rancid - Extra virgin olive oil ... we use some canned goods. . but they are mostly things that you would have "preserved" back in the day - none of these meals in cans or things with huge amounts of additives.
The fridge is 60% vegies (so much so that I will be buying a new fridge when we are able. one with an independent vegie draw) Whole non homogenised milk (silver top) bottles of cream, pots of dripping, lard. . butter and butter blends. . cheeses
The bench has the fruit (seasonal) and the eggs
The freezer is stocked with everything, chicken, salmon, beef, lamb... Bone broths (stocks) etc
If you cant make a good meal out of all of that... then theres no hope hehe
bedazzledjewels,
Mar 29, 4:16am
Does anyone else find it quite hard to find dripping and lard? My local butcher, often named as one of Auckland's best, was horrified when I asked him if he stocked lard and dripping! So he got an earful about how the tide was turning and he'd be stocking it again one day.
My supermarket has some but the quality of it concerns me a bit. I read about how in Europe you actually buy different flavoured lards!
uli,
Mar 29, 4:26am
Pak'n'Save has it - but I feel not happy to buy it. Am currently searching for some free range fatty pigs nearby :) Mine only eat grass - so they are never fat enough *sigh*
maxwell.inc,
Mar 29, 4:34am
Dripping easy to find. . I buy the one in the white plastic container that is a mix of beef and mutton fat
Lard however. . Nope I cant find a FR source of it. . so next Time I go out to the Porcine butcher I am going to ask if he can set aside the skin fat for me from the pigs he butchers. . happy to pay for it and render it down my self.
fisher,
Mar 29, 5:12am
I buy pork crackle and render down the fat in the oven... "slowly". . Then pour it off, cool , store in fridge to use at a later date for cooking. . the other benefit is you get pork crackle as a bonus for a snack...
melford,
Mar 29, 5:34am
hey fisher - what a good idea, I hadn't thought of that, so much more tasier.
pgta,
Mar 29, 5:38am
I hate the smell and taste of oil so use butter or Chefade which is dripping
cookessentials,
Mar 29, 5:46am
There is a great book available called "Fat" which you may find interesting.
bedazzledjewels,
Mar 29, 6:01am
Yes, it's a good book Cookessentials. Available at Auckland Public Library. Jennifer has a blog too -
http://jennifermclagan. blogspot.com/
marielize1,
Mar 29, 6:27am
I got funny looks from my butcher today when I asked for a kilo of lamb or mutton fat. Sure, he said we just throw it away. What a sin such lovely Omega 3s. I don't only use it for cooking, after I read that raw animal fat has got an enzymethat can stop artheritis from developing I have started drying some fat strips with my biltong and it taste devine if it is flavoured with some salt and spice. Like salami, just without the bad stuff.
beaker59,
Mar 29, 7:15am
I have been taking the skin off my chicken breasts then cutting into thin slices marinating in lemon juice then an egg wash and frying. Trick is though I render down the skin in a dry pan first to get the fat out to fry the chicken slices in gives a really nice flavour and wastes nothing. I even serve the crispy skin to the kids.
colb1,
Mar 29, 7:20am
Hi Melford has your thread gone?
marielize1,
Mar 29, 7:21am
Just like lamb fat, the butchers throw the chicken skins of de-skinned chickens away, I pick up a kilo every so often for the dogs, and crisp some for snacks... . eeevilll! !
st_allie,
Mar 29, 7:33am
I don't use dripping for lamb roast.
rub the lamb with soy sauce all over. . then rub again with a dark sugar ( i use billingtons dark muscovado) then salt and pepper all over. . put a small rack on the bottom of the roasting pan so the lamb doesn't sit in boiling juices. cover with aluminium foil. preheat oven to 225C and roast lamb covered for 15 mins. . then take out, turn over, replace cover and roast a further 15 mins. remove foil, ( save foil for later), reduce heat to 160C and cook slowly for a further 2. 5 to 3 hours. cover with foil and a tea towel while it rests before carving ( about 15-20 mins) The initial roasting seals the meat. . you get an incredibly moist roast as well. This is a no fail recipe for me and I have abandoned cooking a lamb roast any other way now. Add your roast potatoes an hour before the roast finishes cooking.
martine5,
Mar 29, 8:24am
without wanting to offend anyone at all. ... if you are overweight or watching your weight then cooking with lard is not a smart idea at all. If you exercise heaps or have a metabolism that defies logic then if you were to cook with lard once or twice a year it probably won't kill you, I would do it if you love lard, if not i'd go goose fat.
maxwell.inc,
Mar 29, 8:31am
No it wont.
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