I Have Lard; Now What?

Now that I have rendered lard what am I going to do with it?  Well I’m glad you asked!

Here are a few of the ways that I have used lard:

• in any recipe that calls for shortening.  It makes pastries and pies exceptionally flaky and delicious.
• to deep fry in.
• to make homemade soap.
• and to season cast iron cookware

Here are some other uses for lard that I intend to experiement with:

• making homemade candles with it.
• making healing balms and salves for dry, cracked hands and feet.
• and to mix it with beeswax to use on wood and leather as a preservative.

This blog post has some more uses for lard.

I also learned something new, lard from our outdoor pigs is also high in vitamin D.  Now that’s good news.  (Of course, it would stand to reason since raising them outside is healthier for the pigs, that their by-products would then be healthier for us.)

Do you use lard? Do you remember your parents or grandparents using lard?

My grandma has told me that when she was younger her family would butcher pigs and use basically everything except the squeal.  It is fun listening to how they processed the pigs to feed their family.  It is also interesting to note that this same family that ate lard, bacon etc lived to be an average age of 88.  Not too bad if you ask me.