What is the trick to refining lard

Pork is a very common meat in our daily life. It can often be seen on the table, and there are many ways to eat pork. Pork stewed with vermicelli, braised pork, pig's trotters, pig large intestines, etc. are all edible. Pork can also be used to extract lard, but there are tricks to extracting lard. If it is not handled properly, it is very easy to burn yourself. If you are not careful, you may get a big blister, which is very painful, and especially burns on the hands, which also have a relatively large impact on daily life. Here are some tips for refining lard.

Steps for rendering lard :

1. Buy fresh pork fat, wash it and set aside.

2. Place on the chopping board and cut into small pieces for later use.

3. Preheat the pot, put the pork into the pot, and add water to cover the lard.

4. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then turn to low heat. Slowly boil away the water and the oil will start to come out. Add a few peppercorns after the water is boiled away.

5. The lard tastes better when boiled with peppercorns.

6. Remember to stir the lard frequently when it is being boiled and when the oil is coming out to avoid it getting stuck to the bottom.

7. Simmer over low heat.

8. When the fat from the pig is boiled out, you can serve it.

9. The pork cooked in this way is clear and clean, and has a faint aroma of pepper. Although oil residue is delicious, you can’t eat too much of it. Oil residue is high in calories and people with high cholesterol should not eat too much of it.

10. The cooked oil residue can be used when stir-frying vegetarian dishes, and it tastes very good.

Cooking tips :

1. Add some water when boiling lard so that the oil will be clearer (the water should be added together with the meat, never add it when the oil is hot) 2. Add some appropriate amount of Sichuan peppercorns when boiling so that the lard will be more fragrant.

Use low heat throughout the process of cooking lard to avoid the oil residue from burning due to high heat, which would destroy the taste and composition of the oil. When there is little oil at the beginning, you can stir it to ensure even heating. Adding some salt or sugar before lard solidifies can extend its storage time. After the lard has completely cooled, it will become a white paste. The oil residue from stewing will not be wasted, and it is good for stir-frying or making stuffing.

How to preserve lard - After the lard is cooked, add a little sugar or salt before it solidifies, stir it, put it in a bottle and seal it. It can be stored for a long time without deteriorating. Best stored in the refrigerator. If refined lard is stored for a long time, it will have a strange smell. If you add a little peppercorns to freshly refined oil, stir it, seal it and store it, it will not change its taste for a long time. Adding a little refined salt or soybean oil to the refined lard can also prevent it from becoming rancid due to long-term storage.

How to use lard - The healthiest way to cook is of course steaming or boiling, because the oil temperature will not become too high and the oil properties are relatively stable. However, no one can support steaming and boiling dishes every day and give up the deliciousness of stir-frying, deep-frying and pan-frying. If you really need to do this, please try to lower the fire temperature and reduce the state of burning the oil to the point where thick smoke comes out. Some people like to watch the oil smoke and think that stir-fried dishes are tasty enough. In fact, the chemical properties of the oil that smokes will change after high temperature, leading to the production of harmful substances, so try to reduce this situation, especially olive oil, sesame oil, linseed oil, etc. that are not resistant to high temperatures, are not suitable for doing this.

Don’t buy too much oil at one time, whether it is lard you make yourself or purchased vegetable oil. If the oil is stored for too long, especially the residual crude oil, the oil may become rancid. Cooking oil contains a component called linoleic acid, which easily reacts chemically with oxygen in the air. This phenomenon is called "oil oxidation". A series of reactions such as oil and hydrolysis can generate small molecule aldehydes, ketones, carboxylic acids and other oxides, peroxides and other decomposition products with special odors. The rancid smell is the result of oil oxidation and rancidity. When oil becomes rancid, it produces a lot of smoke and is choking when heated. It contains decomposition products such as glycidaldehyde, which can easily cause poisoning if consumed. When cooking, it is recommended to use vegetable oil, which is healthier!

Lard not only has nutritional value but also has many other uses :

1. Knead a small piece of lard into the dough for steamed buns. The steamed buns will be fluffy, white, sweet and delicious.

2. When cooking old rice, add some lard and a little salt to make the rice soft and delicious.

3. Wash and dry the iron pan, then apply some animal oil and spread it evenly to prevent rust.