Lard is not your enemy.

[sarea]

Lard, in fact, is your friend. Sort of.

LARD.

Just the word alone is enough to make people cringe away and shudder with horror. Its connotations are all negative. It might be one of the few foods that I actually feared growing up, as if even being in its presence would clog my arteries and cause a heart attack right on the spot.

But like so many foods that have gotten a bad rap -- egg yolk comes to mind -- it turns out that tales of its detriments to people's health were largely exaggerated. Unlike other foods, including egg yolk, however, lard has never recovered from the stigma of being labeled unhealthy. To this day, even though we know more than ever about the food we consume, lard is still widely thought of as the worst thing people who care about their health could possibly eat.

It's not true. Well, it's a little more complicated than that.

Continued at my food journal, if you're curious about what nice things I could possibly have to say about lard (and don't already know yourself). Click on the fake lj-cut link below to the no doubt long-awaited and eagerly anticipated (lolz) 'dissertation' on one of the world's most unpopular fats -- includes steps on how to render your own luscious white stuff.

( Lard: The Misunderstood Fat )

Comments

[jade-okelani.livejournal.com]

Okay, seriously, I love you! That is such a good article you just wrote - because yes, it sounds like a professionally written article! Which, knowing you, doesn't surprise me, but this is both informative and witty, and I think you should totally keep writing things like this and then put together a book! :))

My favorite part:

# Coax your dog away from the kitchen, because the smell of roasting pork is simply too irresistible for him. If your dog's favorite meat is pork, you will fail as I did.

Hahahaha.

I'm not surprised re: your discoveries about lard - we ruin everything for ourselves by trying to be lazy about it. Slowly but surely the Trans Fats are being weeded out (I'm sure you heard that Arnie just passed that Trans Fat ban in California, meaning that come 2009 restaurants will not be allowed to use it. They're all bitching, because basically, they cook with lard and they're like, but it won't taste the same! When in reality, they should be bitching about how they're going to have to start refining their own lard!) - now we just have to get the high fructose corn syrup out of our food!

Well done, well done.

[leiliaxf.livejournal.com]

Lard makes the best pastry crust--it's what my Nana used to make her pies and OMG. Flakey Flakey Flakey pastry crust...so good I can still almost taste it.

I've heard about these Wooly Pigs--supposedly the meat is pretty dang tasty also. May have to haul myself up to your farmer's market to try it one of these days...

[sarea-okelani.livejournal.com]

Thanks dude! Obviously I just need to keep finding stuff that I feel as passionate for as I do lard. >.>

And -- I know, right? We totally do ruin it for ourselves and that is why we will destroy ourselves in the end.

I didn't actually hear that re: trans fats in CA, this is why I love that state. There are other processed oils that have trans fats also, and yes they are all shelf stable which is why the general market likes them. It's of course more expensive to have fresh, real stuff on hand.

I'm like, McDonald's, bring back your lard fries! Don't give me any more of your trans fat vegetable oil fries!

And for realz re: high fructose corn syrup -- my GOD at what all it's in. It's in, like, everything. We consume massive amounts of corn and we don't even realize it because of that.

[sarea-okelani.livejournal.com]

Well now you should make your Nana's pies just the same way!! :D

Wow, that's really cool that you've heard of Wooly Pigs. Since I bought the bacon I didn't try their cuts of meat (my $15 fat adventure would have easily turned into a $100 pork adventure), but I'm sure they are AWESOME.

Their schedule: We are at Seattle's U-District Farmers Market on Saturdays and the West Seattle Farmers Market on Sundays. We are at the Bellevue Farmers Market on Thursdays.

If you make it to either the U-District or Bellevue farmers markets, let me know and I may meet you there. The Bellevue one is quite close to I Love Sushi (hint, hint)!

Also, when are we doing a spa day? Now that I've got my bonus I am thinking I really should treat myself. ;)