Why Lard?

I will soon begin a lard-making adventure as part of a joint project with one of my farmers, Beau.  I ran out of lard today, and emailed him (and sent out a Facebook plea) to see if anyone knew where I could find properly sourced lard.  Beau informed me that he had none, but he has fat from his delicious, properly raised pigs.  Long story short, he agreed to give me the fat if I'd make some lard and document the experience for his farm blog.  A farm/cooking adventure???!!  What could be more up my alley??!!!

Of course, my wheels were spinning right away, and after some of the comments/questions in response to my Facebook plea for lard, I decided I would preemptively write about lard before my big experiment.  Before I get to the "why" of cooking and using lard, let's answer my friend Cynthia's question, "What is lard?"  Lard is the rendered fat of a pig.  It is a solid when cold or at cooler room temperature, and liquid when heated.  For a little more information, I thought the Wiki article wasn't half bad.

Lard has a fascinating history in our country.  Of course, there's more to it, but the girls and I are reading the Little House on the Prairie series, and Ma cooks and bakes with lard and butter...that's about it.  When you think of it, these were the fats they had on hand, which they made from the animals they had raised.  Flash forward to modern times, and for anyone concerned about eating healthy, eating local, using all parts of the animal, or returning to traditional foods, lard just makes sense.  For this reason, it is making a huge comeback in foodie circles, especially among those using Nourishing Traditions cooking style and those who are concerned about healthy fats and nutrient dense "real" food.  A year ago, NPR did a great five minute bit called "Who Killed Lard?" as part of their "All Things Considered" program.  If you are interested in how lard was pushed out of dietary favor, give it a listen.

The reality is that properly sourced** lard is actually very healthy for you.  We all need fat in our diets...but not Big Mac or Twinkie fat.  We need good fats like those found in high quality olive oil, coconut oil, and...lard.  When I went to Google to find a quick synopsis of the health benefits of lard, there was an overwhelming amount of stuff to sift through.  For this reason alone, it surprises me how far away from lard we have moved as a culture.  But there's no point reinventing the wheel...here is the website I found that provides the most comprehensive look at lard, without being overwhelming.  I also like the fact that it is a farm blog (and not someone trying to sell something) and it lists websites and books you can check out for more information.  When you read it, it's kinda amazing how good it really is for you, and sad it is not more readily available.  (**Important to note, which I am excerpting from the website above:  "Organically raised, foraging and outdoor range hogs have the healthiest lard.  Conventionally raised pork get virtually no exercise...and eat no greens.  Much of their diet is of the lowest possible quality.  This lard is of equally low quality.  The diet and lifestyle of the hog radically affect the quality of the lard.")

I'm really looking forward to picking up my quality pig fat from Rettland Farm next week and trying my hand at making my own lard.  My next post will answer my friend Lauren's question: "What do you use lard for???"