BajaNomad

Lard Makes A Comeback!

Bajahowodd - 6-6-2009 at 10:54 AM

Rejoice, all you authentic Mexican cooks!
http://slate.com/id/2219314/?GT1=38001

danaeb - 6-6-2009 at 10:59 AM

Did it ever leave? I had a chef friend who always said "fat is flavor".

All things in moderation... (well, except wine) :spingrin:

BMG - 6-6-2009 at 04:54 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Bajahowodd

Lard Makes A Comeback!

Just waiting for the new products that advertise:

New! Now made with even more fat and calories!!

capt. mike - 6-7-2009 at 07:30 AM

http://www.heartattackgrill.com

they "butter" their buns with lard when they grill 'em. yum!

Sharksbaja - 6-7-2009 at 01:40 PM

Pretty funny that the cook thinks that lard is flavor. Fat holds and carries flavor. Fat on a steak has flavor but lard??? :no:

It does make a fantastic pie crust tho!:lol:

Bajahowodd - 6-7-2009 at 03:07 PM

That's a really funny video. Thanks for posting it.

DENNIS - 6-7-2009 at 03:22 PM

I'm told that the white filling in an Oreo Cookie is sugar and lard. YUK

Woooosh - 6-7-2009 at 03:39 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by DENNIS
I'm told that the white filling in an Oreo Cookie is sugar and lard. YUK


but it's whipped up so smooth and fluffy. Same with the twinkie and hostess cupcake fillings too I believe:) Hey-wait a minute... Oreos aren't Kosher? who knew? I'll bet lard in Oreos is like coca leave in cola... used to be... better

Bajahowodd - 6-7-2009 at 03:49 PM

Actually, Nabisco stopped using lard in Oreos several years back. Just think about it. Dipping lard into your milk. Yum.

We can all be happy again.

BMG - 6-7-2009 at 03:53 PM

DENNIS - 6-7-2009 at 05:05 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Woooosh
Same with the twinkie


Them Too? Twinkies are loaded with lard? Jeezo...What do they deep-fry them in...more lard?
Just thinking about it gives me chest pains.

JESSE - 6-7-2009 at 08:37 PM

The real ket to a great tasting Baja Lobster. Use the same lard over and over again to fry Lobsters, this concentrates the flavor, and makes it as good as we all know.

Do it with new lard, not so good.

Depends on Who You Believe

Gypsy Jan - 6-7-2009 at 10:14 PM

Dr. Atkins - scientific studies with controlled tests = lard is good.

Yapping diet "experts" on network talk shows = lard (and all fat) is bad to scare the viewer who won't read or research diet for their own information.

BTW (By The Way), it is the trans fats (chemically modified fat added to processed foods) that will kill you.

[Edited on 6-8-2009 by Gypsy Jan]

Bajahowodd - 6-7-2009 at 11:22 PM

At least now we know Jesse's secret. Old lard. Can't wait to have dinner there again.:lol:

capt. mike - 6-8-2009 at 06:11 AM

is lard saturated fat? is is trans fat?
my 10th grade economics and SS teacher, Mr Pryor an Ed.S, said during the depression they the kids ate lard sandwiches, white bread. and were so glad to eat anything.
makes you think.

DENNIS - 6-8-2009 at 07:47 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by capt. mike
is lard saturated fat? is is trans fat?



Here's some lard-lore for you, Mike.

http://www.foodandwine.com/articles/lard-the-new-health-food

Udo - 6-8-2009 at 09:08 AM

I've been preparing fish tacos for about 20 years. This past weekend I catered a wedding where I fried the fish in lard.
Absolutely the best tasting ever!
Lard also is much easier to work with in controling the cooking process.

Bajahowodd - 6-8-2009 at 10:38 AM

No question that any food item cooked in lard will taste better than oil. but as the article linked by Dennis, as well as the one I started this with point out, we've spent decades running from lard. I really think much of it is hype created by the manufacturers of the various substitutes. Face, there's not a whole lot of profit in lard.

capt. mike - 6-8-2009 at 10:48 AM

ok....now i am thinkin'......a dangerous thing in its own right, but...
i have this turkey fryer. so far i found peanut oil to be prohibitively expensive cause it takes so much to do a turkey. it's like $29 a gallon.

so - i think i ought to fry a bird in lard which is cheap!! anyone used lard in a turkey fryer rig? mine is propane with a big tall SS pot.

tripledigitken - 6-8-2009 at 10:55 AM

Arn't those beautiful authentic almost transparent flour tortillas cooked with lard? You know the kind that are very hard to find in the US.

Don't even mention how good fatback is.

Ken

DENNIS - 6-8-2009 at 11:05 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by capt. mike
ok....now i am thinkin'......a dangerous thing in its own right, but...
i have this turkey fryer. so far i found peanut oil to be prohibitively expensive cause it takes so much to do a turkey. it's like $29 a gallon.

so - i think i ought to fry a bird in lard which is cheap!! anyone used lard in a turkey fryer rig? mine is propane with a big tall SS pot.


They use peanut oil in woks because it has a higher flash point. [isn't that what it's called when it starts to burn down the house?]
So...Don't know how lard would stand up in a deep turkey fryer. Better borrow some turn-outs from Soulpatch before you experiment.

[Edited on 6-8-2009 by DENNIS]

Casey67 - 6-8-2009 at 12:20 PM

Lard is perfectly safe to deep-fry in. Up until vegetable oil was wrongly substituted, lard was the gold standard as a deep frying medium.

It's good to see that the vegetable oil myth and fat hysteria days are coming to an end. Your body has a limited capacity to absorb fat, so at some point counting fat calories is invalid. Sugar on the other hand is death by fat.

Cypress - 6-8-2009 at 12:35 PM

About cooking in lard, that's pork fat. Cook a few pounds of cracklins(chunkyarones), then drop a turkey into the pot, let it fry till golden brown. The rest is history. One of those southern USA traditions.:bounce:

DENNIS - 6-8-2009 at 01:04 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Cypress
(chunkyarones



Those must be Chinese chicharones. :lol: :lol:

Sorry...I tried to fight off the urge but, had no luck.

DanO - 6-8-2009 at 01:07 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by DENNIS
Quote:
Originally posted by Cypress
(chunkyarones



Those must be Chinese chicharones. :lol: :lol:

Sorry...I tried to fight off the urge but, had no luck.


I'll bite. Would that be the Chinese version of Rice-a-Roni?

DENNIS - 6-8-2009 at 01:20 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by DanO

I'll bite. Would that be the Chinese version of Rice-a-Roni?


Don't mess with the "San Francisco Treat" DanO. They'll come down and march all over your house.

Cypress - 6-8-2009 at 01:36 PM

What ever you want to call 'em. They're pigskins, cut into pieces and fried. Don't understand how you can turn fried pig skins into Rice-a Roni. Must be one of those California things?:?:

It's All Schmaltz

Bajahowodd - 6-8-2009 at 02:41 PM

Technically, lard, on worldwide basis is not just pork fat. Jews and Muslims who may not eat pork, render the fat from chickens or geese.

JESSE - 6-8-2009 at 02:55 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Bajahowodd
At least now we know Jesse's secret. Old lard. Can't wait to have dinner there again.:lol:


I donīt use lard in my kitchen, we pan sear our Lobsters with olive oil, and then finish them on the mezquite grill. They are not as tender as frying them in lard, but they are very good.

The recipe i gave is what they use at Puerto Nuevo.

tripledigitken - 6-8-2009 at 02:58 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Bajahowodd
Technically, lard, on worldwide basis is not just pork fat. Jews and Muslims who may not eat pork, render the fat from chickens or geese.


Now your talking..............Goose fat!

Duck Confit.............duck cooked in Goose Fat.

Probably hard to find in Baja though?

Ken

DanO - 6-8-2009 at 03:03 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Cypress
What ever you want to call 'em. They're pigskins, cut into pieces and fried. Don't understand how you can turn fried pig skins into Rice-a Roni. Must be one of those California things?:?:


chunkyarone -- chunkyaroni -- chunky-A-Roni -- Rice-A-Roni.

Dennis started it, I was just hijacking his hijack. And speaking of alternative spellings for chicharrones, did you know that the Filipino spelling is tsitsaron? I kid you not. Try saying that ten times fast after a few drinks.

Rice-A-Roni, by the way, is a riff on Armenian rice pilaf that was invented by the wife of one of the sons of the founder of the San Francisco-based Golden Grain Macaroni Co. (now owned by Quaker Oats). As far as I know, there is no pork rind version of the "San Francisco treat." However, they do have a "Mexican Style" version (http://www.ricearoni.com/rar_products/product.cfm?productid=...) and some nifty related recipes like the "Nacho Beef Dinner" (http://www.ricearoni.com/rar_recipes/search/recipe.cfm?recip...) and the "Fire & Ice Brunch Skillet" (http://www.ricearoni.com/rar_recipes/search/recipe.cfm?recip...) (not really Mexican, as it uses the Spanish Rice-A-Roni, but who can tell the difference when it's all covered with cheese and sour cream? And what does the Fire & Ice thing refer to?).

Pretty tame stuff. Someone should lobby them for a menudo flavor, with little bits of freeze-dried tripe and hominy.

Dennis, I hear those wacky NorteCalifornianos want to split the state in half and keep all the water for themselves. Good luck with that.

[Edited on 6-8-2009 by DanO]

DENNIS - 6-8-2009 at 03:59 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by DanO
Dennis, I hear those wacky NorteCalifornianos want to split the state in half and keep all the water for themselves. Good luck with that.



That scares me knowing the governor is insane and desperate.

DanO - 6-8-2009 at 04:23 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by DENNIS
Quote:
Originally posted by DanO
Dennis, I hear those wacky NorteCalifornianos want to split the state in half and keep all the water for themselves. Good luck with that.



That scares me knowing the governor is insane and desperate.


Maybe so, but many think he is a contender for a senate seat after his terms as governator ends. And the state ain't gonna split. That looniness has been proposed a couple of dozen times, to no avail. Rural areas need the tax revenues generated by the economic activity in the urban areas, and the urban areas need the rural areas' resources. And Congress hasn't allowed a state to split since West Virginia in 1861, over their difference of opinion with Virginia's decision to join the Confederacy.

DENNIS - 6-8-2009 at 05:31 PM

OK...Thanks for that.
Now....Explain Nancy Pelosi. :?:

Hijacker Alert!

Bajahowodd - 6-8-2009 at 05:38 PM

Arnie = Fat? OK. Anyone who voted for this idiot shoud be ashamed. How anyone could consider this dim bulb, self-absorbed marooon for anything other than retirement, blows my mind. Please show me where he has accomplished anything. I'm not a fan of Davis. But at least he had a long standing experience in state government. Arnie was only interested in massaging his own huge ego. After all is said and done, y'all should realize that Arnie is a tiny man. what is he? 5'6"?

DanO - 6-8-2009 at 05:41 PM

Sorry, you'll have to ask a NorteCaliforniano on Pelosi.

[Edited on 6-9-2009 by DanO]

DENNIS - 6-8-2009 at 05:42 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by DanO
Sorry, you'll have to ask a NorteCaliforniano on Pelosi.



It was a trick question. There is no answer....only painful consequences.

Thread hijack confirmed!

DanO - 6-8-2009 at 05:52 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Bajahowodd
Arnie = Fat? OK. Anyone who voted for this idiot shoud be ashamed. How anyone could consider this dim bulb, self-absorbed marooon for anything other than retirement, blows my mind. Please show me where he has accomplished anything. I'm not a fan of Davis. But at least he had a long standing experience in state government. Arnie was only interested in massaging his own huge ego. After all is said and done, y'all should realize that Arnie is a tiny man. what is he? 5'6"?


It was a silly thread anyway.

I hate to say this, but I don't see how anything you've said (the accuracy of which I neither confirm nor deny) disqualifies Arnie from future public office. In fact, "self-absorbed marooon with huge ego and no accomplishments" could describe any number of American politicians, regardless of party affiliation or ideology. It's mostly just a popularity contest when you get down to it, especially in California.

Hijack back to original thread

DanO - 6-8-2009 at 06:03 PM

Feeling guilty about hijacking the thread (Dennis' fault, but I'm an accessory), I thought I'd post a lard recipe. Got this one from the excellent fooddownunder.com website. Seems a little weird, but anyone who's willing to make it should report on the outcome. You might need to cut down the size of the recipe, as there will probably be lots of leftovers.

http://fooddownunder.com/cgi-bin/recipet.cgi?r=71648&y=2...

Title: Cold Lard Omelet
Keys: Cheese Eggs
Yield: 200 Servings

Ingredients:

300 x Eggs
200 tbl Milk
12 1/2 cup Cold lard
200 tbl Cat hair or feathers, etc.


Method:
Combine eggs and milk, beating with a whisk until frothy. Pour into cooking pans, cooking each in one piece, turning each when one side is slightly less than done.

When the eggs are almost done remove from heat and smooth the cold lard across half of the omelet and fold in half. Sprinkle the hair on top and cut into as many servings a needed.

[Edited on 6-9-2009 by DanO]

DENNIS - 6-8-2009 at 06:35 PM

Mea Culpa...but, that's the name and the essence of the thread..."Lard makes a comeback."
You can't hijack a thread that refuses to die.

Cat hair or feathers? Must be a fiber thing.

rogerj1 - 6-8-2009 at 11:28 PM

Capt. Mike: How's the service at Heart Attack Grill? Would you mind doing some research for us and reporting back? Pictures would really help.:biggrin:

castaway$ - 6-12-2009 at 01:40 PM

Okay so nobody answered tripledigitken's question so I'll ask it again cause I want to know also- Is lard what makes the tortillas so good? You can't find them anywhere in the states like they are in Baja.

Udo - 6-12-2009 at 03:30 PM

Castaway$
There are many tortillerias that use lard to make tortillas. You just have to ask the right people. If you feel like making a trip to East Los Angeles, I'll tell you.

Udo - 6-12-2009 at 03:36 PM

BTW
I forgot to mention: you can buy the fat from around the kidneys if you ask a butcher at a professional meat market, not your grocer's meat market or the local carniceria. One place that carries it regularly are the German delis that have a meat market (such as Alpine Village in Los Angeles).
There is a HUGE difference in flavor between kidney fat and regular lard. AND, Mexican lard has more flavor than lard in the US, i'm guessing that in the US they add "stuff" to their lard.

capt. mike - 6-13-2009 at 07:30 AM

Udo - that's funny man....adding filler to lard.
who'd a thunk it??

anyway, i am going to get some lard today and experiment with it frying all sorts of stuff.

Udo - 6-13-2009 at 08:20 AM

Ey, Mike!

You'll be amazed at the difference in frying with lard.
1- The frying temperature stays more constant than with oil
2- It doesn't burn at higher temperatures
3- Stays clear through the entire frying process
4- Does not have those huge frying bubbles when food is introduced for frying

longhairedbeatnik - 6-13-2009 at 08:37 AM

I never gave up on lard years ago. I also never stopped using raw sugar for the same reason. The powers that be will always come up with a new wonder alternative to all our vices and then tell us how bad the new alternative is. Its a tailchasing endeaver at best.:tumble:

Bajahowodd - 6-13-2009 at 01:36 PM

Maybe I just don't know where to look, but here in Central Orange County, every tortilleria I've visited only makes corn tortillas. If they carry flour tortillas, they are packaged, and use vegetable oil.

Udo - 6-13-2009 at 03:23 PM

Bajaho,
you are close enough to East LA. Make a run to where the 60 & 710 come together and get off (of the 710) on Cesar Chavez Blvd. There is a tortilleria called La Fortaleza. Next to Baja, they have the best flour tortillas in the Southland.

JESSE - 6-13-2009 at 03:26 PM

Does this thread means its time to start eating carnitas again?

Cypress - 6-13-2009 at 03:34 PM

Add a couple pats of butter to the lard. Gives anything fried in it a buttery taste.:D

danaeb - 6-13-2009 at 04:37 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by JESSE
Does this thread means its time to start eating carnitas again?


Jesse - was it ever time to stop? Flor de Michoacan en Rosarito Beach, with Mary on the half-shell at the end of the dining room, and a big fridge full of beer and sodas.

The BEST!

[Edited on 6-14-2009 by danaeb]

Bajahowodd - 6-13-2009 at 04:45 PM

Thanks Udo. I'll check it out, although some may find me crazy for driving that far for a fix. And yes, Jesse, some of us never, ever, gave up the carnitas high.

Sharksbaja - 6-13-2009 at 11:11 PM

Fat sucks.

Sharksbaja - 6-13-2009 at 11:12 PM

OOPS, I mean..... fat sucks:lol:

Roger1

capt. mike - 6-14-2009 at 07:11 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by rogerj1
Capt. Mike: How's the service at Heart Attack Grill? Would you mind doing some research for us and reporting back? Pictures would really help.:biggrin:


i haven't actually been there. it was profiled on TDC or TLc a few months back and repeats. Pig out places or sumthin.

check out the video segment, it is on u tube too i think. the website might have the video. i will get there eventually. i am a sucker for burgers.

well today's the day. got my El Lardo. and starting with wings.

Bajahowodd - 6-14-2009 at 11:43 AM

El Lardo? Manteca de cerdo.

castaway$ - 6-16-2009 at 09:54 PM

So Udo I'm not going to make it from so. Oregon to E. LA but we do have a few tortilla places here that probably will make whatever I want so the question still remains- Is lard the differance between the tortilla's you get in Baja and the pasty,dry white ones you typically get in the states?

[Edited on 6-17-2009 by castaway$]