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How To Render Pork Fat Into Lard

On November 18, 2023 by

Have you ever rendered your own lard? It can seem a little daunting if you’ve never done it before, but I’m here to tell you it’s super easy and totally worth the effort.

“Rendering” is the process of melting solid animal fat to remove impurities, tissue, and extra water content. You start off with big chunks of fat, melt it all into liquid, strain out any leftover pieces, and cool it down into a smooth, buttery, shelf-stable fat. Lard is great for cooking and frying because it has a high smoke point.

Before I get into the details, I do want to mention that the fat I used this time around was not well-trimmed at all. It looked like I was making a pot of cracklin soup by the end (shown above). Ideally, you should end up with a pot of clear liquid fat and just a few cracklins hanging around.

Also, if you’re looking for a super pure, tasteless lard to make things like pastries and pie crusts, you’ll need to request only the “leaf fat” from your butcher. This fat is located around the pig’s organs, particularly the kidneys. But if you’re like our family, and just want some delicious fat to fry some potatoes and onions in for breakfast, any fat will do. For this batch, I used all the fat from the last three pigs we had butchered. It made just under 2 gallons!!

Supplies & Ingredients

  • Cutting board and knife
  • A big pot
  • *Metal spoon
  • Pork fat
  • Water
  • Metal sieve
  • Canning jars, lids and rings
  • Metal canning funnel
  • An outdoor burner, if possible

    *Use metal for all your tools. Plastic might melt!

Preparation and Rendering

Chop up the pork fat into small pieces, or use a meat grinder- the smaller the pieces, the faster everything will melt. I was feeling lazy, so these pieces were on the large side.

Put a little water in the pot along with a small amount of the fat. I used about 1/2 cup of filtered water. It’s not an exact science, it will all evaporate by the end. The water just helps the pieces not stick to the pot and burn.

Turn the heat on low, and as the fat starts to soften and dissolve, keep adding more fat. Once there’s an inch or two of liquid in the bottom of the pot, go ahead and add all of the fat. Just be sure you can still scrape the bottom of the pot while stirring! Turn the burner up to a medium heat.

The first hour or so requires the most attention. Stir it every couple minutes, making sure nothing is sticking to the bottom of the pot.

About 1-2 hours in, the fat should be looking like whitish-brownish-grayish jiggly boogers floating in a few inches of watery oil. This is the point where you might start to worry if you did something terribly wrong. But if there ever was an application for the phrase “trust the process”, it’s here. It’s gonna be okay. 

For the next 4 or so hours of your life, babysit the fat. Keep the heat at an even, medium temp so it is gently simmering. Stir often.

This is where the outdoor burner is going to be your best friend. I love the smell of bacon as much as anyone. But after a few hours, the smell is a little overpowering. I did it inside last year, and everyone in the house was feeling nauseous by the end. It took a couple days for the smell to dissipate. Not fun.

Canning Time!

When it looks like you have a pot of crispy pork rinds, and the fat is liquid and clear, strain any cracklins out with a metal sieve. Set aside, salt generously, and enjoy some melt-in-your mouth fat bombs.

Turn the heat down as low as possible. This will keep the fat hot, but allow any small, leftover particles to sink to the bottom of the pot. (At this point I brought everything inside and finished it on the stove.)

Gather your canning jars, lids, and rings. Wash/sterilize as you normally would. The goal is to have hot fat, hot jars, and hot lids. 

Using a metal canning funnel, fill your jars with the liquid fat, leaving about 1/2″ to 1″ headspace. Check for any drips, and wipe the rims as need. Apply the lids and rings. They should seal on their own pretty quickly- mine sealed within 10-15 minutes.

*Note: I use the open-kettle canning method, and it has worked great for me in the past. Some people say to water-bath or pressure can it. I encourage you to do your own research and do whatever you feel comfortable with. Thankfully, lard will absolutely let you know if it’s gone bad- I’ve heard it smells like acetone if it’s spoiled.

Once I reached the bottom of the pot, I added all the itty bitty leftover bits from the bottom into the last container. (I just used a glass bowl and put it in the fridge.) This stuff is awesome for frying potatoes!

Let everything cool, then remove rings and store at room temperature.

That’s it! Let me know if you’ve ever made your own lard, or if you have any other questions about the process.

Have a great day, y’all!

Remember you can also follow Iveyshire on Instagram @iveyshireblog.

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