Rendering Lard

[Watcher48]

I had about 20 lbs of lard that I put in the big Church cooker to render out. I set the temp for 200. I strained and poured off some of the melted fat and when its cool its not that beutiful white. its slightly tan. Anybody see any trouble with that. Don't know what happened.

[Wisconsin Ann]

did the water ever boil out of it? you should have seen steaming as the cracklings dried....that said, I've seen rendered fat that was off white. didn't seem to make a difference in soaping or greasing up the wheels

[Jeff54321]

200 degrees will NOT boil off the water. The tan color is okay but you need to boil off the water.

[js2743]

i agree its not cooked you need to put it back on and cook more when it looks like soap suds on top its done.

[highlands]

Originally Posted by Jeff54321

200 degrees will NOT boil off the water. The tan color is okay but you need to boil off the water.

The boiling temperature of water depends on altitude / air pressure. As you go higher the water boils at a lower temperature.

[Stephen in SOKY]

I use a pinch of baking soda when nearly rendered.

[Jeff54321]

You are so right Highlands. Here is the edited version.

200 degrees will NOT boil off the water (Unless you are above 6500 feet in elevation). The tan color is okay but you need to boil off the water. Assuming you are at or near sea level that would be a minimum of 212 degrees to boil and thereby remove the water.

When I render lard that doesn't come out as white as I'd like I boil it in a pot of water. This is after you've rendered out all the meat and other tissues and have only the fat left. Boil it in an equal volume of water and stir often. A lot of the non-fat stuff will go out into the water. Let the whole thing cool until the lard is solid again. Remove from the water, scrape any discolored layer off the bottom then reheat to drive out the last of the water. I can often get it pretty white like that.

.....Alan.

[highlands]

An interesting question would be how many homesteaders are affected by the altitude issue. I notice it in cooking and baking and we're only around 1800 ft in elevation. However, I read recently that the vast majority of the world's population lives along the coast lines. Thus most people would be at sea level or close to it.

[greeneyedgirl70]

Originally Posted by Stephen in SOKY

I use a pinch of baking soda when nearly rendered.

What does the baking soda do for it? What is the purpose of it?