Josephine Posted January 27, 2009 Share Posted January 27, 2009 I 'm in the middle of making and canning chicken soup, I've de-fatted the stock and put the fat in jars in the fridge. I know I can make gravy, and white sauce for casseroles with it, but anything else? I have a little more than a pint. Link to comment
serendipity Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 Josephine, do you have any pets? We have taken melted fats and poured it over dog/cat food, especially for any slim animals. They go bonkers over it. But that isn't exactly a people-food use, is it? lol Maybe someone will have a better answer.... Link to comment
Homemaker Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 Duck fat is highly prized in some cultures for frying in. I would assume chicken fat would be similar. Link to comment
Josephine Posted January 28, 2009 Author Share Posted January 28, 2009 Originally Posted By: serendipity Josephine, do you have any pets? We're thinking of getting a cat. But that would be in a few weeks a month or two. I'll have to try the frying bit, thanks. Link to comment
PureCajunSunshine Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 What Homemaker said about duck fat applies to chicken fat as well. I've read that both fats are considered to be the healthiest of all the animal fats. (I don't remember the hows and whys of that application.) The fried chicken skins are so tasty that it is considered a named delicacy in many parts of the world...'cept here. When I package chicken parts for the freezer, I peel the skin off of most of them and put the skins into several small plastic freezer bags. I try to make sure to squeeze all the air out of the bags to help prevent freezerburn. Sometimes when I want a different, more robust flavor when sauteeing certain vegetables for a dish, or when I want to make a roux with a different twang, I'll fry a small package of skins to render the oil. The 'cracklings' are outrageously delicious, too! Link to comment
PureCajunSunshine Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 Cool avatar, Josephine! Every time I see it, I hafta smile and wink back! Link to comment
CrabGrassAcres Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 Use chicken or duck or goose fat to make pastry shells for your chicken potpie! Link to comment
Stephanie Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 This was a really good question and I've enjoyed the answers. I want to clarify this is mind. So.... when I'm removing the excess fatty skin before I'm cooking, that can actually be fried out and I'll have cracklings? This is very interesting to me because one of my dh's favorite childhood foods was his grandma's crackling cornbread. I also had this as a child, but I thought crackling was the end of the bacon fried out hard...was I mixed up? Also, the original question was about the layer of fat that is removed from the broth after cooking, right? And that can be used like a 'lard'? Is that what I'm understanding? Link to comment
Josephine Posted January 28, 2009 Author Share Posted January 28, 2009 Originally Posted By: PureCajunSunshine The fried chicken skins are so tasty that it is considered a named delicacy in many parts of the world...'cept here. ... I'll fry a small package of skins to render the oil. The 'cracklings' are outrageously delicious, too! Cool avatar, Josephine! Every time I see it, I hafta smile and wink back! I LOVE crisp chicken skin. That sounds gross doesn't it? Fried chicken legs and wings are some of my favorite food, and I always try and time my grocery store visits after 11:00 so that the hot bar will have them. I am very specific about getting the crunchiest ones, and often will have the deli people give me any bits that have fallen off the other pieces. Re: the avatar, thanks I made it myself. That video was a fav of mine back in the day. heehee! Link to comment
Josephine Posted January 28, 2009 Author Share Posted January 28, 2009 Originally Posted By: CrabGrassAcres Use chicken or duck or goose fat to make pastry shells for your chicken potpie! That's a good idea. Will the fat be too "soft" though? Link to comment
PureCajunSunshine Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 Originally Posted By: Stephanie So.... when I'm removing the excess fatty skin before I'm cooking, that can actually be fried out and I'll have cracklings? mmm...YEAH! Be sure to rinse the skin well, and pat dry before you cook it. Originally Posted By: Stephanie ..... but I thought crackling was the end of the bacon fried out hard...was I mixed up? 'tis 'zactly the same thing, just a different critter... Originally Posted By: Stephanie Also, the original question was about the layer of fat that is removed from the broth after cooking, right? And that can be used like a 'lard'? Is that what I'm understanding? Some folks use that, other folks prefer to render the oil by frying the skins. (I prefer the latter, because it contains no moisture (broth), and it's easier for me to strain out everything, plus it seems to work better for me for sauteeing, etc.) The oil rendered by frying seems to stay fresh longer than the kind made by skimming the fatty layer off the top of cooled broth...it seems that minute amounts of broth seems to stick to the fat, and that's probably the culprit. It just does not keep well. On the other hand, the fried oil stays 'fresh' for months in the refrigerator. A note of caution...excess fats in canine diets can lead to pancreatic problems (more notably so in smaller dogs). A pancreatic attack is excruciating painful for the dog, and most heartbreaking to see and hear! This condition is becoming more prevalent, and the experts are blaming high fat diets as one of the leading causes... Link to comment
CrabGrassAcres Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 Originally Posted By: Josephine Originally Posted By: CrabGrassAcres Use chicken or duck or goose fat to make pastry shells for your chicken potpie! That's a good idea. Will the fat be too "soft" though? No, it isn't too soft. Be sure to use enough salt in the dough too. Most people make their crusts too bland. Link to comment
kappydell Posted May 26, 2009 Share Posted May 26, 2009 Chicken fat is very versatile. Melt it and use like oil in pancake, bread or other recipes. Chill it in refrigerator and use in biscuits, pie crusts, etc. In cakes it makes a tender cake, but they don't rise as high, so compensate and separate the eggs in the recipe. Beat the whites, and fold in last to make up the extra height. In baking, it works best with flavored foods, chocolate cake, cinnamon cookies, molasses anything, etc. If you want a white cake, you will detect the chickeny flavor so make a lemon one instead. Use to saute flour dredged meats for braised meat, casseroles, etc. Melt down, it makes a nice roux when mixed with flour. Use for gravies & sauces. BTW, cracklins are from pork, but they are the crispy fibrous parts of the pork fat when the liquidly part is rendered out. Use them instead of shortening (same amount as shortening) in corn bread; also good to season a mess of snap beans. My mom never threw out chicken fat, we ALWAYS used it in baking or cooking. I guess that comes from being born in 1930 on a farm. They threw out NOTHING. Im grateful to her for teaching me so many frugal tricks. She will probably save my life one day. Link to comment
Prickle Posted May 26, 2009 Share Posted May 26, 2009 Chicken fat is big in Jewish cooking and is used in the same ways lard is/was used. I use it to give a little extra flavor in casseroles or for frying. Pretty much the same way I use bacon grease. Link to comment
autumn7 Posted May 28, 2009 Share Posted May 28, 2009 Very good tips here. I have a Question~ how long can it be kept in the frig? is better to just freeze it till you need it? Link to comment
Christy Posted May 29, 2009 Share Posted May 29, 2009 Ya'll remove the skin from chicken before preparing it? But.. but.. but... that's the nicest part of chicken. Spicy crispy yummy! Nothing like a chicken from the grill and eating the hot knispery skin. Oh, did the anti-fat lobby have a campaign or something about removing the skin before griling chicken perhaps? I heard about that. Chickenfat is used for everything here. Well, most fats are used, if only for the animals. Waste not, want not. Thank you frugal tighfisted ancestors. But it's great stuff to fry potatoes in, to fry other meat in, never tried it but after washing it it'd probably be ok for soapmaking as well. A friend gave me two jars of canned meat, done by her MIL. Fat on top is spicy and used to fry tatters in. Delicious. Which reminds me, when making pate you need to cover with a layer of fat as well. This'd be good use for chickenfat. Link to comment
cowgirl8 Posted May 29, 2009 Share Posted May 29, 2009 I'm a little odd when it comes to chickens. I didnt use to be. But, when my kids showed them for FFA, i turned anti chicken. I do not eat it off the bone and i dont ever eat it with the skin. I buy ready to cook boneless skinless breast. It cant look like a chicken at all. I love chicken meat, it just cant be associated with a chicken. I will occasionally buy a roasted chicken at walmart, but pick the meat off the bones and skin. I then freeze that so that i can get the carcass image out of my head. Heaven help me if i see some sort of vein or blob... Reason, at show time, we would have a bout 50 chickens left to slaughter. Along with the kids, we formed an assembly line to process them. I got the final cleaning(yes, the easier job) So so gross, it took me forever to eat chicken again even though i had a freezer full of it. Eat or use the skin..................faints Link to comment
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