Bacon Grease: an old-fashioned ingredient that deserves a comeback

We were recently lucky enough to be able to opt-in on a massive order of artisan bacon, made locally by some chefs here in Seattle. It’s the most delicious bacon I’ve ever had, and we’ve been having a lot of BLT’s and other assorted bacony goodness for dinners. This post is about bacon grease.

When I was a kid, my mom always had a container of bacon grease. It sat on our counter, just behind the kitchen sink. We used it every time we were frying or sauteeing foods. Bacon grease was a common starter for foods in those days, like olive oil is now. While olive oil may be healthier, bacon grease will lend that certain depth of flavor to your recipes — the depth your mom or grandma had in her recipes that you just can’t seem to duplicate? It’s generally either bacon grease or lard.

We keep an old condiment jar (glass) in the fridge, and add to it as we have bacon grease.

Use bacon grease to roast veggies or potatoes or to fry or scramble eggs. You can rub the cold, semi-solid grease on the skin of a chicken or turkey before roasting to give it flavor and depth, and make the skin delicious and crispy.

My favorite thing to do with bacon grease was shown to me by Social Worker In Motion when we first met. Pop popcorn in it. You’ll never want that nasty microwave stuff with its artificial flavors again. Recipe below:

OLD SCHOOL POPCORN!
Heat a tablespoon or slightly more of the grease in a big pot over high heat.
Drop one popcorn kernel in. When that kernel pops, it’s at the right temperature.
Dump in a quarter-cup or so of popcorn kernels, and seal with a tight-fitting lid.

Shake the pot slightly over the element every few seconds, to ensure the popcorn doesn’t burn. It will begin popping shortly. Once the popping has slowed to more than 2 seconds between pops, turn off the heat and throw the popcorn into a bowl. Add butter or salt to taste. (I usually just add a teeny bit of salt, as the bacon grease adds a buttery salty flavor that’s lovely.)

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