Leaf Lard

August 19, 2009 in Crust, Leaf Lard, Pie | 8 comments

Leaf LardLeaf lard is the fat that surrounds the pig’s kidneys. It is of very high quality and, when rendered, makes some of the best tasting and flakiest crusts ever!

Don’t let the name lard put you off. It is lower in saturated fat and cholesterol than butter.

I was introduced to leaf lard I was given a one pound container some years ago.

The creamy white substance looked similar to store bought shortening my grandma used in liberal amounts. She was the pie-baker in the family but went to her grave with her crust recipe!

I’d always heard lard makes the best crusts. Searching it out, all I could find was the boxed stuff in the grocery store international section and wondered if there might be another option.

The gift of this little tub was a great opportunity to learn and I got right to work experimenting. I made crust after crust, trying to get the right ratio of butter and lard to create a pie crust that is
flavorful
light
flakey
and easy to work with.

The Great Pie Crust Quest took over two years of work. Friends were ever-willing testers, offering feedback, suggestions and encouragement, every step of the way.

Some days I made four versions of crust to try, tweaking amounts of butter, leaf lard, water, not to mention flour, a whole subject in itself.

Others have discovered this old-fashioned ingredient, too. Lorna Yee (Seattle Magazine and Cookbook Chronicles) calls it her “porcine secret”. Ashley Rodriguez has a short video about rendering your own on her blog, notwithoutsalt in which she demonstrates one method to make your own. And, I  spent a lovely afternoon with Shauna (Gluten Free Girl) and Danny Ahern (pork, knife & spoon) testing out some gluten-free crust recipes made with leaf lard.

A few months back, I started rendering my own. It’s quite easy to do. 

Give it a try!

  2. Camee’s avatar

    Camee on August 31, 2009 at 1:19 am

    Are you willing to share your favorite pie crust recipe with lard? I’d love to try this!

  3. Karen Robertson’s avatar

    Karen Robertson on October 28, 2009 at 5:40 pm

    I live in Magnolia and am thrilled to know you are in the neighborhood. I hope to take one of your classes in the near future. I am intriqued to try the rendered leaf lard. I know that when Shauna first started the gluten-free diet she consulted and recommended my book in the process. I look forward to meeting her someday too. She is such a great writer and has done much to lift those on the gluten-free diet out of the doldrums with her wit and wonderful view on life. Right now the fat in my gluten-free pie crust recipe consists of butter–I have experimented with lard in the recipe without good results. I hope to learn more, thank you. Karen

  6. Millie Wood’s avatar

    Millie Wood on April 28, 2010 at 12:15 am

    me and my sister are both allergic to Gluten and we were always on a gluten-free diet ever since we were teenagers. |

  7. Albert Dionne’s avatar

    Albert Dionne on July 17, 2010 at 11:27 am

    I have been trying to make a crut for pies and am not having much luck, I have enrolled in a pie crust class at King arthur flour in Norwich Vermont but have hear how good leaf lard is and after reading what you have above was wondering if you have ever revealed your recipe for the pie crust using leaf lard. If so can you tell me how to find it. Thank You. Al

  8. Art of the Pie’s avatar

    Art of the Pie on July 17, 2010 at 2:04 pm

    Hi Albert! Oh how I would love to attend a King Arthur Pie Class. They are coming to my neck of the woods in the Fall when they take their baking show on the road. It’s on my calendar! I’m looking forward to meeting the fine KA bakers.

    Now to answer your question. The recipe is out there on the web. If you type in my name and pie crust you’ll probably find it!

    Please check back in and let us know how the KA class is!