LardLovers

Coast Packing Company’s

9th Annual #LardLovers Recipe Contest

Taste of Tradition: Heritage Recipes Reimagined.

Calling all lard lovers! Do you have an original recipe that features lard? If so, we invite you to enter our contest—it’s easy!

For generations, lard has been at the heart of the world’s most beloved dishes — from flaky pies and tamales to crispy fried chicken and empanadas. This year’s LardLovers Recipes Contest celebrates those roots with a new twist: “Taste of Tradition: Heritage Recipes Reimagined.”

We invite home cooks, professional chefs, and food lovers everywhere to bring back family favorites and cultural classics, updated for modern kitchens — and powered by real, natural lard.

Just submit your best heritage-inspired recipe reimagined for modern times, using lard as a key ingredient.

How to Enter

Just upload your original recipe, which includes lard, using the form below.

Each entry must include:

Recipe title
Full ingredient list
Step-by-step instructions
At least one clear photo of the finished dish.
+ Optional short essay: “How I Reinvented My Traditional Recipe Using Lard” — You may include a short optional essay describing how lard helped you reimagine a traditional family or cultural recipe for today’s kitchen — why the original recipe matters to you or your family, what change or adaptation you made, or how lard transformed the taste, texture, or authenticity of the dish.

Entries are judged on flavor authenticity, creativity, integration of lard, and visual presentation.

That’s it, you’re entered! Only the top recipes will advance to the next round, where our judging panel will conduct taste tests. If your recipe is selected, you’ll have a chance to win one of four fantastic prizes! Images of all entries will be posted below.

Please note: Only one entry per person.

PRIZES

2025 Prize Packages

Sweet Category

1st Prize: KitchenAid® Porcelain Artisan Stand Mixer with Walnut Bowl, 5 qt (MSRP $750)
2nd Prize: Lancaster No. 10 Cast Iron Skillet (MSRP $225)

Savory Category

1st Prize: Heritage Steel 8-Piece Core Set (MSRP $650)
2nd Prize: Le Creuset Modern Heritage Round Dutch Oven (MSRP $336)

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Contest open to legal residents of the USA, 21+. One entry per person. Entries accepted until through December 8, 2025.

Questions or having trouble submitting via the form? Email us your questions, or submit your recipe and photo here: lardlovers@coastpacking.com

Sample recipe:

Entry Period: November 18 – December 8, 2025

~ LARDLOVERS 2025 Winners ~

We’re thrilled to announce the winners of the 9th Annual Coast Packing #LardLovers Recipe Contest!

Fueled by this year’s “Taste of Tradition” theme, talented home cooks from across the country reimagined cherished family recipes, each one powered by real, natural lard. The creativity and passion in every entry made this year’s contest truly special—thank you to everyone who took part and shared their delicious traditions with us.

This year’s winners are:

❤️ SAVORY Category:

🥇 1st Prize: Smoky Pork Lard Tamale Bites with Roasted Corn Cream Sauce by Ansley Johnson

🥈 2nd Prize: East Meets West Fried Chicken Sandwich by Lisa Keys

❤️ SWEET Category:

🥇 1st Prize: Classic Cinnamon Rolls by Kathleen Stewart

🥈 2nd Prize: Grandma Hazel’s Spiced “Sponge” Cake by Emily Wentz

Congratulations to our four winners! Your inventive takes on heritage recipes truly impressed our judges and captured the spirit of this year’s theme. To everyone who entered, thank you for making this community a vibrant celebration of tradition, innovation, and the joys of cooking with lard.

We can’t wait to see what you’ll create for our milestone 10th LardLovers Recipe Contest next year—celebrating a decade of nature’s perfect cooking and baking fat! 💕

~ LARDLOVERS 2025 Top Ten Finalists ~

~ LARDLOVERS 2025 Recipe Submissions ~

LardLovers Recipe Submission Tips

Be sure to include in your recipe the following steps to ensure each items is fully descriptor and supplied with all the necessary steps. See Sample.

Step 1

Title

Include Title of the Recipe

Step 2

Recipe Description

A brief description of the finished product, history, or tradition to pique the readers interest and provide an idea of finished product.

Step 3

Servings or Yield

Servings. Please indicate how much as pieces, cups, or portions

Step 4

Prep Time

Prep Time: The time to cut, slice, portion ingredients before combining to make dish, including cooling or refrigeration before serving.

Step 5

Cooking Time

Time to cook at the stove, bake, fry or grill to prepare components, as well as recipe ingredients.

Step 6

Ingredients

Please use U.S. weights and measurements for each ingredient.

Step 7

Instructions

Please list the steps to make your creation, include storage for leftovers.

Step 8

Short Essay question

What makes lard special to you? A rich tradition, a fond memory, or a sweet recipe? Share your sweet story, handed down family recipe, or treasured memory cooking with lard.

~ LARDLOVERS 2024 Winners ~

~ LARDLOVERS 2023 Winners ~

Congratulations to the FINAL FOUR WINNERS!

~SWEET CATEGORY~

1ST PRIZE: Bourbon Banana Muffins with a Toffee Crumble by Elaine Barbee

2ND PRIZE: Strawberry Snowball Mini-Cakes by Brenda Watts

~SAVORY CATEGORY~

1ST PRIZE: Pork Meatballs and Scrambled Eggs Sliders Party by Yoshiharu Sogi

2ND PRIZE: Charcuterie Board Between Bread by Sandra Dombek

LARDLOVERS 2022 Winners

The people again have spoken – in this case, a group of judges skilled in the culinary arts – awarding top prizes to four contestants and their delectable creations, in Coast Packing Company’s Sixth Annual #LardLovers Recipe Contest.