10 Reasons You Should Be Cooking With Lard

In a not so distant past (about a century ago) and in a not so foreign land (like, in America), lard was the fat that people cooked with. It wasn’t butter. Nor canola oil. And definitely not extra virgin olive oil.

Lard — rendered pig fat — was what people used when they needed to make pastry; when dinner needed frying; and even as a quick breakfast, eaten smeared on a piece of bread. So much has changed in our recent history. Lard is not only out of favor, it’s even considered a derogatory word.

We’re not going to get into how or why this happened — though Crisco and Upton Sinclair have gotten most of the blame — we’d just like to focus on bringing this glorious cooking (and baking) fat back into people’s kitchens. It’s time to let go of the lard stigma and enjoy great pie crust again. Let us make our case: