Pork Skin Cracklin

[user 122190]

I am making 15lbs of garlic sausage, and the Pork Shoulder came with the skin attached. Usually I toss the skin, but this morning I thought what can I do with this? A football was immediately rejected. But Cracklin, Hmmmmm?

My initial small test shows tis good, a beef jerky alternative snack food. Now onto the BIG piece. Should be done in time for the Nascar Daytona 500 race.

Here are the pictures –>

 

[user 122190]

Not bad. Lots and lots of fat, and it reduced down in size as expected.

 

[The Lorax]

Pro tip, stick it in the microwave for 30 seconds or so and a lot of the fat will render it out making it more crispy.

 

[user 122190]

Thanks for the tip. I hope to begin making this years salami, and any skin is going to make more cracklin. The cracklin before got eaten fast.

 

[muddstopper]

Hogs seem to be pretty cheap right now. I have heard of pig farms giving away tractor trailer load of pigs they don't have a market for. I was offered 2 -250lb hogs yesterday for $125. I don't have a place to keep them or I would have bought them.

We used to make cracklins when we where rendering lard. Cracklins is different than skins, altho made pretty much the same way. Crackins is the little pieces of meat left over from making lard. The main thing is to keep the heat low so as to not burn the meat. Get it to hot and you end up with black, hard, burnt cracklins, and burnt tasting lard. We took the hot melted lard and strained it thru cloth catching the cracking bits. We would take the cracklins and mix in with bread dough and make what we called cracklin bread. Pork skins are just what it says it is. Skins sliced into strips and deep fried in lard. I guess different regions might have different terms to describe skins and cracklins, but that is what we call the two items. I like to take pork side bellies and salt cure then cold smoke with the skin on. I will slice into bacon strips and fry like bacon. Get the fatty part crispy brown and then eat like bacon with my eggs.

 

[user 122190]

Hogs seem to be pretty cheap right now. I have heard of pig farms giving away tractor trailer load of pigs they don't have a market for. I was offered 2 -250lb hogs yesterday for $125. I don't have a place to keep them or I would have bought them.

We used to make cracklins when we where rendering lard. Cracklins is different than skins, altho made pretty much the same way. Crackins is the little pieces of meat left over from making lard. The main thing is to keep the heat low so as to not burn the meat. Get it to hot and you end up with black, hard, burnt cracklins, and burnt tasting lard. We took the hot melted lard and strained it thru cloth catching the cracking bits. We would take the cracklins and mix in with bread dough and make what we called cracklin bread. Pork skins are just what it says it is. Skins sliced into strips and deep fried in lard. I guess different regions might have different terms to describe skins and cracklins, but that is what we call the two items. I like to take pork side bellies and salt cure then cold smoke with the skin on. I will slice into bacon strips and fry like bacon. Get the fatty part crispy brown and then eat like bacon with my eggs.

I am sure you are right about the proper names of these snacks. I called it cracklin, cause my neighbor had recently given me some from the rendered bear fat, from the bear I shot last Oct. That was excellant !

 

[ATpro]

Yep cracklins is rendered fat that has all the grease rendered out, the grease is called lard and makes the best tasting frying grease for things like french fries and chicken. In the meat market we would save the pork fat to make sausage and the extra take home and render for cracklins. I even mixed some in my hamburger that I took home, it made the hamburger taste much better. I made an 80/20 mix with about 20% of the 80% lean mix with lean pork and about 10% of the 20% fat mix with pork fat. Put a little salt, pepper, oatmeal, and a little Dale's steak sauce in the mix and grill, it was as good as steak and much cheaper.
If you want a cheaper alternative to Rib-eye you can get top sirloin, marinate it in milk over night then marinate it in a mix of Dale's steak sauce and coke for a few hours then take it out and tamp it dry and rub it in olive oil and rub with Southern charcoal seasoning and grill. I use to take sirloin tip steaks cut across the grain ( not the way most are cut in the shelf) and do the same way. You can do K bobs from cheap cuts the same way.

 

[user 122190]

Yep cracklins is rendered fat that has all the grease rendered out, the grease is called lard and makes the best tasting frying grease for things like french fries and chicken. In the meat market we would save the pork fat to make sausage and the extra take home and render for cracklins. I even mixed some in my hamburger that I took home, it made the hamburger taste much better. I made an 80/20 mix with about 20% of the 80% lean mix of pork and about 10% of the 20% fat mix with pork fat. Put a little salt, pepper, and oatmeal in the mix and grill, it was as good as steak.

I just pulled out of the freezer to large Pork Shoulders to make Salami. I still have lots of bear fat (unrendered) that I can add to the pork. I will know when I cut into the pork and see just how lean it is. When it comes to Salami, fat is good, and bear fat is best.