Cookaholics Bulletin Board

Around here (PA dutch country) it's in the dairy case near the butter.

Me too Carey. Funny how here it's everywhere! (Emilie - roadtrip?) I use the Canadian Living food processor piecrust recipe with great success, half lard and half butter. I've made the vodka CI one a couple of times but the CL one is no slouch and fast to do when I'm making them for the freezer.

I am lucky that there is a farmer's market pork vendor who will save me the leaf fat so I can render it myself (he, like many small pork producers, often discards the leaf fat ). I really like the Kenji Lopez-Alt method for pie crusts. I've never had a more compliant yet flaky and tender crust.

You are lucky...and I couldn't agree with you more about Kenji's recipe. It's the perfect pie crust, especially using half leaf lard and half butter.

Amy

I use the recipe from Baking with Julia most of the time, only I sub lard for the shortening. It uses a bit of cake flour IIRC (or at least my version of it does), which gives me a bit of leeway since I tend to do better with wetter doughs and I'm a stitch prone to overhandling it. The Canadian Living recipe has worked well for me too, as has the recipe on the back of the Tenderflake box. That one is the standard one around here (all of the Hutterite, Mennonite, and rural women seem to use it - very popular at fowl/fall suppers). Lard just produces a crisp, very flaky, somewhat savoury pie crust that to me is quintessential good pie crust. I have to admit, it's the only thing I use lard for, so I always have a hunk of Tenderflake hanging around in my freezer. It holds really well that way.

Jean,

I think we Canucks love our lard. I grew up eating lard pie crusts, only I didn't know that's what they were. It took me forever to figure out why my butter/shortening crusts never tasted right. My mom never made pie, so every time I asked her how grandma made hers, she said she didn't know. I found out one day at a work potluck when a colleague brought in a pie, and it was perfect so I asked her what she had used. She pointed me to the recipe on the back of the Tenderflake lard box. I'm sure it's the same recipe my grandma used. Now that was a happy day!

Lard also features in poutine (the fries are fried in it) and tourtiere (it's in the filling and in the crust). I'm sure it's a secret ingredient in a lot of things, actually.

When we first moved to Canada I went to make a cream cheese sandwich...and used lard since it was out of the package. I had never seen it in our fridge in the US.
I don't make a lot of pies. The odd pumpkin and apple once every couple of years. I do however make a lot of quiche, and the CL recipe delivers for that every time.

Eeeeeeewwww!!! Your poor mouth!

My family always used lard when I was growing up and it is what appears in many Cuban recipes including empanada dough etc. I have not used it in years, but would like to get some. I am really ignorant of the differences. I have never seen anything here except the package in the Mexican section on the shelf, not refrigerated.

I looked online and found a place in MN (Prairie) that sells it, but the price is more than I can really afford (Over $16 for one pound + $20 in shipping costs for >2 lbs.) I did find a place from Canada that sells Tenderflake for $4.79 a lb. and has a $10.95 flat shipping rate to the US, so if I bought 2 lbs. it would be a total of about $20.00. Since they recommend freezing and I have a food saver, I figure I'd be set for a while.

So, is there a downside to ordering the Tenderflake? Any concerns? Any other suggestions? Thanks for your help.

Alina,

I can vouch that Tenderflake keeps forever in the freezer. With the flat rate shipping I'd be tempted to get more than 2 lbs, just to make it worth it, but only if you think you'd use it. 1lb makes one big batch of pie crust if you do all lard (enough for 3 double crust pies). I have abusively tossed the open, unwrapped box into the freezer and it has stayed fine over periods of months. I chip pieces off for small uses (you have to defrost it to use in pastry though). I have no idea how it differs from leaf lard. To me it's the only lard I know. It's white, and lardy tasting (vaguely savoury, unsalted, faintly pork-flavoured Crisco is the best way I can think to describe it). There is a definite flavour that comes through in pastry though, along with super flakiness. I use it to season my cast iron pans too. I've had empanadas made with lard. They are super good (very flakey). Extremely rich, but oh so good.

Edit: It's not refrigerated here either. It's shelved beside the Crisco. Might not be that different from the Mexican stuff that you can get there.