Cooking is the most popular hobby of almost everyone, but cooking with natural quality is something beyond imagination. Are you looking for the best lard substitute for your kitchen?
There are several mouth-watering recipes in the world but lard is the most favorite and amazing dish for your meal. For quality cooking, you just need to understand the different types of ingredients which enhance the taste and appearance of your dish.
We outline some best lard substitutes which reduce your tension when you don’t have lard on your kitchen shelf. Let’s get into the further details!
Table of Contents
What Is Lard?
It doesn’t matter if you used lard or not, but it is really important to know if is lard helpful in your kitchen. Basically, lard is pig fat and most people used it to enhance the taste of dishes.
Making lard is not an easy task as it requires multiple processes. Lard is fat which removed from the pig and it was melted down until it separates proteins and water from the fat.
The color of the lard is bright white solid fat. Keep in mind that lard will not spoil easily without water and proteins in itself. Moreover, because of this reason, lard is known as 100% pure fat.
Why Do You Need To Use Lard?
The use of any ingredient in the kitchen is normal to enhance the taste and appearance of the dish. The other common reason to use lard in kitchen ingredients is its versatile quality.
The use of lard is well-known in baking and cooking just because of its high-fat content and neutral taste. If you are a lover of pie crusts and flaky biscuits, then lard is a great option for you.
To feed the perfect lard is an ingredient that can do the best job in your kitchen. With the lard, you can easily make your meals or dishes tastier and perfect.
8 Best Lard Substitutes
Most of the time when you don’t have a specific ingredient in your kitchen, then you are looking for its simple and best alternatives. Also, there are multiple lard substitutes that can reduce your tension while preparing your favorite dishes or meals.
We give you details of common alternatives for lard which can easily be available all the time and you can find out in your nearby stores without any problem.
1. Vegetable Shortening
It is the best alternative for lard which can serve great in your meals as a substitute for lard. The vegetable shortening is basically made from soybean, palm oil, and vegetable, which is much close to lard.
So, if your dish is related to the frying process then this high-fat content will be a great substitute for you. Around the world, most people used vegetable shortening as the best alternative for lard, only because of its high-fat content.
Moreover, you don’t need to worry about splattering because this vegetable shortening contains very less water quantity.
Note:
Make sure to use a ratio of 1:1. It means you only need to use one cup of vegetable shortening as you take one cup of lard.
2. Butter
The butter is the closest to lard because it gives your meal a thick texture just like lard gives. Butter is a great substitute for lard when roasting or baking your favorite meals.
The overall taste of the butter and lard are quite the same, and you will not feel any difference in their taste. While using butter in your dishes as a substitute for lard, it will make your dishes crip, especially in baking and roasting.
Moreover, if you are using butter as a substitute for lard only for fried dishes, then butter will not be the best option for you. Bear in mind that butter is only 80% fat and lard is 100% fat. But you need to use more butter in your dishes.
Note:
Make sure to use 1/4 and one tablespoons of butter as a substitute for 1/4 cup of lard.
3. Beef Tallow
The beef tallow is also the fat ingredient of other animal fat. It is the best substitute for lard. If you don’t want to eat pork, then it is an amazing and tasty option for you and also it can easily be available in every store.
Moreover, the only problem with beef tallow is for those people who are on a low-calorie diet. The beef tallow is high in calories which makes it unsuitable for a low-calorie diet person.
Note:
Make sure to use the same quantity of beef tallow as you use lard. Don’t worry about its result, because the results will be surely practically the same in every dish.
4. Vegetable Oil
The use of vegetable oil for the replacement of lard in your dishes is also a great and natural option for you. Keep in mind that vegetable oil is a perfect alternative for lard.
If you are using vegetable oil as a replacement for lard in frying dishes, then you must need to use high heat for the cooking process. Moreover, the downside of using vegetable oil is its high concentrations of chemicals.
But using a limited amount of vegetable oil is perfect to enhance the taste and appearance of your dishes.
Note:
Make sure to use only 7/8 cups of vegetable oil for only one cup of lard.
5. Coconut Oil
It is the most common and well-known ingredient in our kitchen is called coconut oil. Bear in mind that it has a unique and high smoking point as compared to other oil.
It is the best substitute for lard when you have the plan to fry your desired dish. Moreover, keep in mind that with the use of coconut oil, you can not get the original taste of your dish and it might be not the perfect option.
While using coconut oil, will use high heat of the flame to fry your dish, but it’s a really great ingredient for the baking process.
Note:
Make sure to use an equal amount of coconut oil as you use lard quantity in your desired recipe.
6. Olive Oil
Another substitute for lard is olive oil. Bear in mind that the use of olive oil in your recipes will give you a taste of olives and also it does not give an appropriate taste to every dish.
But the use of olive oil is great and amazing in baking recipes. Moreover, the smoking point of olive oil is very low, which means olive oil is not the best option for frying.
Note:
Make sure to use an equal amount of olive oil for the substitute oil lard. It means one cup of olive oil for one cup of lard.
7. Mashed Banana
Mashed banana is the best alternative for lard. This substitute is especially useful for baking, but you didn’t expect the same taste results when you use lard.
Baking items can be bread, cookies, muffins, and cakes these are the multiple recipes that give you the best result taste while using mashed banana. Moreover, they will not provide high calories and also have good moisture.
8. Avocado
It is the last alternative on the list which is avocado and it’s a great substitute for lard. Keep in mind that the results of avocado in your dishes are quite similar to those you use for mashed bananas.
Moreover, it will not provide your body with high calories and give your dishes smooth and good moisture.
Note:
Always take half the quantity of fruit as the substitute for lard. You can also check the mixture of the ingredients during the cooking process. If you feel that your dish is looking dry then you can add more substitutes to it.
How To Make Lard At Home?
Lard is the most amazing and common ingredient that almost everyone uses in their recipes. It is an old product that helps you to use in your cooking to enhance the taste and appearance of your dishes.
However, making lard at home is not a difficult task when you have specific things on your kitchen shelf. All you just to take only 2 lbs quantity of pork and follow the below-listed instructions:
Step By Step Guide
- Make small pieces of pork and chop them well.
- Add 2 tablespoons of normal water into a saucepan. Adding water will not stick your pork and also it will not burn off your pan.
- On medium-low heat, you need to cook pork for 10 – 15 minutes.
- Make sure to stir it well and after time you will get solid bits in your pan.
- Be careful because hot fat spill out easily. You need to transfer them into a cool refrigerator container. Make sure to cook the pork fat until there are no liquids in it.
- It might take you 90 minutes.
- When it is ready in the pan, then you can store them in the fridge. In a cool place, they can easily last for up to 30 days or maybe more.
FAQS
Q. Are Avocados The Best Substitute For Lard?
Answer. Undoubtedly, avocado and mashed bananas are decent alternatives for lard.
Q. Can I Make Lard At Home And How Much Time It Will Take To Cook
Answer. Making lard at home will take approximately 90 minutes. You can easily make lard at home and we provide the instructions above which are helpful for you.
Conclusion
Lard is the most popular and common ingredient used in almost every recipe. The taste and texture that lard gives your dishes are infamous and amazing.
Furthermore, if you don’t have lard in your kitchen and you searching for the best lard substitutes, then the above 8 listed ingredients are a great option for you.
Moreover, the taste and texture might be slightly different because lard is 100% fat, but it will give your dishes the best taste just like lard gives.
