Did you know that you Can Make Pastry with Bacon Fat?

My friend Tina asked me if I had ever made pastry using bacon fat, I hadn’t, to be honest I hadn’t even thought about it.

My tried and true “best pastry ever recipe” has always worked so I adapted it.

Ingredients 

• 1 level cup All purpose Flour

• 3 oz butter frozen or from the fridge

• 2 tablespoons bacon fat

• 1/4 cup ice cold water

Directions

Food Processor

1. Put the 1 cup of flour, bacon fat and butter in your food processor. (3 oz butter, 2 tablespoons bacon fat)

2. Pulse the fats into the dry ingredients.

3. With the motor running pour in 1/4 cup ice-cold water until the ingredients come together and look like large breadcrumbs then stop the machine. Don’t overmix.

4. Take the pastry out of the processor and form it into ball.

5. Put it in the fridge for at least 1 hour before you use it.

   To Make The Old Fashioned Way - By Hand

   1. Put the flour into a bowl

   2. Cut butter and bacon fat into chunks and add to the flour.

   3. Rub fats into flour with your fingertips.

   4. When the mix looks like breadcrumbs add most of the water and bring the dough together - you may need to add the rest of the water.

   5. Wrap the pastry in parchment and put it into the fridge for at least 1 hours to chill.

I only ever use lard from our pasture-raised pigs in my original recipe but I know that most people don’t have lard but most people have bacon fat.

(Click the pic below to find out how to render lard)

I replaced the lard with bacon fat. I also cut the salt out completely because I use salted butter and bacon is usually salty.

I decided to try masking bacon fat pastry at 3 pm one afternoon, I had no bacon fat so I quickly cooked up some bacon, strained 2 tablespoons of bacon fat off and froze it.

A pie was on the table for 6pm.

Next time you have some bacon fat why not try it?

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Dublin Coddle - Sausage, bacon and potatoes - what's not to love!

This time last year we celebrated St Patrick’s day with some traditional Irish Food - Dublin Coddle.. A stew made of Sausage, bacon, onions and potatoes that would use up whatever was left at the end of the week (It sounds like my sisters Sausage Casserole - only she would only put 1 sausage in it - it would be like finding the sixpence in a Christmas pudding if you got a piece of sausage.)

My recipe is likely not traditional because I put a can of Guinness in it - who has leftover Guinness? - no one I know!

DUBLIN CODDLE

• 2lb Berkshire Pork Sausages (I use our Cumberland)

• 4 oz  unsmoked British style back Bacon (you can use smoked bacon if you like)

• 2-3lb potatoes 

• 2 onions

• 1tsp cracked black pepper

• 1/2tsp salt

• 1 tablespoon chopped parsley

• 1 x 440ml can Guinness

• 1 cup pork stock (I always use pork neckbone Broth) but you can use chicken stock

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. & put a large casserole pan on med heat.

2. Dice bacon and add to the pan, fry for 2-3 mins until the fat starts to render out.

3. Cut sausages & potatoes into bite-size pieces.

4. Slice onions.

5. Add sausages to bacon. Fry over med heat until browned

6. Then add sliced onions & potatoes. Season with salt, pepper and sprinkle of parlsey.

7. Pour in Guinness and bring to boil. Then add 1 cup pork stock and bring back to boil. 

8. Cook in the oven for 2 hours.

9. Serve with crusty bread.

Do you have a favourite Irish dish? Let me know in the comments below.