Stuff I Use: Bacon Grease

Yes, it's a thing of beauty! 

To some people just saying the word "bacon" makes them want to do crunches. For me, the word bacon means I am about to experience something crunchy! One of the things that I love about bacon is the grease that is left in the pan. A lot of people throw it away, but I say "No way Jose!" SAVE THAT BACON GREASE!

I have talked about it on here before, and of course you have seen it in many a recipe on BIW as well. But I wanted to talk about it with emphasis because that greasy yumminess really comes in handy so many times. When you are done cooking your bacon all you need to do is pour your extra grease into a glass bowl or tupperware and then store it in the fridge. It keeps for a loooong time--like months, if you haven't used it all up, that is!

The benefits of using bacon grease, you ask? Well there are many.

Of course for me I love the fact that if I am using bacon grease in place of butter, I feel like I am saving money. Butter is expensive, even if you buy it in bulk, and bacon grease comes like an added bonus to your bacon. So that is the one thing. The other is the flavor.

While butter and olive oil add great flavor to dishes, bacon grease has that distinctive really rich flavor that can be the pep in the step to some dishes. For instance, I used bacon grease in place of olive oil or butter in a no-sauce pasta dish and it added a POW that I really appreciated on top of my seasonal veggies. It can also be great when you are frying up onions for a quiche or egg dish adding just a hint of that bacon goodness.

My bacon grease! YUM! 

Now I know what some people are going to say... they going to come at me with some of that "low fat"  blah blah blah that I can't stand. I get that people are watching their waistlines, I understand that--I work out 3-5 times a week just to keep up with my own eating habits. But margarin is the devil and contains traces of plastic and while I am all for butter and olive oil, I see nothing wrong with using a dollop of bacon grease in a dish or two or three.

The truth is fat is fat is fat. While some fats may be healthier for you than others, it's all coming down to moderation. I don't use bacon grease in every dish, but I do think it's a great addition in many cases and in the end, let's face it, saving money never goes out of style!!

So get your bacon grease ready and save a little green too--and check your guilt at the door because sometimes you just need to indulge!!!