Rendering Chicken Fat

I love fat. Even the tiniest amount of the good stuff can add so much flavor to your food, so because of this and because I let almost nothing go to waste, I made a batch of schmaltz with chicken skin pulled off of some chicken thighs that were destined for the slow cooker.

A heavy pan and low, even heat transforms pale, blubbery chicken skin to golden elixir. If you have a cast iron pan, making schmaltz has the added bonus of seasoning your pan. Watch the magic!





What do I do with this fat? Off the top of my head, I use to pan fry potatoes and roast Brussels sprouts. I use it to saute onions and celery for spaghetti sauce. I use it to saute leeks for potato leek soup.

The dogs get the resulting bits of crisped skin as high value treats. They know them as "chicken chips."