Dripping, also known usually as pork dripping or beef dripping, is an

animal fat Animal fats are lipids derived from animals which are used by the animal for a multitude of functions, or can be used by humans for dietary, sanitary, and cosmetic purposes. Depending on the temperature of the fat, it can change between a solid s ...

produced from the fatty or otherwise unusable parts of

cow Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, bovid ungulates widely kept as livestock. They are prominent modern members of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Mature female cattle are called co ...

or pig carcasses. It is similar to

lard Lard is a Quasi-solid, semi-solid white fat product obtained by rendering (animal products), rendering the adipose tissue, fatty tissue of a domestic pig, pig.

tallow Tallow is a rendered form of beef or mutton suet, primarily made up of triglycerides. In industry, tallow is not strictly defined as beef or mutton suet. In this context, tallow is animal fat that conforms to certain technical criteria, inc ...

and schmaltz.

History

It is used for

cooking Cooking, also known as cookery or professionally as the culinary arts, is the art, science and craft of using heat to make food more palatable, digestible, nutritious, or Food safety, safe. Cooking techniques and ingredients vary widely, from ...

, especially in

British cuisine British cuisine consists of the cooking traditions and practices associated with the United Kingdom, including the regional cuisines of English cuisine, England, Scottish cuisine, Scotland, Welsh cuisine, Wales, and Northern Irish cuisine, Nort ...

, significantly so in

the Midlands The Midlands is the central region of England, to the south of Northern England, to the north of southern England, to the east of Wales, and to the west of the North Sea. The Midlands comprises the ceremonial counties of Derbyshire, Herefords ...

and

Northern England Northern England, or the North of England, refers to the northern part of England and mainly corresponds to the Historic counties of England, historic counties of Cheshire, Cumberland, County Durham, Durham, Lancashire, Northumberland, Westmo ...

, though towards the end of the 20th century dripping fell out of favour due to it being regarded as less healthy than

vegetable oil Vegetable oils, or vegetable fats, are oils extracted from seeds or from other parts of edible plants. Like animal fats, vegetable fats are ''mixtures'' of triglycerides. Soybean oil, grape seed oil, and cocoa butter are examples of seed ...

s such as

olive The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'' ("European olive"), is a species of Subtropics, subtropical evergreen tree in the Family (biology), family Oleaceae. Originating in Anatolia, Asia Minor, it is abundant throughout the Mediterranean ...

sunflower The common sunflower (''Helianthus annuus'') is a species of large annual forb of the daisy family Asteraceae. The common sunflower is harvested for its edible oily seeds, which are often eaten as a snack food. They are also used in the pr ...

. Traditionally

fish and chips Fish and chips is a hot dish consisting of batter (cooking), battered and fried fish, served with French fries, chips. Often considered the national dish of the United Kingdom, fish and chips originated in England in the 19th century. Today, ...

were fried in beef dripping, and while this practice does continue in some places, most shops now use vegetable oils. Preparing dripping can be as simple as collecting and cooling the oil and meat juices from pans and trays after roasting meat, but commercial production achieves a higher yield by combining these with water and a sizeable amount of salt (about 2g per litre), creating a kind of

stock Stocks (also capital stock, or sometimes interchangeably, shares) consist of all the Share (finance), shares by which ownership of a corporation or company is divided. A single share of the stock means fractional ownership of the corporatio ...

. When the stock pot is chilled a solid lump of dripping (the cake) precipitates out of solution and settles. The stock pot should be scraped clean and re-chilled for future use. The residue can be reprocessed for more dripping and strained through a cheesecloth lined sieve as an ingredient for a beef stock. Dripping can be clarified by adding a sliced raw potato and cooking until potato turns brown. The cake will be the colour and texture of

ghee Ghee is a type of clarified butter, originating from South Asia. It is commonly used for cooking, as a Traditional medicine of India, traditional medicine, and for Hinduism, Hindu religious rituals. Description Ghee is typically prepared by ...

. Pork or beef dripping can be served cold, spread on bread and sprinkled with salt and pepper (''bread and dripping''). If the flavourful brown sediment and stock from the roast has settled to the bottom of the dripping and coloured it brown, then in parts of

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

it is known colloquially as a "mucky fat sarnie".

Pastry

Dripping can be used to make pastry, for

pasties Pasties (singular pasty or pastie) are patches that cover a person's nipples and areolae, typically self-adhesive or affixed with adhesive. They are usually worn in pairs. They originated as part of burlesque shows, allowing dancers to perform ...

and other foods.Cornish Pasties Recipe , Leite's Culinaria
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References

{{fatsandoils Animal fat products British cuisine Cooking fats

History

Pastry

See also

References