Quick Money-Saving Tips: Save Your Fats

You may not know how much I love bacon. If you don’t, well, I love it. A lot.

I especially love bacon from my local butcher Prather Ranch Meat Company. Their bacon is thick and tasty. And it happens to give off a TON of fat. I remember my parents saving the bacon fat when I was younger in a cup on the counter or in the fridge and I think they would often throw it away. They were scared of eating it because of the ever-popular and ever-misleading lipid hypothesis. In short, it’s the research study that’s to blame for the notion that eating fat makes you fat. More on why that’s entirely untrue later. I promise.

Back to the fat. These days, I save my bacon fat. I keep in a glass jar in my fridge and I use it. Often. Whenever I’m making a dish that requires cooking something that might taste better with a bit of a smoky taste added…I grab the bacon fat and plop a spoonful into my cast iron pan. Voila! There’s cooking oil that I didn’t really have to pay for. I mean, it dripped off of my bacon. I bought the bacon for the meat, but, in reality, I got meat AND cooking fat too! Score!

So, the next time you buy a nice quality bacon, and you pay top-dollar for it, save the fat. Don’t throw it away. Your great grandmother would be proud of you for not only using all of the food you bought, but also for saving some pennies in the meantime!

Check out a dinner I made tonight using some leftover bacon fat over there to the right: a Marin Sun Farms grass-fed beef burger that I seasoned with salt, pepper, paprika, garlic powder and hot sauce served over a mix of onions and summer squash, garnished with cilantro. Delish!

Post a comment below telling me what you cook in bacon fat, or how you save other run-off fats to use for cooking later. I’d love to hear from you.

If you’d like more information on saving money while eating real, healthy, organic whole foods, or to find out more about holistic lifestyle coaching services in-person (in the Bay Area) or remotely (via phone, email or Skype), contact me today.

About the author

Diane Sanfilippo BS, Certified Nutrition Consultant, C.H.E.K. Holistic Lifestyle Coach is a New Jersey-based Holistic & Paleo Nutritionist serving clients locally and beyond (US & international) via phone, Skype consultations and nutrition seminars nationwide. Author of “Practical Paleo: A Customized Approach to Health and a Whole-Foods Lifestyle.” Creator of The 21-Day Sugar Detox, a program designed to help you bust sugar and carb cravings in 21 days with the help and support of a community who is all in it together! Co-host of The Balanced Bites Podcast, a weekly radio show about all things health and nutrition.

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