[Sca-cooks] schmaltz

[Philip & Susan Troy]

Also sprach Mark S. Harris:
>What is "schmaltz"? I take it that it is a Jewish word (although it sounds
>German, Yiddish?) for rendered chicken fat? How is it used? To fry
>things in, like lard is? How does cooking in it compare to lard? Is it
>not more common because chickens don't have much fat or is there some
>other reason? I realize that the Jewish folks may simply accept any
>additional difficulties since they avoid the more common pork fat/lard.

I believe schmaltz just means fat, so while it can refer to rendered
fat (something other than pork, but not necessarily chicken, although
chicken is sort of the default setting for Jews, in most cases), it
can also refer to herring taken in the season when they're especially
fatty.

I would say cooking in chicken fat (based on observation) is a little
more like cooking in bacon fat (i.e. the rendered fat from cooking
cured bacon) than like lard proper. I think it doesn't hold up as
well for as long as lard does under high heat. I don't _think_ you'd
use chicken fat for deep-frying, for example, because I think it
burns a little more easily. However, you can use it for sauteeing,
and even for pastry and other shortening purposes (for example, it's
a common/traditional fat for things like matzoh balls).

You can also spread it on bread, to moisten it, if, say, you're
eating a dairyless meal and want to avoid butter.

This isn't just applicable to Jewish foods, BTW: certain Chinese
dishes can be cooked in chicken fat (Yangchow fried rice being
traditionally cooked in either lard or chicken fat, for example), and
there's a huge tradition in parts of Southwestern France and in
Central Europe to cook in goose fat, which is somewhat similar.

Adamantius
--
"No one who cannot rejoice in the discovery of his own mistakes
deserves to be called a scholar."
	-DONALD FOSTER