[Sca-cooks] suet Vs. fat

[Terry Decker]

> Alizaundre answered my questions of suet vs. fat with:
> <<< The very best suet is found around the kidneys. Lard is pork suet, and 
> the kidney sections are called "leaf lard" and have always been considered 
> the best quality. >>>
>
> Oh! Part of my question was where would I even find "suet". But I have 
> seen packages of lard in my local grocery store. Does this mean that in 
> most cases if a recipe calls for "suet" that I can use lard?  This could 
> make things easier since I'm not even sure where to find a specialty 
> butcher shop here locally.
>
> Thanks,
>   Stefan

Suet is the hard fat around the kindeys in cattle and sheep.  Leaf lard is 
the equivalent in pigs.  Fatback is the next lower grade of lard and the 
lard that is sold as "lard" is usually the soft fat from around the 
intestines or a mix of lards.  There are differences in taste, melting point 
and smoking point.  Suet and leaf lard melt around 120 degrees F and have a 
smoking point around 400 degrees F.  Lard, depending on quality. has a 
melting point of about 90-100  degrees F and a smoking point of 250-375 
degrees F.  Precise melting and smoking points will also vary depending on 
other conditions, but these are a decent estimate.

Independent groceries often have a butcher shop and you probably have a few 
carnecerias for the local Hispanic population.

Bear