The TOP 3 Reasons why YOU should be eating LARD.
1. It’s HEALTHY! When compared with olive oil, lard is a close second in the monounsaturated fat department! Olive oil has about 77% monounsaturated fat, with lard at 48% monounsaturated fat. Butter ranks third with 30% monounsaturated fat and coconut oil is last at 6%. The main fat in lard (oleic acid) is a fatty acid associated with decreased risk of depression. Those same monounsaturated fats, are responsible for lowering LDL levels while leaving HDL (“good”) cholesterol levels alone. Shocking, right?
Lard also contains high amounts of Vitamin D, a necessary fat-soluble vitamin. It is estimated that 1 tablespoon of lard contains 1000 IU of Vitamin D! As a society, we are extremely deficient in Vitamin D. As a powerful immunity booster, the intake of Vitamin D can prevent those frequent colds and flu's in your home each year.
If you think you can get Vitamin D from the sun, you are right, again. But, the problem is, humans aren’t too efficient at assimilating Vitamin D from the sun. At the recommended 20-30 minutes of sun exposure per day you will only receive 100-200 IU. Pigs, on the other hand, are superheros at absorbing Vitamin D. This is why so much is stored in the fat under the their skin.Vitamin D aids in the absorption of calcium. Vitamin D will also aid in the removal of harmful toxic metals such as cadmium, aluminum, strontium. But one of the most important tasks of Vitamin D as well as cholesterol both in lard!) is hormone production and regulation. When you remember that many processes in the body are performed by hormones, you can see why it’s so important to include lard into your diet. Problems with your adrenals that can be manifested as fibromyalgia, problems with your thyroid that can be manifested as hypothyroidism, and problems with your sex hormones that can be manifested as infertility are all related to your deficiency in fat-soluble Vitamin D.
2. It TASTES DELICIOUS! We use lard to make crispy fried chicken and cooking a simple food like eggs or etc. Lard isn’t smelly. It’s divine! Food was meant to be enjoyed! And trust me, lard makes EVERYTHING taste a little better.
3. It’s NATURAL and SUSTAINABLE but most of all increases satiety . Its easy to sustain, and is a much smaller footprint than dealing with a field of cotton.
Where can I find Lard?
You’re probably going to be super sad when I tell you that the lard at the store isn’t the good stuff. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but the lard you’ll find at your local grocery store is hydrogenated.
You won’t find much Vitamin D from pigs kept indoors all day. It’s actually pretty disgusting, and I would recommend staying far away from it. Just like any other real food, you must search to find good lard. Odds are, you are going to have the best luck finding pig fat then rendering it yourself to make lard. Rendering lard is super easy—here’s a simple method. Just remember that are two kinds: Back fat and leaf (internal) fat.
One of the most important things you’ll need to find is a pork or meat shop that provides pigs who are pastured or foraged.
It actually wasn’t that hard for me to find a meat shop that raised local pigs who were pastured with no antibiotics or drugs given. I think it would be best to find organically fed pigs, but I still haven’t been able to find that yet. So this option is a close second.
My experience with lard has been great and the best part is that it increases satiety .But seriously, I have noticed a huge difference in my health since including animal sources of the fat-soluble Vitamin D in my diet. It’s just incredible.