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Post by Magpie on Jul 3, 2009 22:09:56 GMT -5
'Nother alternative - place plain, clay, kitty litter in a metal or glass container to soak up the fat as it is poured in and reduce splash risk from hot grease.
It might make an interesting fire starter if poured over charcoal briquets and refrigerated until used (It's too soft to leave out - it molds and becomes stinky rancid!)
My mom used to collect it in an empty coffee can. Small amounts might be removed for frying flavor. When the can was filled, it would be tossed and a new can started.
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Post by mouse on Jul 4, 2009 14:24:29 GMT -5
Here's a nifty tip for A) people who're mostly maintaining (don't do this if you're still de-squaloring!!!) and B) people who live in areas with lots of snow/cold winters. Keep your bacon grease in an old coffee can, and smear it onto pine cones which you can hang outside. These make GREAT bird feeders for birds who overwinter locally and need the extra fat and energy to keep warm. That being said, DON'T do this if you're still de-squaloring. It's a great way to accumulate lots of gross bacon grease in your fridge that you won't ever use and will take up space. Ask me how I know this. ~Mouse (Edited for slight modification to content and to fix wonky syntax)
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Post by Meme on Jul 4, 2009 14:40:36 GMT -5
I keep a soup can in the fridge- clean if first and then when it is full- it goes out- in the winter I use some of plain ( no flavorings added) bacon grease and mix bird seed in it and put our on our spruce tree- for the birds- I just mix enough in to make the seed hold together lightly - the birds clean it up enough that it does no damage to the tree and or no evidence- I make them the size of a large meatball do not put the grease down the drain- it may not effect your house but it can effect down the line- there is good commercail showing what damage it can do - also hot grease can effect plastic plumbing if it sits in a puddle and is too hot when you dump it and why waste hot water trying to run it further down- milk cartons are also a good thing and it can sit under the sink if you are mouse proof- do not use glass containers if putting in the fridge as the glass can burst if it is cold and the grease is hot-
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Post by 60isolderthanithot on Jul 4, 2009 15:48:04 GMT -5
What is THE best grease/oil cutter we can use in a house for this type of super greasy mess? What if you held the grease in a glass jar and wanted to use the jar again? Would this same thing work to clean out a big peanut butter jar you wanted to use for something else once the peanut butter was gone?
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meterman
New Member
Joined: July 2009
Posts: 4
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Post by meterman on Jul 4, 2009 18:30:43 GMT -5
Growing up, I remember we always had 3 jars of bacon grease - at home, at grandparents' and at the cabin. Whenever we were to do any frying, we would always take a dollop out of the jar and use it instead of butter - whatever was used for cooking would be replenished pretty much weekly as bacon was often part of our Sunday brunch... some careful draining of the skillet into the jar and back in the fridge it went. For at least the last 10 years Mom has been using butter instead - and any time she plans to fry up bacon or sausage, she makes sure she has an empty tuna or soup can handy beforehand - once she's done cooking, she drains the skillet into the can and tosses it the next day. As for cleaning out a bacon grease jar - what about filling a large bowl or pan with hot water and setting the jar in there until the outermost part is liquid - should then be able to invert it over a different container and have it come out as one chunk? Then put it back in the hot water again until the rest is liquefied and pour that out? As for the last traces, I'd use Dawn or somesuch...
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Post by mellowyellow on Jul 5, 2009 15:13:48 GMT -5
I am also extra careful about putting ANY greasey liquid in the sink. And after my incident of flushing down a jar lid (and totally clogging the toilet), I am careful not to put things down the toilet too!!!
If it is mayonnaise or such "cold grease", I just scoop it right into the green bin (or trash if you prefer), usually making sure there is a used paper towel or a piece of newspaper underneath it.
If it is a large amount of oil, I let it cool in its pan and spatula it directly into the green bin, with a newspaper to absorb the liquid. Before I was able to do the whole recycle thing, I used to spatula it into a small plastic bag and tie it up and throw it out. (Bags: the kind you use to put fresh produce from the grocery store.... those thin ones that you tear away. I always save those for this kind of thing. You can also use the empty bags that store bread. I also save the ones that my flyers come in... They are too small for other things, but practical for this.)
Using the spatula gets rids of most of the grease, and I don't mind waiting 10 or more minutes for it to cool down.
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Post by eagle on Jul 5, 2009 22:35:58 GMT -5
Blackswan,
What I do is keep a jar for ongoing grease/oil collection, which has a screw-top lid. It stays under my kitchen sink unless I am filling it, which I do over the sink to prevent spillage elsewhere.
I am quite adept at pouring liquids into small openings, however that is not necessary. You can use a funnel, and I have done in the past when the jar opening was small. Or if you use a wide-mouth jar, you can also use a wide-mouth funnel, such as the kind used for filling canning jars.
You can use a flexible spatula or even a wooden spoon to scrape the soliditied grease into the jar (or can or whatever you use to dispose of the grease).
When keeping the grease & oil in a jar with a lid, with the intent of tossing it when full, there is no need to refrigerate. And when thrown in the garbage can, there is less likelihood that it will leak grease all over your garbage can, creating an even worse clean-up mess.
When we owned the restaurant I cleaned out the grease trap a few times, and let me tell you, it's more than grease that will stop up your sink and pipes. Salad dressing, sauces, meat juices, jelly, jam, pulpy fruit juices, soup, ketchup, tiny grains, etc. will form a kind of sludge that becomes black and gives off a foul odor as it occludes the pipes. So if your drains run slow, it is wise to clean out the P-trap under the sink. Flushing with grease-cutting detergent helps with grease, but not with the sludge resulting from the by-products of foodstuffs.
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Post by yearning4order on Jul 5, 2009 23:20:44 GMT -5
My mother always ran the hottest water in the sink, and then poured the still hot bacon or beef grease down the drain, and let the water run for another 30 seconds after she'd stopped pouring. We never had issues with the sink clogging.
I also do this and find it works well. If you are using cast iron pans and don't need the pan immediately, you could let it cool & solidify, and then use a rubber spatula to remove the solid grease. (Bacon grease used to cook cornbread, is some serious yum btw.)
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Post by puppybox on Jul 6, 2009 9:39:11 GMT -5
I think what you are already doing is fine, minus the 30 day wait and all the stress.
Also soemtimes I pour it on the dogfood. once its cooled a bit.
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Post by seekingpeace on Jul 6, 2009 20:10:41 GMT -5
I hate to admit this...but I finally ended up never buying bacon. If I cook it at all, I use the fake stuff...that is turkey bacon and I cook it on a plate on a papertowel in the microwave. Not exactly bacon, but it will do and I know that I just have to throw out the papertowel and put the plate in the dishwasher. If I really, really need real bacon, I admit I will go to the diner and order it with my meal!
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Post by Meme on Jul 6, 2009 23:32:36 GMT -5
yes- bacon grease can be used in cooking- baking- just keep in fridge and I do not add to it with more bacon grease as it is such a long time in between times that we use bacon.
Daddy always added to our home made dog food- also- we lived in a climate where the dog needed fat in winter and also he was a working dog. I would not do that now as most dogs get enough fat-
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