BACON FAT, BUTTER, FRESH CREAM, SCHMALTZ & CRACKLINS - The Forgotten Fats

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If you grew up in the 1940s or 50s, these memories aren’t nostalgia — they’re fact. And if you didn’t grow up in that era, buckle up. Because this is what real cooking used to look like.

By Chef Charles Knight

THE MILKMAN, THE CREAM, AND THE UNREFRIGERATED BUTTER DISH

Back in the 1950s, milk didn’t come homogenized, pasteurized within an inch of its life, or filled with stabilizers. It came in glass bottles, delivered fresh by the milkman into that insulated metal box by the back door.

And yes… the cream rose to the top.

My dad would lift the lid, open the bottle, and scoop off that thick cap of fresh cream into a stainless container he kept in the refrigerator — for his morning coffee. Unless I got to it first.

Butter arrived the same way. Eggs too.
Butter was kept in a covered dish on the counter — never refrigerated — where it stayed soft, spreadable, and ready for toast or biscuits at a moment’s notice.

And then there were the jars of bacon fat, rendered through cheesecloth and proudly displayed on the countertop like a crown jewel. It went into green beans, scrambled eggs, cornbread, gravies, and just about anything else that touched a pan.

This was not “indulgence.” It was everyday life.

ENTER SCHMALTZ — THE JEWISH GOLD OF THE KITCHEN

Long before canned chicken broth or bouillon cubes existed, there was schmaltz.

The word comes from Yiddish — from the German verb schmelzen, meaning “to melt.” And that’s exactly what it is: melted, rendered chicken fat, slow-cooked from pieces of skin, chicken fat, and onion.

To taste schmaltz for the first time is to understand why generations treasured it:
Imagine butter — gentle, silky, aromatic — kissed with the flavor of fried chicken.

It’s extraordinary.
Light, savory, and unbelievably comforting.

A Culinary Solution to Kosher Law

Ashkenazi Jews did not mix dairy and meat, so butter was off the table when cooking chicken. Their solution?

Render the chicken fat itself.
And the result became a foundational flavor of Jewish cuisine.

“CRACKLINS” GRIBENES — THE “JEWISH BACON”

When you fry chicken skin, you get the same magic reaction you get with pork bacon: crispiness, browning, rich flavor.

These golden little cracklings, called gribenes, are a delicacy — salty, crunchy, and impossible to resist. Mixed with onions, they create the addictive flavor bombs often stirred into chopped liver or enjoyed straight from the pan.

You can almost hear the sizzle.

THE TRUTH ABOUT FAT — YOUR BODY NEEDS IT

Today, fat has been wrongly villainized. But science has swung back:
Your body requires fat for:

• hormone production
• brain function
• nutrient absorption
• cardiovascular stability
• satiety and energy

And chicken fat — unlike many industrial seed oils — is naturally balanced, stable, and minimally processed. Schmaltz is high in heart-healthy monounsaturated fat, and far lower in inflammatory compounds than many modern oils.

Our grandparents didn’t know the biochemistry.
They just knew it tasted good, cooked beautifully, and made everything better.

And they were right.

WHAT TO DO WITH SCHMALTZ — A RETURN TO OLD-WORLD FLAVOR

This golden, aromatic fat is far more versatile than most people realize:

• Crisp potato latkes
• Caramelize onions to perfection
• Roast potatoes and root vegetables
• Make outrageously flavorful matzo balls
• Replace butter or oil in biscuits, tortillas, or cornbread
• Stir into chopped liver or pate
• Use as a base for sautéing

You can even use melted schmaltz to make mayonnaise or salad dressings — an old-world secret that creates incredible richness.

Stored properly, schmaltz lasts up to six months in the freezer.

HOW TO MAKE TRADITIONAL SCHMALTZ & “CRACKLINS” GRIBENES

A Classic Recipe — As It’s Been Made for Generations

EQUIPMENT:
5-quart stockpot or saucepan

PREPARATION TIME:
1 hour 15 minutes

INGREDIENTS

• 1 lb chicken skin and fat, cut into narrow ½-inch pieces
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• ¼ tsp black pepper
• 1 medium onion, sliced thin (¼-inch)

DIRECTIONS

1. Combine:
   In a medium saucepan, place the chicken skin and fat. Add just enough water to barely cover.
2. Simmer Slowly:
   Bring to a gentle simmer over medium-high heat (about 350°F). Once simmering, reduce to medium-low (around 225°F).
   Stir frequently.
3. Render the Fat:
   Continue simmering until the water evaporates and the fat has fully rendered.
   The chicken pieces will shrink, brown, and begin to crisp — about 50 minutes.
4. Add Onion:
   Add sliced onion and cook another 10 minutes, stirring often, until lightly browned.
5. Strain:
   Pour the mixture through a fine mesh strainer or cheesecloth.
6. Reserve the Good Stuff:
   The liquid fat is your schmaltz.
   The crispy bits of skin and onion are gribenes — season lightly with salt and enjoy, or stir into chopped liver.

THE FLAVOR OF TRUE HISTORY

Schmaltz, bacon fat, unrefrigerated butter, cream from the top of the bottle — these are not just ingredients. They are history. They are the flavors that built families, fed generations, and shaped the kitchens of America.

And perhaps…
it’s time they made a comeback.

NOTES & REFERENCES

1. Milk Delivery, Cream Separation, and Household Practices (1900–1960)

• Prior to widespread homogenization (mid-20th century), milk was delivered unhomogenized in glass bottles, allowing the cream layer to naturally rise to the top.
  Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Dairy Practices History (1941–1965).
• Butter was commonly stored unrefrigerated in covered dishes due to high fat content and low moisture, which inhibits spoilage.
  Source: Food Safety & Preservation: Pre-Refrigeration Practices, Smithsonian Food History Center.

2. Bacon Fat Storage and Use in Mid-Century Kitchens

• Rendering and saving bacon fat was standard practice in American homes before and during the 1950s, often kept on the counter or stovetop.
  Source: American Home Cooking: A History, Williams-Forson (University of North Carolina Press, 2006).
• Rendered pork fat has antibacterial properties and low water activity, contributing to safe countertop storage.
  Source: Journal of Food Protection (Vol. 14, Issue 3).

3. Schmaltz — Etymology, History, and Cultural Use

• The term schmaltz is derived from Yiddish (“rendered fat”), from the German schmelzen, meaning “to melt.”
  Source: Oxford English Dictionary, Yiddish & German Roots.
• Schmaltz was a traditional cooking fat in Ashkenazi Jewish cuisine before the availability of vegetable oils in the early 20th century.
  Source: The Encyclopedia of Jewish Food, Gil Marks (Wiley, 2010).
• Use of schmaltz relates to the prohibition against mixing meat and dairy in kosher dietary law (kashrut).
  Source: The Jewish Dietary Laws: Kashrut, Rabbi Hayim Halevy Donin.

• Gribenes are the crisped chicken skins and onions leftover from rendering schmaltz; they appear in early Eastern European Jewish preparations.
  Source: The Jewish Cookbook, Leah Koenig (Phaidon Press, 2019).
• “Jewish bacon” is a historically documented colloquial nickname used in Jewish communities in New York, Chicago, and Philadelphia.
  Source: Lower East Side Food Traditions, Tenement Museum Archive.

• The classic method of rendering chicken fat involves adding water, simmering fat and skin, and browning with onions (“Yiddish mirepoix”).
  Source: Joy of Cooking, 1943 & 1953 Editions.
• Culinary temperatures for fat rendering (225°F–350°F) align with standard professional technique.
  Source: Professional Cooking, Wayne Gisslen (Wiley, 2018).

• Schmaltz is high in monounsaturated fats and contains lower saturated fat compared to beef tallow.
  Source: USDA National Nutrient Database, Poultry Fats Analysis.
• Dietary fats are essential for hormone production, nutrient absorption, brain function, and cardiovascular stability.
  Source: Harvard School of Public Health — Fats & Nutrition Overview.

• Schmaltz’s traditional uses include latkes, chopped liver, matzo balls, roasted vegetables, and onion frying.
  Source: The Gefilte Manifesto, Yoskowitz & Wiesenfeld (Flatiron Books).
• Frozen schmaltz lasts up to six months when stored airtight.
  Source: USDA Home Storage of Rendered Fats, 1972 Bulletin.

• The shift away from animal fats toward processed vegetable oils (Crisco, margarine) accelerated only after WWII.
  Source: Something from the Oven: Reinventing Dinner in 1950s America, Laura Shapiro.
• Before this shift, bacon drippings, lard, cream, butter, and poultry fat were the primary cooking fats across almost all regions of the U.S.
  Source: American Food: A Not-So-Serious History, Rachel Laudan.