Bacon.
It’s hard not to love it, but what do you do with the extra gift bacon provides? Yes, I’m talking about the bacon grease.
Please don’t tell me you toss it in the garbage because there are a blue million ways you can utilize bacon grease.
Okay, maybe not a blue million, but there are over 20 different ways you can use it around your kitchen. I’m going to share these ideas with you to help you deter wastefulness in your kitchen, save some money along the way, and add more flavor to your cooking.
Here’s how you should be using bacon grease around your home:
1. Sizzle, Sizzle, Pop
If you’re running low on oil and would like to fry something, reach for the bacon grease. It’s great to fry eggs, use in the bottom of a skillet to keep food from sticking to the pan, and you can fry French toast in it.
Don’t forget to fry your potatoes or hoecakes in bacon grease either. Frying with bacon grease is not only economical, but it adds great flavor to your recipes too.
2. Strike a Match
Do you enjoy the scent of bacon in your home? Would you like to enjoy it even when you aren’t cooking bacon?
Consider using your unused bacon grease to make a homemade bacon candle. Even if you don’t enjoy the scent, it would be great as a back-up during emergencies.
3. Don’t Dread Your Salad
Let’s be honest. If you had a choice between a salad and a big, juicy bacon burger, most of us would indulge in the burger.
However, we can’t constantly eat only what we like. We must eat healthy foods which are good for us too. The next time you eat a salad, add a little bacon flavor by using bacon grease to make this bacon dressing.
4. Good for a Night Cap
Adult beverages go well with dinner parties, small gatherings, or even as a way to calm your nerves before heading to bed.
If you love bacon, you may enjoy incorporating the bacon flavor into your nightcap. You can use your bacon grease to infuse the flavor into your bourbon.
5. Take Care of Those Skillets
Cooking with cast iron is the only way I cook. I enjoy their durability and versatility in the kitchen.
But you must take care of your cast iron to avoid the pans from rusting. Use bacon grease to keep your cast iron seasoned.
6. Bring Your Cast Iron Back to Life
When cast iron is left in the weather, is washed with dish soap, or isn’t seasoned properly, it can become rusty and unusable.
Instead of tossing your cast iron, restore it. When you’ve finished cleaning it up, apply bacon grease to season your cast iron pans or tools.
7. Don’t Freeze
Are you a prepper? Are you an avid camper or even someone who likes to save money? Whichever category you fit into you’ll love this tip.
Instead of buying items to start a fire, use bacon grease as a DIY fire starter. It can come in handy when using a fireplace, or while prepping, or on a camping trip.
8. It’s for the Birds
We’ve all heard of using peanut butter to attach birdseed to a pinecone and use it as a DIY bird feeder.
Instead of using peanut butter, why not incorporate birdseed in bacon grease and allowing it to solidify before hanging it for the birds to eat?
9. Make Your Dogs Drool
If you’ve watched TV in the past ten years, you’ve seen the Beggin’ Strips commercials where the dog runs around the house screaming for bacon.
Don’t make your poor pooch beg for bacon. Instead, make your dog these healthy dog treats, which uses your bacon grease for a delicious flavor.
10. Hot Potato
Baked potatoes are a delicious addition to any meal. If filled with enough ingredients, they could even be a meal within themselves.
If you’d like to add a little more flavor to your baked potatoes, try coating the outside of the potato in bacon grease before baking.
11. Pop, Pop, Pop
There’s nothing better than a bowl of freshly popped popcorn. Add some melted butter with a little salt, and you have the perfect movie night snack.
However, if you’d like to add more flavor, consider replacing the oil for stove-popped popcorn with bacon grease. It’s frugal and delicious!
12. Oh, Fudge!
Sweet and salty seem to be a flavor combination people love across the board. Why not incorporate the two flavors in bacon fudge?
It has the sweetness from the chocolate while also adding the salty and smoky flavor from the bacon grease.
13. Birthday Cake
You love bacon, and you love cake. Why not combine the two with your next birthday cake? It may not sound like an appetizing combo, but you will be surprised.
This cake reminds me of a typical sponge cake, but it includes the bacon grease as a moisturizing and salty agent to make the perfect cake.
14. Brownies, Anyone?
I love brownies. I’m a total foodie, and I’m not afraid to admit it. If you love brownies too, but you’d also like some salty flavor in the mix, consider making bacon brownies.
This recipe uses basic baking ingredients to make rich chocolate brownies. In the place of water, you can add bacon grease for an even deeper flavor.
15. Southern Style Green Beans
Until I moved to the south, we fixed our green beans on the stove and added butter when they were finished.
After marrying and moving to the south, I learned they do things different down here. Bacon grease is added to the beans along with salt, bouillon cubes, onion, a little vinegar, and red pepper flakes.
16. Extra Flavor to Your Greens
It’s common for people to add vinegar to their greens and include a side of onion with them as well. If you’re still desiring more flavor reach for the bacon grease.
When the greens are still cooking, add bacon grease and a couple of bouillon cubes to give the greens a delicious flavor.
17. Easy Snack
If you’re looking for a snack which will incorporate your bacon grease, you’ve found it.
Slice tortillas into triangles. Fry the triangles in bacon grease for added flavor. It makes homemade tortillas chips which work great with homemade dip or salsa.
18. Extra Flavor for Your Rice
Fried rice is an easy and delicious homemade recipe which allows you to use up little odds and ends in your refrigerator or freezer.
If you’d like to add a richer flavor to your fried rice, try adding a spoonful of bacon grease to the pan when fixing the dish.
19. A New Take on the Traditional Grilled Cheese
Grilled cheese can be as basic or decadent as you desire. The next time you’re making a basic grilled cheese and want more flavor park your mind on bacon.
Don’t only add bacon to your grilled cheese in the middle, but use it to fry the grilled cheese in the pan. It’ll be salty and flavorful.
20. Bacon Cookies
You’re baking cookies, things are looking wonderful, and you suddenly realize you don’t have enough butter or oil to complete the recipe.
What should you do? Don’t toss the ingredients. Instead, use half of the amount of oil or butter called for in the recipe and make up the rest using bacon grease.
21. Country Cornbread
If you make cornbread from scratch, you’ll be interested in knowing bacon grease can add some great flavor to any recipe.
Instead of putting butter in the bottom of the pan, add a dollop of bacon grease. It’ll keep your cornbread from sticking and add some extra flavor too.
22. Salty Lips
I love chapstick. When wintertime rolls around, the wind can chap your lips. The dry heat in summer tends to do the same thing.
Instead of purchasing chapstick, consider using your bacon grease to make a bacon-flavored lip moisturizer.
23. You Smell Like Bacon
We all know soap was traditionally made with lard. If you’re looking to save money, consider making your own soap.
However, instead of rendering lard to make soap, consider utilizing your unused bacon grease.
24. Bacon Condiments
I’m not a huge fan of condiments, but I’m the odd man out in my house because my kids love condiments and require them for most meals.
If you love mayonnaise but would like to add a little different flavor, consider making bacon-flavored mayo out of bacon grease.
25. Delicious Biscuits
I love homemade biscuits. They’re flaky, buttery, and fluffy too. When you find yourself making homemade biscuits, don’t forget your bacon grease.
In the place of lard, cut solidified bacon grease into the recipe. It will give additional flavor and make for flakey biscuits.
26. Sausage Gravy
While you’re making biscuits, don’t forget to make the tasty sausage gravy to go along with it. It’s a quick and easy meal for any time of day.
You can add bacon grease into the gravy for a great flavor. It’ll be the perfect country recipe to start or finish a day.
27. Add Some Heat
I sauté a lot of vegetables because they’re good for you, and they’re a quick side dish which tastes good too.
The next time you sauté veggies, add a little extra flavor by sautéing them in grease. Depending upon your diet, the fat could be good for you.
28. Did Someone Say Ice Cream?
Would you have confidence in bacon grease becoming a part of your dessert? If you’re in the mood for ice cream don’t put the bacon grease away yet.
Instead, consider creating bacon flavored ice cream. It may sound odd, but it could be your new favorite dessert.
Before you toss your grease out, try a few of these tips to utilize it. If you’ve heard the phrase, “waste not, want not” bacon grease would be an area of your life where it could be applied.
Not only will you save money, but you’ll also enjoy flavorful recipes. Get outside of your comfort zone and incorporate more bacon into your life.
