Smalets - what is it? Grease with garlic: recipe

Salo and smalets are cult products of Ukrainians - in fact they have gained a reputation for traditional village food not only in Ukraine, but also in many other countries. They are so well known all over the world, that to the question "What is Smalets - what is this?" Anywhere in the world, you will immediately tell several ways to prepare it, and at the same time give a couple of recipes for the dishes in which it is used.

Where and how is applied

So, smiles. What is it and what does it eat? This fat, made from lard, is involved in the preparation of many national dishes. For example, in the Transcarpathian and Hungarian cuisine, the pork smale is indispensable for obtaining dishes such as goulash in Hungarian, fish soup halasle, paprikas.

Smalets are widely used as a cooking oil for baking a variety of bakery and confectionery products, as well as for frying instead of vegetable oil. In addition, prepare a simple and satisfying snack, spreading on bread seasoned with spices and salt smalets. The recipe with garlic and black pepper is especially popular with Russians and Ukrainians, because these spices give the smalt a piquant taste that fits well with black Borodino bread.

Smaltz poured cooked for canning fried mushrooms or stew, which allows you to store the product for a very long time.

A short digression into the history

Smalets - what is it and what is it for? Previously, every housewife knew this. The universal product was used not only for food, so cooking it was a vital necessity.

In olden times, cartwheel wheels, locks, traps, fishing hooks, metal tools, etc., greased the pig's melted fat. Smalets used for lighting, refueling them with lamps, in it kalili spits and sickles. They lubricated the skin of the face and hands to protect against severe frosts. Even the stoves melted with his help. Very often smilts used in folk medicine as part of ointments for external use, and also practiced the preparation of medicinal mixtures used internally for certain diseases.

A sandwich smallet with dill, with cracklings, red pepper or even with horseradish and radish was a strategic product in the arsenal of village hostesses, the most convenient for use outside the house: on haymaking, fishing or hunting, in the night. This is understandable - does not melt and will not go bad for a long time.

How to cook smalets

Today, this product can be purchased in almost any supermarket. However, zealous housewives insist that it is better to cook a domestic smilts, that this is a business that does not require a great culinary skill. For this purpose, it is not necessary to take expensive select fat, you can use scraps and internal pork fat.

The cut chosen for re-heating should be cleaned of the skin and rid of the layer of meat, and then soaked in cold water for 8-12 hours to remove dirt and debris. To lard the lard is easier, it is recommended to slightly frostbite. To work, you will need a thick walled container - a cauldron or a pan, in which small pieces are laid in batches. The fire should be small, so that the cracklings that are formed when the fat is being heated are not burnt. They can then be used for culinary purposes, for example, mixed with smaltz for sandwiches or used for cooking delicious buckwheat porridge with cracklings and onions.

Formed liquid transparent fat and there is smalets. The liquid must be filtered through a two-layer gauze, poured into jars and put to cool. The preparation of the smell ends when the liquid fat turns into a mass of white, a consistency resembling a soft oil.

Than useful smalets

Many useful elements contained in fat are lost during re-heating, but three of them remain after culinary processing: selenium, vitamin E and choline (otherwise vitamin B4). Contained in a small amount of choline affects fat and protein metabolism in the body, prevents sclerosis and improves the work of the heart and liver. Vitamin E is important for strengthening capillaries and walls of blood vessels and for preventing blood clots. Despite the available useful properties, the smale must be used in moderation, as it contains a lot of harmful fats and cholesterol.

Some recipes with the use of smaltz

1. Smalets with garlic and onions for sandwiches. Smate and strain again and put on fire, then put in it finely chopped garlic and onions (the number of vegetables to choose to taste), fry until golden brown. Add salt, marjoram, black pepper and mix. Remove from heat and allow to cool. This smalets can be prepared with or without cracklings.

2. Smalets "in Danish". A pound of fresh fat, cut into small cubes, fry until golden. One bulb is cut into segments without cleaning, put into a pan, add peppercorns, peeled garlic, bay leaf, then quickly fried. Remove the spices and cracklings from the frying pan, add the peeled chopped onion and sliced apple, fry until tender. Crisps without spices are combined with the apple-onion mixture, allow to cool slightly, wipe in a blender, salt and pepper to taste. Dispense in jars and store in a refrigerator.

3. Shortbread cookie on the smaltse. It will take 250 g of flour, half a glass of sugar, 5 tablespoons of smaltz, 1 egg, 1.5 teaspoons of baking powder. Beat eggs with sugar, add melted and slightly cooled smalets and other products, knead the dough. For half an hour put it in the refrigerator. Then roll out the dough, cut out the figures and lay them on the baking sheet covered with parchment. Bake at a temperature of 180 degrees until golden brown. The cookie turns out to be very delicate, melting in the mouth.

4. Omelette of Atamansky. Take three eggs, three tablespoons of sour cream, a pinch of salt and a tablespoon of flour, a little of any flavoring, for example, cumin. Beat these ingredients with a mixer. Put a handful of squash into a frying pan and put it on the fire. When the fat separates, pour out the egg mixture, add cheese, cover. Omelet is cooked for 5-8 minutes.

Rules for storing the larder

The finished product is best kept in a cool dry place (in the refrigerator, in the pantry or cellar). In such conditions, it does not deteriorate for many months. The best containers for storing the smaltz are glass jars or ceramic pots.