Recipe for Griebenschmalz please

[KaffirLime]

In Prague recently we came across an item they described as 'crackling spread' which was basically a starter consisting of a little pot of pork dripping served with pork dripping - Except I'm sure it wasn't just dripping. More likely it was dripping with ground scratching added for crunchy bits! The only reference i can find to it on the internet is what looks like a similar thing from Germany called Griebenschmalz or crackling fat. Does anybody know how to make it as friends that visited Prague with uws thought it was wonderful and I'd love to serve it up to them as an appetiser this Friday!

[ludja]

This is also served in Austria; often at Heurige/Weinstube (wine gardens serving food) or at other casual eating places for a snack to have with your glasses of white wine. In Austria it is called "grammelschmaltz" and is made from rendered pork fat.

I think the way to make it is to simply render some good pork fat over low with a little bit of water. Remove the "grammeln" or pork cracklings with a slotted spoon as they become crisp so that they don't burn. Finish rendering the fat and then stir back in some of the cracklngs to the rendered fat. Typically, I don't think any other ingredients are added to the mix.

In some place the item might also appear on the menu as "schmaltzbrot" or "schmaltz bread"; which would be slices of rye bread served with the spread.

[KatieLoeb]

This is also served in Austria; often at Heurige/Weinstube (wine gardens serving food) or at other casual eating places for a snack to have with your glasses of white wine.  In Austria it is called "grammelschmaltz" and is made from rendered pork fat. 

I think the way to make it is to simply render some good pork fat over low with a little bit of water.  Remove the "grammeln" or pork cracklings with a slotted spoon as they become crisp so that they don't burn.  Finish rendering the fat and then stir back in some of the cracklngs to the rendered fat.  Typically, I don't think any other ingredients are added to the mix. 

In some place the item might also appear on the menu as "schmaltzbrot" or "schmaltz bread"; which would be slices of rye bread served with the spread.

←

Ludja:

Isn't this also done with chicken (or goose) fat and gribenes?? Like the original meaning of heartstoppingly delicious schmaltz mit gribenes? Most nice Jewish mamas wouldn't make it with pork...

[Pam R]

Ludja:

Isn't this also done with chicken (or goose) fat and gribenes??  Like the original meaning of heartstoppingly delicious schmaltz mit gribenes?  Most nice Jewish mamas wouldn't make it with pork...

←

I'm not Ludja... but yep. It's made with poultry too. Schmaltz means fat. Any fat, but primarily animal.

Nothing was better on a Friday night than being the first one to Baba's house and running to the kitchen to snack on the gribenes before the rest of the cousins got there .

But we didn't use the rendered fat for bread - we just cook/ed with it.

[KatieLoeb]

Ludja:

Isn't this also done with chicken (or goose) fat and gribenes??  Like the original meaning of heartstoppingly delicious schmaltz mit gribenes?  Most nice Jewish mamas wouldn't make it with pork...

←

I'm not Ludja... but yep. It's made with poultry too. Schmaltz means fat. Any fat, but primarily animal.

Nothing was better on a Friday night than being the first one to Baba's house and running to the kitchen to snack on the gribenes before the rest of the cousins got there .

But we didn't use the rendered fat for bread - we just cook/ed with it.

←

Thank you Pam! Your answer is just as good. There's no doubt that schmaltz with the cracklings in it regardless of the critter it came from, is a treat. Horrible for you, but a treat nonetheless.

[legourmet]

In Prague recently we came across an item they described as 'crackling spread' which was basically a starter consisting of a little pot of pork dripping served with pork dripping - Except I'm sure it wasn't just dripping. More likely it was dripping with ground scratching added for crunchy bits! The only reference i can find to it on the internet is what looks like a similar thing from Germany called Griebenschmalz or crackling fat. Does anybody know how to make it as friends that visited Prague with uws thought it was wonderful and I'd love to serve it up to them as an appetiser this Friday!

←

You'll find a recipe here. Mix in some rendered goosefat and you'll get the Prague version.

[ludja]

Ludja:

Isn't this also done with chicken (or goose) fat and gribenes??  Like the original meaning of heartstoppingly delicious schmaltz mit gribenes?  Most nice Jewish mamas wouldn't make it with pork...

←

I'm not Ludja... but yep. It's made with poultry too. Schmaltz means fat. Any fat, but primarily animal.

Nothing was better on a Friday night than being the first one to Baba's house and running to the kitchen to snack on the gribenes before the rest of the cousins got there .

But we didn't use the rendered fat for bread - we just cook/ed with it.

←

Thanks for the information. While I know that Jewish kitchens use chicken schmaltz and cracklings, I wondered if there was a Jewish tradtion of using the chicken or goose fat/crackling mixture as a spread on bread as Kaffirlime described.

(I have only seen pork versions use in Austria this way, but wondered if it had also been used this way by Central European Jews.) Somehow it seems like the goose version may be/have been used that way--as opposed to chicken, as le gourmet alludes to.

Does anyone know if "gribenes" is also a generic term for "cracklings" as schmaltz is for fat? I've always associated "gribenes" with chicken/goose cracklings but that may just be due to the propogation of these traditions by Central European Jewish immigrants in the US/Canada. Does gribenes in German/Germany mean any type of crackling? "Grammel" or "krammel" is used in 'Austrian' German.

edited to add: From the link I found below, it seems like "gribenes" may be a general term for cracklings in German; whereas in Yiddish it woould signify only those from a chicken or goose.

Edited June 13, 2006 by ludja (log)

[ludja]

In Prague recently we came across an item they described as 'crackling spread' which was basically a starter consisting of a little pot of pork dripping served with pork dripping - Except I'm sure it wasn't just dripping. More likely it was dripping with ground scratching added for crunchy bits! The only reference i can find to it on the internet is what looks like a similar thing from Germany called Griebenschmalz or crackling fat. Does anybody know how to make it as friends that visited Prague with uws thought it was wonderful and I'd love to serve it up to them as an appetiser this Friday!

←

You'll find a recipe here. Mix in some rendered goosefat and you'll get the Prague version.

←

This sounds great. Do you mean that you make it with pork fat and then also stir in some goosefat?

Can you tell me if this interpretation of the recipe is basically correct? Render pork fat and remove lightly browned cracklings. Add in sliced onions, minced garlic, sliced apples, peppercorns, bay leaf, salt and marjoram and cook over medium heat until onions are lightly browned. Take off heat, remove bay leaf, stir in cracklings and let fully cool.

The technique of cooking the fat with flavorings like onion is similar to what I've seen described in North America in making Jewish poultry schmaltz.

Edited June 13, 2006 by ludja (log)

[ludja]

I found some more information here: click

...

Schweineschmalz (pork schmalz, Lard) is a pearl white color, and the melting point lies between 79°F and 104°F (26-40°C).

Flomenschmalz is made out of pork belly fat (Flomen), and has a smoother, lighter texture.

Griebenschmalz (called Grammelschmalz in Austria) is made from Flomen or back fat, and still contains pieces of cooked bacon, called Grieben (or Grammel). It's often combined with chunks of apple or onion and spiced with marjoram or thyme. Because of these additional ingredients, Griebenschmalz spoils faster than the other types.

Gänseschmalz (goose Schmalz) is somewhat more yellowish than pork Schmalz. In its pure form it has a distinctive flavor, and a very low melting point of 77°F (25°C), which makes it almost liquid at room temperature. For this reason, it is generally mixed with pork Schmalz to raise the melting point, in which case the percentage of pork fat is noted on the packaging.Gänseschmalz goes rancid easily and so should be used quickly.

Schmalz often has a strong aroma, and therefore is often used for hearty recipes such as stews or roasts. It also is somteimes used as a bread spread (Schmalzbrot), where it is sometimes also salted, and generally this is done on whole grain breads with a strong flavor of their own. Traditionally porcine Schmalz was sometimes used to improve the taste and texture of cakes and pie crusts.

Clarified butter is sometimes called Butterschmalz in German.

Note the information on goose schmaltz being mixed with pork schmaltz to increase the firmness of the spread.

I still think I've only had "grammelschmaltz" made without the add-ins of onion, apple, etc. Thanks for bringing this up, Kaffirlime, as I've learned alot. I may try making some of the spread using onion and apple next time I render some lard.

Edited June 13, 2006 by ludja (log)

[legourmet]

This sounds great.  Do you mean that you make it with pork fat and then also stir in some goosefat?

Can you tell me if this interpretation of the recipe is basically correct?  Render pork fat and remove lightly browned cracklings.  Add in sliced onions, minced garlic, sliced apples, peppercorns, bay leaf, salt and marjoram and cook over medium heat until onions are lightly browned.  Take off heat, remove bay leaf, stir in cracklings and let fully cool.

The technique of cooking the fat with flavorings like onion is similar to what I've seen described in North America in making Jewish poultry schmaltz.

←

Yes I make it with Flomen (pork fat) and stir in some goose fat just before the pork fat hardens. The mixture should contain 2/3 pork fat and 1/3 goose fat. The goose fat decreases the firmness of the spread and makes it much more tastier.

Your interpretation of the recipe is correct.

[ludja]

In Prague recently we came across an item they described as 'crackling spread' which was basically a starter consisting of a little pot of pork dripping served with pork dripping - Except I'm sure it wasn't just dripping. More likely it was dripping with ground scratching added for crunchy bits! The only reference i can find to it on the internet is what looks like a similar thing from Germany called Griebenschmalz or crackling fat. Does anybody know how to make it as friends that visited Prague with uws thought it was wonderful and I'd love to serve it up to them as an appetiser this Friday!

←

I was speaking with my Mom today about all things Austrian and porcine and got some new information.

There is also a spread called (in Austria): "Bratlfett". This is somewhat of a dialect word where "Bratl" derives from "braten", i.e. "to roast" and "fett" is 'fat'.

The spread is smooth in texture and brown in color and it consists of the pork fat and the leftover drippings from a pork roast (what you would use to make gravy). Roast pork is also very big in the Czech Republic so it may in fact have been something more like this. The small casual Central European "bistro" type places would likely always be roasting a lot of pork and it is yet another spread type product you can make.

These types of spreads are typically served not only on rye bread but also on other dark or black country-style breads of the region.

Hope this helps, Kaffirlime. I'd be interested to know if you give this a try for your friends on Friday and how it is received!

[mizducky]

Ludja:

Isn't this also done with chicken (or goose) fat and gribenes??  Like the original meaning of heartstoppingly delicious schmaltz mit gribenes?  Most nice Jewish mamas wouldn't make it with pork...

←

I'm not Ludja... but yep. It's made with poultry too. Schmaltz means fat. Any fat, but primarily animal.

Nothing was better on a Friday night than being the first one to Baba's house and running to the kitchen to snack on the gribenes before the rest of the cousins got there .

But we didn't use the rendered fat for bread - we just cook/ed with it.

←

I dunno about bread, but my mom once told me that as a kid she considered spaghetti topped with schmaltz to be a real treat. But then she added this was partly because her family was really broke when she was a kid in the 1930s, so this was one of the few "treats" they could afford. She tried the treat once she was an adult with more cashflow ... and wondered how she ever even ate it--heartburn city!

Edited June 14, 2006 by mizducky (log)

[Pam R]

I dunno about bread, but my mom once told me that as a kid she considered spaghetti topped with schmaltz to be a real treat. But then she added this was partly because her family was really broke when she was a kid in the 1930s, so this was one of the few "treats" they could afford. She tried the treat once she was an adult with more cashflow ... and wondered how she ever even ate it--heartburn city!

←

I have no doubt that when my father was growing up (in Poland, then on a farm in Saskatchewan) shmaltz was shmeared on bread. Of course, if any part of the meal contained meat in it, there would be no butter. Olive oil? Are you kidding? And margarine was not part of my Baba's pantry.

He just corrected me. He said he rarely used shmaltz on bread. I said "What did you put on your bread?". He said "butter". I asked "with a meat meal??" He replied "why do you need to put anything on your bread with a meat meal?"

Sometimes it's annoying sharing an office with my father!

We definitely ate griebenz in the good old days - but the shmaltz in our family was used more for cooking. Lots of onions were cooked in shmaltz. And my father says as a treat, the night before Passover, every year, dinner was mashed potatoes with shmaltz.

[rooftop1000]

If I remember correctly Steve's Roumanian Steak house in NYC has small pitchers of schmaltz on the tables to pour on the bread....

tracey

[Irenesh]

I know schmaltz has been used quite often in the cooking of European Jews, although today it is regarded as a health hazard among the younger generation. If I think of the ultimate fatty pork snack, its good 'ole southern pork rinds like Paula Dean makes'em: homemade pork rinds recipe I can't think of anyone that is more iconic of traditional American cuisine than she is; and she presents her recipes with such motherly affection that it really does inspire to overlook whatever is unhealthy in fried pork fat.

[OliverB]

my mom used to make this before everybody got afraid of anything called "fat". From what I recall, she just got some fatback (just white fat) from pigs, cut it into small dice and put it in a pot to melt the fat and what ever else is in there turns into nice golden brown crunch bits, every little square made one of those bits. Then you let it cool, spread it on nice farmer's bread, a bit of salt on it and you're on your way to heaven :-)

I'll have to ask her if she remembers the recipe, it's been a long time since she made it last. But that doesn't mean I can't pick up a nice family tradition again :-)

[JTravel]

We had this several times in Ukraine. It was white, sort of like lard, no crispy bits, and served with bread and salt. Very tasty. We took to calling it piggy butter after it was described to us.

[Anna N]

We had this several times in Ukraine. It was white, sort of like lard, no crispy bits, and served with bread and salt. Very tasty. We took to calling it piggy butter after it was described to us.

Oh my lord - what a brilliant name. Will be adopting it immediately.