Bacon and other grease

[Car-Guy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by freebird5825 I have a septic system, so zero grease goes down the sink drain.

+1 - I never put any oil or grease in my septic system if I can help it. I'm sure a little of it makes it way in, but not much. Cooking oils/grease are poured into empty one gallon Ozarka water bottles and that goes to the trash/landfill. The little bit of bacon oil we have usually goes over the dogs food which he loves.

[pb4uski]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Idnar7 .....My grandmother fried eggs in bacon grease, basting with it to cook the tops. Tasted great and we always looked forward to breakfast. ....

FIL did the same thing. He would fry eggs in 1/4" of hot bacon fat and used the spatula to splash the hot fat on the tops of the eggs so they ended up like a mix between sunny-side-up and over easy. He dies of cancer, not heart disease.

[sengsational]

braumeister, When I saw this:

Quote:

Originally Posted by MichaelB Bacon beer? That's a Nobel Prize level discovery, and I bet whoever did it would be richer than Bill Gates.

I went over and grabbed this image:


Great minds!

[Retch The Grate]

I'm definitely in the save it and use it for cooking later camp.

[aja8888]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ronstar Except landfills have flaming discharge pipes that burn off the methane....

Or it's collected and sold into a pipeline after cleaning up and dewatering.

[Ronstar]

Quote:

Originally Posted by aja8888 Or it's collected and sold into a pipeline after cleaning up and dewatering.

Wow - I haven't seen that around northern Illinois. But the landfill I was involved in closed several years ago. Is the methane sale through pipeline something new?

[Walt34]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MichaelB So, it seems the options, in order, are reuse, landfill, sewer. Is it fair to say all things considered, landfill has less overall environmental impact than sewer?

The fat had a pretty bad effect on the London sewer system:

London 'Fatberg' weighing 15 TONNES found blocking sewers | Daily Mail Online

[freebird5825]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Walt34 The fat had a pretty bad effect on the London sewer system: London 'Fatberg' weighing 15 TONNES found blocking sewers | Daily Mail Online

Please tell me it was a remote floating camera that took the video footage found halfway down that webpage.

[aja8888]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ronstar Wow - I haven't seen that around northern Illinois. But the landfill I was involved in closed several years ago. Is the methane sale through pipeline something new?

No, I've seen landfills with gas being used to fire co-generation units. Tapping landfill gas for fuel use is common in new landfill design. Many municipalities that are expanding and planning new landfills consider incorporating methane recovery in the design. EPA has a program for it:

Landfill Methane Outreach Program (LMOP) | US EPA

[Walt34]

Quote:

Originally Posted by freebird5825 Please tell me it was a remote floating camera that took the video footage found halfway down that webpage.

I read the article, or most of it, and no, those dedicated public servants were walking around in it. I sure hope they had waders.....

[pb4uski]

Quote:

Originally Posted by aja8888 No, I've seen landfills with gas being used to fire co-generation units. Tapping landfill gas for fuel use is common in new landfill design. Many municipalities that are expanding and planning new landfills consider incorporating methane recovery in the design. EPA has a program for it: Landfill Methane Outreach Program (LMOP) | US EPA

54% of the electricity that we use here at home is generated by landfill methane gas. I don't understand why it isn't mandatory for every significant landfill in the country to be considered for generation.

[meierlde]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RonBoyd This is probably one of those "commonsense" things that doesn't end up to be very accurate. Water, no matter how hot initially, would cool down quite rapidly and be, at the very least (most?) "room" temperature, before reaching the main line. I would have to fall into line with the "just don't put it in your drain" group.

Actually if you then look at the line the dishwasher is on it will put a couple of gallons of 160 f water down twice a cycle, which should rinse a good bit of grease from that line (in particular because the wash water also has detergent)

[DAYDREAMER]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mpeirce Um, that's not how arteries work...

Um, thats exactly how arteries get plugged up! Sorry everybody for my replies being off topic a little, but i'm seeing some real misconceptions of the health affects of bacon fat.

Bacon & LDL | Healthy Eating | SF Gate

Saturated Fat
About one-third of the fat in bacon is saturated, an especially unhealthy type of fat. According to the National Institutes of Health, saturated fat is a significant dietary factor that causes high levels of LDL. LDL is a lipoprotein that carries cholesterol to all your cells. Your body needs cholesterol to build cellular membranes, synthesize some hormones and drive many biochemical reactions. But LDL is often called bad cholesterol because, when its level becomes too high, it can cause plaque to form. Plaque is a fatty deposit that develops on the inner surface of your arteries, which carry blood to all your organs. Eventually, plaque hardens, narrowing vessels and interfering with blood flow. This can have serious consequences for your health.

[braumeister]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DAYDREAMER But LDL is often called bad cholesterol because, when its level becomes too high, it can cause plaque to form.

Um, there is absolutely no scientific evidence for this frequently claimed effect. Nor is there any recognized biochemical mechanism for its occurrence.

But otherwise, we should all eat the way we like.

I like a lot of bacon.

[mpeirce]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DAYDREAMER Um, thats exactly how arteries get plugged up! Sorry everybody for my replies being off topic a little, but i'm seeing some real misconceptions of the health affects of bacon fat. Bacon & LDL | Healthy Eating | SF Gate

There is a lot of research and debate about this going on these days. It's certainly not settled science either way, but there is a lot of evidence that the old American Heart Association approach is flawed. For example,

'Rise of saturated fat in diet does not raise fats in blood' - Medical News Today

Quote:

Prof. Volek says that there is widespread misunderstanding about saturated fat, stating that despite population studies failing to find a link between dietary saturated fat and heart disease, dietary guidelines continue to advocate restriction of saturated fat

Another interesting article is:

Saturated fat is not the major issue | The BMJ

Quote:

Saturated fat has been demonised ever since Ancel Keys’s landmark “seven countries” study in 1970.2 This concluded that a correlation existed between the incidence of coronary heart disease and total cholesterol concentrations, which then correlated with the proportion of energy provided by saturated fat. But correlation is not causation.

Yes, we're off topic (sorry). But it's worth it to point out both sides.

[Ronstar]

Quote:

Originally Posted by aja8888 No, I've seen landfills with gas being used to fire co-generation units. Tapping landfill gas for fuel use is common in new landfill design. Many municipalities that are expanding and planning new landfills consider incorporating methane recovery in the design. EPA has a program for it: Landfill Methane Outreach Program (LMOP) | US EPA

Quote:

Originally Posted by pb4uski 54% of the electricity that we use here at home is generated by landfill methane gas. I don't understand why it isn't mandatory for every significant landfill in the country to be considered for generation.

I did some research and found that the new landfill in the area started a methane capture/generation program last year. The knowledge one gains from this board is incredible. I would have never known this if you guys hadn't mentioned it.

[DAYDREAMER]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mpeirce There is a lot of research and debate about this going on these days. It's certainly not settled science either way, but there is a lot of evidence that the old American Heart Association approach is flawed. For example, 'Rise of saturated fat in diet does not raise fats in blood' - Medical News Today Another interesting article is: Saturated fat is not the major issue | The BMJ Yes, we're off topic (sorry). But it's worth it to point out both sides.

Thanks for the counter evidence! I'll make the bacon/bacon double cheese burger part of my daily diet: NOT! Until main stream health organizations are convinced that high fat foods and LDL is good for you, i'll follow the advice of my doctor, and my health screaning recommendations. So far its worked well for me.

[Walt34]

I give myself what I call a monthly "Day of Dietary Decadence" figuring that if I do things right the rest of the time one day of misbehavior won't have any long-term effects.

On that one day I will eat anything that strikes my mood, paying no attention whatsoever to the ingredients list. Well, except for gluten. If I ignore that one it gets pretty ugly.

[DAYDREAMER]

Oops sorry to the OP. I never really answered the thread question. I pour the FAT into a container that is headed for the garbage and wipe the frying pan with a paper towel. Also dab grease from the cooked bacon with paper towels.

[rockymountainhigh]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ArkTinkerer We never throw out bacon fat! We cook with it! Biscuits or cornbread or to brown venison before cooking it in the oven or slow cooker.

Ditto, usually to add flavor to things like canned refried beans or drizzle on burgers while on the grill.