Bacon Drippings ?

[mosparky]

I'm just getting started trying to bake bacon. Experimenting with time and temps.
My question is whether the drippings are worth saving for seasoning.
It seems that not having the minute particles left from frying, the drippings would taste like little more than just grease or maybe lard.
So far my results are varied. I've been matching temps for other things that are being baked and changing up the time element. I am finding the times given in most on-line recipes are way off from my results.

 

[chef jimmyj]

The drippings from baked bacon is somewhat more mild in taste. But still well worth saving. I make both pan fried and baked and all the drippings get saved. The nice part is, without the Bits, the grease is more useful when sautéing vegetables and such as it does not burn as easily...JJ

 

[chilerelleno]

Bacon grease is still bacon grease, and far and away better than any cooking oil, lard or similar.
Yep, just a little milder than with all the wonderful bits of crusties.
I save and use it all.

 

[SonnyE]

I save mine.
I have a Mason Jar I put it in and take it out of.
My wife prefers to Bake Bacon in the oven. I, on the other hand, prefer to fry my bacon.
Low, and slow.
Not popping all over the damn place.

 

[mosparky]

Thanks guys. That didn't take long.
Y'all confirmed my suspicion. I seldom saut'e anything in drippings but rather melt dripping over veggies and such much like most would do with butter or margarine.
Thanks Chef for the note about not burning. Extra useful.
Maybe I need to keep separate containers for fried and baked drippings.

 

[jbellard]

Something I’ve done when saving bacon grease is to put a coffee filter over the jar I’m putting grease into.
Filters out all of the little bits and your re left with clean lard that still has enough of the flavor you can taste to impart a grey flavor while not over powering whatever you’re trying to cook it with.

 

[torp3t3d0]

My mom always saved them, hence so do I....have found though that drippings saved from doing bacon in the oven have an amount of water in them and thus splatter when used to fry...dripping from fried bacon do not have that issue....nothing better than butter beans and corn done with bacon drippings

 

[daveomak]

When I bake my bacon, I use a double sheet pan under the wire rack... Seems to stop stuff from burning during the high heat when the oven burner comes on.... kind of an insulation layer... then the fat pours easily into a container for the refer....