Schmaltz - Funny season

Apropos of nothing, I have decided to reveal the secret ingredient to Jewish Penecillan chicken soup.  This might get me disenfranchised from the 1/15 millionth of the planet's wealth that we control, but they are well behind in their payments, so here goes:

Schmaltz

Or as others, less informed by Leo Rosen call it, Rendered Chicken Fat.  The upper case is deliberate, as this wondrous ingredient has curative properties inexplicable by modern science, yet known to both my grandmothers.

It is a little kept secret that when preparing chicken soup most of the skin is removed.  This is to keep the amount of fat at an acceptable quantity, for as we all know well, too much of a good thing can have negative results.  But what to do with all the removed skin (besides the doggy disposal)?

RENDERING:

Remove the skin from the chicken (you can save it in the freezer if you want to make a truly large batch, but I say, start small).  Cur it into small pieces, no more than a few square inches each.  KEEP ALL THE LOOSE FAT.

In a small saucepan over a very low heat, put in the skin and fat.  In about 10 minutes, a miracle will start to occur, as the fat liquifies.  Upon the end of the process (when all the fat has liquified) remove the skin.  This you can mix in with doggy's dinner.  At this point, put in some finely chopped onion and continue to cook for 10 minutes, or until the onion becomes golden. 

Strain the fat into a suitable container

Keep the onion, which has now been miraculously transformed into grieven (pronounced gree-vin).  This delicacy goes great on bread.  Or you can give it to me.

The chicken fat has now been rendered and can be called by its true anme - Schmaltz.

USES
There are few things as tasteless as plain matzoh, as any who have suffered through it for a week at Passover will tell you.  Breaking it into small pieces, dipping it in egg and frying helps, as does sprinkling sugar or drizzling honey on it.  However, frying it in Schmaltz truly brings out the flavor and imbues it with some of its fabled restorative powers.

Ditto for pancakes, French Toast, eggs, etc.

Try it - you'll like it. :)  Maybe next time Hix makes breakfast?

As an aside, until the mid-20th century, this was routinely done by people from all over Europe.  Most stopped when they came to the USA.  That's because they were not hooked into the real power behind the - Dang - I almost said too much.

You're out of the club, please immediately stop reading the secret messages written on the side of Kosher foods.  Is that the same thing as derma (or the same thing my grandparents, possibly incorrectly, called derma)?

Derma - Beef casing (OK< intestine casing) stuffed with:
matzo meal (or flour during Pesach/Passver)
onion,
rendered beef, mutton  or SCHMALTZ
plus salt, pepper and other seasonings, which grandma never measured but always threw in by hand.  Mine tastes OK, but naturally not as good as hers.

Tradtiionally, after stuffing, one boils it, expanding the matza meal.  after that, roasting is an option, unless the derma is consigned to soup.

The whole megillah (Thank you, Leo) is also called  kishke after it is stuffed.

Want some, Noah?  I have not killed anyone with my cooking - yet :).