Shmaltz is the Yiddish word for poultry fat. It is from Ashkenazi cuisine and in its usual form it would be rendered chicken or goose fat. However, in order to have a pareve spread for use with meat a Jewish household needs vegetarian schmaltz.
Head straight on to the recipe for Vegetarian Schmaltz ♥
Kashrut rules do not allow the mixing of meat with dairy products. In Kosher terms, all things fowl are considered to be meat. So, if you had some duck fat in your kitchen you could not use it in place of butter when making grilled cheese. I grew up with schmaltz in the fridge at home. It is perfect for pastrami on rye, a Jewish staple sandwich. When we moved here I could not find schmaltz anywhere. Despite Somerset West having a Synagogue, the number of Jewish residents in our area has dwindled. Our local Pick ‘n Pay were not interested in getting in for me so I had to make my own.
Today’s inspiration ♥ Recipe For Vegetarian Schmaltz ♥ can be found on Lavender and Lime Share on X
I called my mother who gave me her recipe. I can remember her making this when we were younger. It was stored in a ceramic pot and mostly used by my father. I have altered the recipe to make a manageable amount at home. This vegetarian schmaltz is also an essential ingredient in kneidlach.
Vegetarian Schmaltz
Ingredients
- 250 g holsum *
- 40 mls canola oil
- 3 medium carrots, peeled and grated
- 1 large onion, peeled and grated
Method
- Place the holsum, oil, carrots and onions into a pot
- Bring to the boil over a medium temperature
- Reduce the heat and simmer gently until the liquid is yellow
- Strain into a sterilized glass jar
- Refrigerate once cooled
Notes
Click on the links for conversions and notes.
What I blogged August 1:
- two years ago – In My Kitchen August 2014
- three years ago – In My Kitchen August 2013
- four years ago – In My Kitchen August 2012
- five years ago – Friday’s Food Quiz Number 61
- six years ago – Friday’s Food Quiz Number 32
Learnt something new today. Cool.
Have a happy Monday Tandy.
🙂 Mandy xo
Happy Tuesday to you Mandy xox
Hi Tandy – I am learning quite a lot about Jewish culture via your blog. I knew about not mix dairy and meat but it had never occured to me about the problem this creates is you want to use schmaltz. But what is holsum? I have no idea. I Googled it but only came up with the name of a bread company in the US. Is it some sort of lard replacement or similar? I find this fascinating.
Hi, hope you got my tweets. Holsum is a vegetable shortening 🙂
I haven’t heard of this before, but I think it’s great that you are able to make a vegetarian version of it.
It is a tasty vegetable shortening spread Dannii 🙂
How interesting Tandy, never understood what Schmaltz was. Have a great week.
Thanks Cheri, you too 🙂
I have never heard of schmaltz before, but this sounds like a wonderful substitute for butter on bread. This is a wonderful share, Tandy.
Thanks Anu 🙂
Tandy, what is ‘holsum’??
It is known as Copha in Australia. I have amended the recipe Liz.
What a cool recipe!!
Thanks Sues 🙂
Well, it just goes to show that you do learn something everyday. I have to say I have never hears of schmaltz
Glad you could learn something new here Paula 🙂
Not being able to buy special food where you are becomes a good motivation to make your own! It sounds like a very tasty addition to a sandwich.
It does add another flavour level to any sandwich 🙂
that’s interesting, i wonder if i could also substitute vegetarian Schmaltz instead of butter in sauteing. 🙂
You could indeed 🙂
What a fascinating recipe Tandy. I had no idea about vegetarian schmaltz.
Would you ever use it?
I have never heard of schmaltz before and how cool you found a vegetarian option!
It is so easy to make as well 🙂
How cool!!! I have a jar of rendered duck fat in the fridge.. does that count as schmaltz? It’s definitely not vegetarian though 😉
Yes it does, but not for dairy based sandwiches 🙂
I had no idea such a thing even exhausted, thanks Tandy. Not sure where to start with looking for those ingredients, but appreciate the note for Aussies.
I never even considered that things have different names here to there when I wrote the recipe 🙂
I had no knowledge of this ever! Is it like a spread or something?
It is a spread 🙂
This is the first time I have heard of Ashkenazi cuisine and it has intrigued me. Going to Google it. If this is what they use in their dishes I am sure its going to be fabulous!
The food is mostly very hearty and comforting 🙂
I have had schmaltz but never vegetarian schmaltz, this is an interesting recipe!
Thank you Prateek 🙂
Hadn’t heard of this before, not being Jewish but I loved reading the recipe. Not sure I’d eat Crisco in anything on purpose though!!
Oh, I shall have to read more about the product 🙂
So interesting, Tandy. The only time I’ve used Copha, in fact the product used to be known for it in Australia, is when making chocolate crackles. You melt the Copha and mix in the other ingredients, then the Copha cools down and hardens. Knowing that, it makes sense, that you have oil as an added ingredient to keep the schmaltz spreadable. Would that be right?
That is 100% right.
You can use,Rama. Just as good!
Thanks for that Paul 🙂
Thank you so much for this! I’m vegan, and I’m trying to recreate some of my late mother’s traditional Croatian recipes. I knew a critical component to many of them was that wonderful fat flavor, which this has done perfectly in the paprikash recipe. Thank you again!
My pleasure, and have fun recreating the recipes! We are off to Croatia in December, and I am really looking forward to the trip 🙂
Hi Tandy. I made your recipe and my whole house smells like love; great memories of my mother and grandmothers’ cooking. One concern: My refrigerated jar of schmaltz set in 3 visible layers. The bottom is cloudy, the middle looks liquid and the vast majority – the top layer – is firm like I remember chicken schmaltz. Did I do something wrong or is this normal? Thank you for the wonderful recipe!
Hi Nechama,
Thank you for the comment and for letting me know about the memories and love. It sounds like you just have a little bit of separation due to cooling and I would not worry about it. I remember this happened to my mom often. You can soften and mix it all up when you use it. Hope that helps 🙂
Hi,
Can I substitute the Canola oil? I live in Spain and an intoxication from adulterated canola oil in 1981, which killed almost 4,000 people, means it’s so unpopular here that it’s exceptionally difficult to get hold of.
We can easily get olive oil and sunflower oil – do you think the 40mls would make a big difference in the taste of your schmaltz?
Thanks in advance!
Hi, what a terrible thing to have happen. You can use sunflower oil, which is a perfect substitute.
How long would this schmaltz keep for
Hi Jodi. I kept mine for a few years as we did not use it that often. But to be on the safe side I would look at the expiry date of the shortening you use and use that as a guide.
Can we use VEGETARIAN SCHMALTZ to Fry Fried Chicken in deep fryer?
Does VEGETARIAN SCHMALTZ taste same as Chicken Fat?
How much KG of VEGETARIAN SCHMALTZ is required to fry 8 pieces of Chicken at a time?
I will great full if you answer my questions & Thank You for sharing such wonderful recipe…
hi. No, you cannot use the schmaltz in a deep fat fryer. It does not taste the same as chicken fat. If you use the schmaltz to fry chicken in, using a frying pan, then you will need a couple of tablespoons.
My family will only eat mashed potatoes with schmaltz. For decades, my mother made a “healthier” mock schmaltz. We’ve been using Canola oil, adding onions a bit of garlic and simmering for an hour. Curious why you use mostly shortening and a little oil as the combo? Not sure veggies oil is considered healthier anymore. What do you think about using Avocado oil?
This is how my grandmother made it, so it was the way I made it. I will try Avocado oil next time I need schmaltz 🙂