For the lovers of bacon everywhere, I offer you…ideal mood lighting.
Clean, efficient, and 100% kitchen grease.
1. Just like the bacon soap recipe, I boiled the grease with water in equal parts, removed it from heat and added 1/2 as much COLD water to precipitate out the yuck. After cooling, the top layer of grease is scoopable. (I did two washes and coolings.) But, cooling takes a WHILE, so we’ll come back to the fat in a minute.
2. Braid up a few strands of cotton yarn a bit longer than your chosen vessel or cut a strip of absorbent natural fiber clothing. Thread it through a metal cap on one end and center it over a magnet. (Of course, if you can think of another way to stabilize it, that’s fine too.)
3. Suspend the top of the wick with a chopstick (or other handy stick-type thing: skewer, candy thermometer, knitting needle, an actual STICK.)
4. Spoon soupy, soft grease in and around wick. Be sure to accidentally drip some on the top of the wick, it will help get the fire going until the grease liquifies and starts climbing the wick on it’s own.
5. Pop that sucker in the freezer to set for a bit, then light her up!
It will smoke for a few minutes while the wick is soaking and all, but other than that, there’s really no smoke or deep-fried scent. That second bit will be a disappointment to some, but I guess ‘clean’ grease is just rude like that.
Ivory
After the grease separates and cools, do you use the stuff on the top or the bottom for the candle? Or do you mix it together and use both?
I can’t lie, I have no idea what you’re talking about! HA! In the original can? I just dump the whole can in the pot and clean it together.
Dear Ivor,
For how long do you boil the grease? I have tried this already, boiling it for maybe a minute or less, but it never separated. I’m frustrated 🙁
Can I add essential oils to this? If it’s not bacon scented, I would like it to smell like something. 🙂
Does this start smelling rancid over time? If I’m doing this for longer storage or preparedness purposes would it be best to freeze it?
For all of you who have not gotten answers. I have never made bacon candles, but have made enuf candle to answer your questions.
I would use more water to boil the grease. you need some room for the yuck to fall to the bottom of the pan. I would then immerse the pan in cold water to speeed up the cooling process. Only use the top stuff.
You can’t over boil the grease, unless you boil off all the water. The boiling action gets all the bits separated from the fat so they will hopefully fall to the bottom of the pan during cooling.
Sure, add smelly oils. What can it hurt? Freezing is surely the best way to store bacon candles. There is still enuf stuff in them to go rancid.
For u bird lovers, consider dredging yarn in the melted bacon fat and rolling it in bird seed. Cool and hang from your trees.
Can you make candles and soap with used frying oil?
YEs but you will need to purify it first. See the soap from kitchen grease post in the side bar.