The Chinese Way to Render Chicken and Duck Fat

Poultry fat needs to be rendered in order to be a smooth and successful cooking agent. That is, it needs to be melted in such a way as to separate the pure fat from any skin, connective tissues, or excess moisture. The Chinese way is simply to cube the fat, place it in a heatproof bowl, then steam it over high heat until the clear fat melts away from the rest. The liquid fat should be strained through cheesecloth, whereupon it will keep in the refrigerator for at least a week or may be frozen indefinitely. (Because it is a fat, it never gets very hard even when frozen, and I just scoop it out of the freezer container as I need it.) As for the bits left behind, you can discard them or, if you like cracklings, you can fry them up in a skillet until dark and crispy and then eat them in a salad, in a soup, or simply as is.