# How do you dispose of cooking fat? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 23, 2011, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-dispose-of-cooking-fat/575670 "2011-03-23T01:08:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-dispose-of-cooking-fat/575670/1 "2011-03-23T01:08:38Z")
If you deep fry at home, how do you dispose of the fat? ---
**Author:** ![Rand\_Rover](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/db5fbb/32.png) [@Rand\_Rover](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rand_Rover)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-dispose-of-cooking-fat/575670/2 "2011-03-23T01:28:37Z")
oh no . . . ---
**Author:** ![TravisFromOR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cc9497/32.png) [@TravisFromOR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TravisFromOR)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-dispose-of-cooking-fat/575670/3 "2011-03-23T01:53:24Z")
You don’t drink it? 😛 I actually just dump it in my oil buckets–the ones I use to store used engine oil before I take it to the recycle plant. ---
**Author:** ![pbbth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f9ae1b/32.png) [@pbbth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pbbth)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-dispose-of-cooking-fat/575670/4 "2011-03-23T01:56:49Z")
I’ve never deep fried anything, but whenever I’ve pan fried something and had fat left over I take an empty vegetable can/coffee can/other sturdy metal can and pour it inside. Then I put that can in the refrigerator until the fat solidifies and then I throw it away. ---
**Author:** ![PSXer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/48db29/32.png) [@PSXer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PSXer)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-dispose-of-cooking-fat/575670/5 "2011-03-23T02:01:52Z")
turn it into soap ---
**Author:** ![lindsaybluth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/90db22/32.png) [@lindsaybluth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lindsaybluth)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-dispose-of-cooking-fat/575670/6 "2011-03-23T02:11:50Z")
Dump it in the garbage once it’s cooled slightly. But I don’t deep fry, just pan fry. ---
**Author:** ![TravisFromOR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cc9497/32.png) [@TravisFromOR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TravisFromOR)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-dispose-of-cooking-fat/575670/7 "2011-03-23T02:17:49Z")
> [@lindsaybluth](#): > > Dump it in the garbage once it’s cooled slightly. But I don’t deep fry, just pan fry. Oil in the garbage can makes a big mess. ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-dispose-of-cooking-fat/575670/8 "2011-03-23T02:25:48Z")
I strain it, pour it back in the original container, and put it on the floor of the pantry, where it will probably sit until I croak and the house is sold. hahahahahaha!!! You might check with your county recycling office. (Our area has two addresses where you can drop off liquid cooking fat, one of them is the county waste treatment plan. I never knew that until I just checked.) Or, what I do with a lot of liquid type stuff to get rid of is dispose of it a little at a time, on trash day, by wadding up a sheet of newspaper, putting it in an empty potato chip bag, and pouring in some of the oil. And then just putting it in the trash bag. ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-dispose-of-cooking-fat/575670/9 "2011-03-23T02:34:20Z")
Soak some into a wad of used paper towels and burn it to fire up my chimney charcoal lighter. ---
**Author:** ![kambuckta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/53a042/32.png) [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-dispose-of-cooking-fat/575670/10 "2011-03-23T02:35:35Z")
> [@Rand\_Rover](#): > > oh no . . . 😃 I take miine to a remote corner of the back garden and dig a hole. Doesn’t seem to have killed anything yet. ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-dispose-of-cooking-fat/575670/11 "2011-03-23T04:18:46Z")
I dump it down the drain. I don’t deep fry so really the only grease I ever have is bacon drippings and the fat poured off of browned ground beef. I know this is a no-no, but I live in an apartment with city sewers so it’s not really something I sweat. I figure running some screaming hot water down with it gets it clear of the trap just fine. ---
**Author:** ![rhubarbarin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/eb9ed0/32.png) [@rhubarbarin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rhubarbarin)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-dispose-of-cooking-fat/575670/12 "2011-03-23T04:40:06Z")
I only pan fry, but I save all fat leftover/rendered and incorporate it into later meals. Deep fryers are a PITA, even small ones. Are you using a vegetable-derived oil in there? If it’s liquid instead of solid at room temp, it makes regular disposal more difficult. Everything I have ever read suggests it should be put in a secure container and put out with the regular trash. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-dispose-of-cooking-fat/575670/13 "2011-03-23T04:58:14Z")
Let it cool to room temp, strain it, and put it back into the oil container and into the pantry. If you deep fry more than once a year, there’s really no sense in dumping all that oil out. You could deep fry many times in that oil before it gets rancid, providing you strain it well. In fact, I think oil that’s been used a couple times tastes better than new oil. However, if you want a strict reading of the OP, depending on the amount, I may dump it in the toilet or sink (I know I shouldn’t) or just put it back in the container and dump it in the garbage (which is what I try to remember to do these days.) It’s when I’m doing more semi-deep frying in a cast iron skillet that I’m apt to get lazy and put it in the sink. If it’s a Dutch oven full of oil, then, yeah, put it back in the container, out into the garbage. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-dispose-of-cooking-fat/575670/14 "2011-03-23T05:05:00Z")
Doesn’t anyone mix the grease/fat with their dogs dry dog food? I had to put my dog down a few months ago, but she seemed to enjoy her food when I did this. ---
**Author:** ![TravisFromOR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cc9497/32.png) [@TravisFromOR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TravisFromOR)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-dispose-of-cooking-fat/575670/15 "2011-03-23T05:12:40Z")
> [@Omniscient](#): > > I dump it down the drain. I don’t deep fry so really the only grease I ever have is bacon drippings and the fat poured off of browned ground beef. I know this is a no-no, but I live in an apartment with city sewers so it’s not really something I sweat. I figure running some screaming hot water down with it gets it clear of the trap just fine. Nope, that doesn’t work. It might clear the trap, but it won’t get much further. When the plumber comes to clean the mess up, you’ll probably be left with a hefty bill. (If you sock it to your apartment’s owner, then that’s a different issue.) ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-dispose-of-cooking-fat/575670/16 "2011-03-23T06:12:25Z")
> [@notfrommensa](#): > > Doesn’t anyone mix the grease/fat with their dogs dry dog food? I had to put my dog down a few months ago, but she seemed to enjoy her food when I did this. I do all the time. But I only have one dog, and deep frying equals a lot of fat. ---
**Author:** ![flatlined](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/eb9ed0/32.png) [@flatlined](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flatlined)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 6:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-dispose-of-cooking-fat/575670/17 "2011-03-23T06:18:44Z")
> [@notfrommensa](#): > > Doesn’t anyone mix the grease/fat with their dogs dry dog food? I had to put my dog down a few months ago, but she seemed to enjoy her food when I did this. I wouldn’t pour the left over oil from a deep fryer on a dogs food, but I do know that they LOVE bacon or hamburger grease. I"m sure its not good for them, but if I ever have time to own a dog again, dog would get those sort of treats. (one of the many reasons I miss having a dog is feeding her leftovers. I didn’t have to do the "ohhh…this is too much to throw out, so I’ll put it in the fridge to eat later…then a week later finding the science experiment and then throwing it out and bleaching the plastic. Dogs help skip those steps) ---
**Author:** ![6ImpossibleThingsB4Breakfast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/6/e19adc/32.png) [@6ImpossibleThingsB4Breakfast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/6ImpossibleThingsB4Breakfast)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-dispose-of-cooking-fat/575670/18 "2011-03-23T06:20:19Z")
> [@notfrommensa](#): > > Doesn’t anyone mix the grease/fat with their dogs dry dog food? I had to put my dog down a few months ago, but she seemed to enjoy her food when I did this. The first bit of that made me laugh. I got to the second bit and didn’t know what to do with that, so I went back to the first bit and laughed again. I deep fry nuthin’, so I got nuthin’. Except maybe sending it to the starving children my parents were always telling me about. Seems they always wanted my brussell sprouts. Used oil would surely be a bonus. ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-dispose-of-cooking-fat/575670/19 "2011-03-23T06:39:45Z")
> [@flatlined](#): > > Dogs help skip those steps) My dogs is great at starting cleanup, too! Imagine a big broiler pan of grease. Scoop out the major part of the grease, throw in a cup of kibble, mix it up a little and put down the whole broiler pan. The only thing any self-respecting dog leaves behind are the sticky burned bits, making clean up much easier and less greasy overall. (Although dog saliva is amazingly viscous and demands a good scrubbing and plenty of suds to clean as well.) ---
**Author:** ![6ImpossibleThingsB4Breakfast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/6/e19adc/32.png) [@6ImpossibleThingsB4Breakfast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/6ImpossibleThingsB4Breakfast)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2011, 8:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-dispose-of-cooking-fat/575670/20 "2011-03-23T08:55:57Z")
Oh **Stoid** …! That is multi-levels of YUK… [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-dispose-of-cooking-fat/575670.md?page=2)