Appetizers for Mrs. Sprat

When I posted the recipe for goose fat fried in goose fat, I thought that that was about the most fat that you could work into a meal. I was so, so wrong. For sheer quantity of fat, I don't think today's recipe can be beat. I didn't even know this type of fat existed, and I could have lived happily ever after in that state of ignorance. But I bought the cookbook, I read the recipe, and now I know the whole ugly story which will no doubt linger in my mind for a sadly long time. Why must fat be so persistent? The subtitle of this recipe could be "How to transform pork into a blob of fat in 4 easy steps." The French have a lot to answer for.

RILLETTES DE TOURS

3 pounds of lard (kidney fat)
3 pounds fresh pork (shoulder, loin or leg), cut into small pieces
1 cup water
Salt, freshly ground black pepper

Render the leaf lard in a large pot. When it is melted, add the pork and water. Cover and cook slowly on top of the stove or in a 250 to 300 degree oven until the meat is so tender that it almost falls apart; this will take about 4 hours.Remove the meat from the fat and shred it with two forks. Season to taste with salt and pepper.Spoon the shredded pork into small pots with some of the fat, mashing so that the pork absorbs the fat. Ladle enough fat on top to make an airtight cover over the Rillettes. To serve as an hors d-oeuvre, spread on toast.