Not An Iceberg...A Fatberg

I haven't had the chance to download and edit all of the pictures I took over Mother's Day weekend, so I'll be posting those pics later this week. In the meantime, I've decided to totally gross you out and bring to light a disgusting, but real problem.

I was listening to NPR the other day and there was a London reporter talking about a huge problem they are having in their sewer systems. Apparently a lot of the popular foods that are cooked in London require frying (fish, french fries, etc.) and for decades, people have been pouring the used grease down their kitchen sinks when they were finished cooking.

This erroneous disposal of grease has caused what they have termed, "Fatbergs" under the streets of London. Basically large globs of fat are clogging up the city's sewer systems and they are now having to go in and dig it out.

I'm warning you... this is a really gross image...

 

Disgusting, right??? (This poor guy!)

The good news is, London has contracted with a company to turn these vile Fatbergs into an energy source by burning it. You can read the entire story here if you are so inclined.

So why am I blogging about this gross problem in London?

Because it's not just a problem across the pond. It's happening in your own city too. And in your own household sewer lines if you dump oil down your sink.

Granted, you probably don't have Fatbergs developing, but disposing of oil in your sink is not only bad for the environment, it's really bad for your sewer lines. And clogged sewer lines are very expensive to fix. Trust me. We had tree roots growing into one of our sewer lines and have had to call people out to come clear them. NOT cheap.

What's the solution?

Easy. It's a trick my mom (and maybe many of you) has been using for as long as I can remember.

When she would cook something that would produce grease (like meatballs) she would pour the excess grease into an old can and then stick it in the freezer.

Here's how I do it:

When you're finished making your meatballs/chicken Parmesan/bacon, etc. your pan looks like this:

Carefully drain the grease into an old, empty can or jar:

Stick it in the freezer to solidify:

Once the can is full, you can toss it in the garbage.

I also have a good friend who cooks like my grandma did, and she saves her bacon grease and then cooks with it. I'm sure it would add a delicious flavor to green beans!

So, there's your gross, but useful, tip of the day. Want to know some other things you should never throw in your disposal (including pasta & rice - who knew???) click here.