Ingredients
The bread
- 4thick slices of bread
- a good crusty white loaf
- or dark rye bread
- day-old is perfectly good
- cut about 2 cm thick
The lard
- 150 gpork lard
- at room temperature
- or 150 g töpörtyűs zsír
- lard with crackling in it
- which is the better version
The topping
- 1large red onion
- sliced into thin rings
- or finely chopped
- 1 tablespoonsweet paprika
- Hungarian, and good quality
- flaky salt
- black pepper, optional
Sometimes added
- a few slices of tomato
- a pickled cucumber, sliced
- a fresh green pepper
- a pinch of hot paprika
- chopped chives
To serve
- cold, on a board
- with a glass of wine
- or with pálinka
- or with cold beer
Directions
- Cut it into small cubes. Put it in a heavy pot. Add a splash of water to start it. That stops it catching before fat renders.
- Heat it over a low heat. Let it render very slowly indeed. That takes an hour or more.
- Stir it occasionally as it renders. That transition spatters hot fat. Stand back at that point. Wear long sleeves if you can. Keep children out of the kitchen. Pour it through a sieve into a clean jar.
- Salt them and eat them as a snack. Let the lard cool and set white. It keeps for months refrigerated. Brown paprika is stale and tastes flat. Some cooks keep it refrigerated.
- Cut it thick, about two centimetres. Thin bread collapses under the topping. Spread it right to the edges. It should visibly redden the surface.
- Use plenty of it. Slice it into thin rings. Or chop it finely, which is also done. Scatter flaky salt over the top. Add black pepper if you like. Serve it immediately once assembled. Serve it on a wooden board.
- Cut each slice in half if you like. A dry white cuts the fat. Assemble it as you eat it. The lard keeps months refrigerated. Keep them refrigerated once made. Ground paprika keeps a few months.
Technique
- There are three things on a slice of bread and almost nothing to hide behind, so the quality of each shows completely. Good lard tastes clean and faintly of pork; poor lard is waxy and bland. Buy it from a butcher rather than as a supermarket block.
- Töpörtyűs zsír, lard with chopped crackling stirred through it, is considerably better than plain lard for this and is sold in Hungarian shops. It is worth seeking out.
- The paprika here is raw rather than fried into fat, which is unusual for Hungarian cooking. That means its quality shows even more clearly, and stale paprika simply tastes dusty. Buy it bright red and fruity-smelling, in small quantities, and keep it in the dark or refrigerated — it fades within months.
- Take the lard out well beforehand. Cold lard will not spread and simply tears the bread.
- Spread it thickly. This is not a thin scraping of butter — the lard is the substance of the snack.
- The salt genuinely matters. Lard is not salted itself, and without a scattering of flaky salt the whole thing tastes flat.
- Assemble it as you eat it. The bread goes soggy within an hour.
- Rendering lard at home is simple: cube pork back fat, add a splash of water to stop it catching, and render it very slowly over a low heat for an hour or more. High heat browns it and taints the flavour — good lard should be white, not yellow. As the water evaporates the fat spits, so stand back at that point.
- This is peasant and worker food from the Hungarian plain, eaten because lard, bread, onions and paprika were what a household always had. It has been revived as a nostalgic snack in Budapest wine bars at some price, which is a little ironic. The atlas records that shift without mocking it — plenty of people eat it because they like it.
- It is a very fatty snack and the atlas is not going to pretend otherwise. It is also genuinely delicious, and one slice is a portion.
Substitutions
- Töpörtyűs zsír, lard with crackling, replaces plain lard and is much the better version.
- Goose or duck fat replaces pork lard and is used in some households.
- Dark rye bread replaces white and gives a stronger, sourer base.
- White onion replaces red for a sharper result; both are used.
- Sliced tomato, pickled cucumber or a fresh Hungarian sweet pepper are all common additions.
- A pinch of hot paprika alongside the sweet gives it some heat.
Variations
- A version with töpörtyű scattered on top as well as mixed into the lard is richer still.
- Körözött, the paprika and curd cheese spread, is the other classic Hungarian bread topping.
- Some bars serve it with a fresh green pepper and a tomato alongside on the board.
- Related lard breads are eaten across Poland, Slovakia, Austria and the Czech lands.
- A version with goose fat is made after a goose is cooked, particularly around Saint Martin’s Day.
- Some households rub the bread with a cut garlic clove first.
History
Peasant and worker food of the Hungarian plain, revived in Budapest wine bars as a nostalgic snack.
Frequently asked questions
What is Zsiros kenyer?
Zsiros kenyer is a snack from Hungary: bread spread with pork lard, topped with red onion and paprika. Peasant and worker food of the Hungarian plain, revived in Budapest wine bars as a nostalgic snack.
How long does Zsiros kenyer take to make?
Zsiros kenyer takes 10 minutes of preparation and none of cooking. The recipe makes serves 4. It is rated easy to make.
What can I substitute in Zsiros kenyer?
Yes, within limits. Töpörtyűs zsír, lard with crackling, replaces plain lard and is much the better version. Goose or duck fat replaces pork lard and is used in some households. Dark rye bread replaces white and gives a stronger, sourer base. White onion replaces red for a sharper result; both are used. Sliced tomato, pickled cucumber or a fresh Hungarian sweet pepper are all common additions. A pinch of hot paprika alongside the sweet gives it some heat.
What is the most important thing to get right in Zsiros kenyer?
There are three things on a slice of bread and almost nothing to hide behind, so the quality of each shows completely. Good lard tastes clean and faintly of pork; poor lard is waxy and bland. Buy it from a butcher rather than as a supermarket block.
