Quick question: on a hog, the clean, neutral “leaf” I render for delicate pâtés and citrus-forward pastry — what organ is it hugging, and which cavity is it sitting in? I’m dialing a bergamot and pink peppercorn pâté de campagne this week with a 12% leaf-to-backfat swap and want the menu note to nail the anatomy.
Leaf lard hugs the kidneys in the abdominal cavity; ask for ‘perirenal/kidney leaf’, not caul — perfect for your 12% swap.
Think perirenal sheet in the abdominal cavity, but also grab the thin “flare fat” running along the inside of the loins — same neutral render, great for your 12% swap. Trim off any papery fascia so the bergamot stays clean, and ask your cutter for ‘kidney leaf plus loin flare’ if you want a single bag.
CBET prep sharpened theory but the biggest bench gains came from the Thermo lab plus one tweak: for the ‘2-point CO2 calibration with a 5% span gas’, dry the chamber 10–15 min first and run span gas at about 0.5 L/min through a short, dry sample line — humidity lag was half my drift, not the sensor… For pressure-decay, I carry a tiny needle‑valve ‘leak standard’ to validate my rig before touching the unit; @jordan_p89 ever try that?