crackling

noun

crack·​ling

plural cracklings

1

ˈkra-k(ə-)liŋ  : a series of small sharp cracking noises

the crackling of frozen snow as we walk

2

\ ˈkra-​klən , -​kliŋ \

a

: the crisp residue left after the rendering of lard from pig fat or the frying or roasting of pig skin

Want to know how to get perfect crisp crackling on roast pork?

—BBC Good Food (online)

… for me fat is a largely a textural pleasure, … and pork crackling is surely the supreme example of this: a blistered top, as dry and crunchy as an autumn leaf, hiding a layer of yielding, creamy fat beneath.

—Felicity Cloake

also : a piece of this residue

We feasted on … fresh hog cracklings from a road-side trailer north of Houston …

—Peter Richmond

b

: food or a piece of food that resembles crackling

duck cracklings

The great Simon Hopkinson, author of Roast Chicken and Other Stories, gave me—appropriately enough—a bag of chicken crackling as a present, and I pressed him for the recipe.

—Nigella Lawson

Examples of crackling in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Additional video from onlookers featured multiple crackling explosions as the fire raged on, billowing out dark clouds of smoke. —Natalie Oganesyan, Deadline, 31 Aug. 2024

There’s a snicker crackling in the background of my emotions, a smirking acknowledgment that this trend has legs. —Katy Kelleher, refinery29.com, 29 July 2024

This prevents issues like smoking, crackling, and excess soot that can stain the candle. —Maryal Miller Carter, USA TODAY, 27 July 2024

Awesome — a multitude of colorful sparks with silver crackling will leave you ... living the dream! —Camila Pedrosa, Sacramento Bee, 28 June 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1599, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

crackling

noun

crack·​ling

1

ˈkrak-(ə-)liŋ

: a series of small sharp crackling sounds

2

ˈkrak-lən,

ˈkrak-liŋ

: the crisp remainder left after the fat has been separated from the meat or skin (as of pork)

—usually used in plural