Katharine Hepburn Reportedly Loved This Rice And Seafood Dish Fried In Bacon Grease

The late actress Katharine Hepburn was, quite simply, a badass boss known for her fiercely independent personality, sharp wit, and decades-long film career. And offscreen? She also had a reputation for simple, no-nonsense cooking habits. While Hepburn is most famous for her brownie recipe, she had a couple of culinary tricks up her sleeve. Among the more surprising dishes attributed to her are fried rice and shrimp balls cooked in bacon grease. This homespun creation, cheekily called "Rice to the Occasion" by Hepburn herself, first appeared in several 1930s newspaper clippings.

The dish appears to have been a practical, adaptable recipe built around pantry goods, combined with "a can of shrimps" and a dozen eggs to bring everything together. What made it especially distinctive was the use of bacon grease as the cooking fat. While it might sound indulgent by today's standards, cooking with bacon grease was once a common kitchen practice. Home cooks frequently saved rendered fat to add flavor to everything from vegetables to rice dishes. It's fair to say few Americans had ever heard of extra-virgin olive oil back in the 1930s.

The name "Rice to the Occasion" also reflects Hepburn's playful, irreverent personality. Rather than following a rigid recipe, the dish is all about using what was on hand and making something satisfying out of it. Hepburn enjoyed breaking gender roles back then, which meant she didn't wear skirts – and she probably didn't spend all day in the kitchen, either. 

Katharine Hepburn's appreciation for simple, flavorful food likely stemmed from her New England upbringing and her lifelong preference for independence. She spent much of her time away from Hollywood at her home in Old Saybrook, Connecticut, where she lived a relatively private life and often cooked for herself. In that setting, practical dishes like fried rice made with pantry staples and leftover ingredients would have made perfect sense. Her fried rice balls weren't unlike the Sicilian dish arancini, which is also best made with leftover rice.

Hepburn also had a well-documented love of brownies, which she famously shared through a handwritten recipe that has circulated widely over the years. Just like her savory cooking, the recipe is direct and unfussy, emphasizing quality ingredients and technique over complex methods. She claimed her secret to extra-fudgy brownies was using very little flour in the batter and being careful not to over-bake. 

Some of Hepburn's other favorite foods included such humble dishes as meatloaf, pancakes, and cornmeal muffins. Though she had a longtime personal cook for decades, Hepburn was never afraid to roll up her sleeves and get her hands a little dirty — whether that was in the kitchen or in her beloved garden. Her favorite foods certainly showed the side of her that valued resourcefulness over extravagance and good, old-fashioned flavors over formal dining techniques.