These traditional cooking and naturally nutrient-dense dietary fats are making a welcome comeback—do you know your Tallow from your Suet?
This beef fat has become a shining star thanks to modern, high fat, low carb, low inflammatory diets like the Carnivore Diet, Paleo, AIP, and Ketogenic Diets, but there is still some confusion regarding the distinction between Suet and Tallow. In this article we explain:
The tough, fatty portion of the cow that covers the kidneys and the loins of the carcass is called beef suet. Beef suet appears white, feels crumbly and nearly dry to the touch. The melting point of suet ranges from 113 °F (45 °C) to 122 °F (50 °C).
Suet has a high smoke point, making it the ideal beef fat for stable frying. Suet was also traditionally used to make pies, puddings, and pastries that are high in calories.
Tallow is the rendered or melted down version of suet. Tallow is a clean, healthy animal fat that is easy to make at home using simple DIY techniques. You can use it to cook, baste, sauté, deep-fry, or even spread like butter. Before the modern obesity and diabetes pandemic and just a few generations ago, people used to cook primarily with beef tallow (rendered suet).
In addition to having a very high smoke point and a long shelf life at room temperature, beef tallow is a way to ensure that we cook the entire animal, a practice that our ancestors valued and that we are rediscovering through nose-to-tail eating.
Suet – How to use it.
That is a question we often hear. Suet is probably known to you if you like to feed birds during the winter. Beef suet, also known as raw, hard fat, is found around the kidneys and loins. It is similar to the pork leaf lard. Due to baking or frying recipes, the majority of people are familiar with lard. When my grandmother was instructing me on how to make homemade pie crusts, I first discovered lard. She always claimed that lard was the key to a light and flaky crust. Both of these fats have some wonderful applications, but today we’ll talk about suet.
To be used in the kitchen or as bird food, suet must go through a melting process called rendering. You can find step by step instructions on rendering suet here. Once the suet is melted and the impurities are removed, you are left with tallow. Unlike suet, tallow can be stored for an extended period of time without refrigeration. Be sure to keep it in an airtight container though. Tallow, rendered suet, has so many uses.
Food – Tallow was used for shortening and deep-frying. Tallow has a higher smoke point than butter or lard, at almost 400 degrees. So many eateries, including McDonald’s, fry food in tallow, including french fries. Tallow was the norm until vegetable oils took over.
Soap – Tallow is a very traditional soap ingredient. After all, lye and tallow were the only two ingredients that could be found in the majority of places back then. Ash and fats are essentially required to make soap, and tallow is a type of fat. Tallow is still used by some soapmakers in today’s soaps, though it is somewhat debatable. Since tallow is made from raw beef suet, many vegan customers will not buy any products that contain animal byproducts. Tallow is frequently preferred in some decorating techniques and is excellent at giving soaps stability, lather, and hardness. Although it is very gentle on the skin, you should combine tallow with potent cleaning oils like coconut oil to create the best cleaning soap.
Bird food – Homemade suet cakes are very popular bird food. You will usually find them when the weather turns cold because suet needs to stay cold to keep from melting. My husband’s grandpa loves to feed the birds. He has several suet baskets hanging in his trees along with other bird feeders. He enjoys watching them so much that he even asked for bird feed for Christmas. There are so many varieties of birds and they have all different needs especially in the winter. Suet cakes not only contain the nuts and seeds that birds like but they also contain the beneficial “fat” from the suet itself. You can purchase suet cakes or you can try your hand at this easy-to-make recipe from One Good Thing.
Ingredients:
1/2 lb. suet or lard
1 cup crunchy peanut butter
2 1/2 cups sunflower seeds
1 1/2 cups millet
1 cup of dried fruit
I urge you to visit their website to view step-by-step instructions with pictures. The birds will thank you!.
Suet and tallow have numerous other applications, including candles, printing, aviation fuel, and biodiesel. It’s fascinating that people have discovered some incredible uses for beef fat over the years.
Please leave a comment if you have a creative use for suet or tallow. We would love to hear about how you use it. Or, let us know how they turn out if you decide to make the homemade suet cakes.
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BEEF SUET and a High Fat CARNIVORE DIET – Where to buy it – How to eat it -// Vlogmas Day 11
FAQ
Can I eat beef suet?
To make your own homemade cooking oil or fatty coffee, you can render suet into tallow, which is far more affordable per fluid ounce.
Do you eat suet raw?
Eat Suet raw. Our sole piece of advice is to make sure the suet is clean and comes from organic, grass-fed cattle. Keep in freezer and use as needed.
What can I do with beef suet?
Beef suet usesIn dumplings. In any sort of savory suet pudding. For general frying because of its 400-degree smoke point. In any other meat-based recipe. Wild game hunters love to cook their game in suet. For bird lovers who like to make beef suet cakes. To turn into tallow to make candles or soap.
Does beef suet taste like beef?
Fresh suet has a mild, bland flavor, a faintly meaty aroma, and a crumbly, dry consistency. It adds a distinctive richness to sweet dishes—what the British refer to as “puddings”—but manages to keep them from tasting like beef.