Cooking with Coach Roxana
How to Render Suet into Beef Tallow: A Simple Guide
When I committed to the Lion Diet challenge, I should have been better prepared. Cooking hamburger is easy—it comes with its own fat. But how do I fry a steak or brown roasts without fat?
Since the Lion Diet consists of ruminant meat, salt, and water only, I needed fat from ruminants like beef tallow. Of course, the local stores had no beef tallow on the day the challenge started. Lesson learned: I will be better prepared next time.
Fortunately, we have a butcher nearby, so I asked my husband to pick up some suet. Naively, I thought this would be ready-to-use cooking fat. Nope—it was chunks of frozen fat.
So, here is what I learned about suet, beef tallow, and how surprisingly easy and healthy it is to make.
Beef tallow is the rendered fat from suet, which is the hard fat found around the kidneys and loins of cattle. Unlike regular beef fat, suet is prized for its purity and high melting point, making it ideal for rendering. The resulting tallow is a creamy, solid fat that can be used for frying, baking, and even skincare.
- High Smoke Point: With a smoke point of around 400°F (204°C), beef tallow is perfect for high-heat cooking methods like frying and roasting.
- Nutrient-Rich: Beef tallow is rich in vitamins A, D, E, and K, which are essential for various bodily functions, including immune support and bone health.
- Healthy Fats: Tallow contains conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), which has been shown to have anti-inflammatory and potential anti-cancer properties.
- Long Shelf Life: When stored properly, beef tallow can last for up to a year at room temperature, making it a convenient pantry staple.
How to Render Suet into Tallow
Ingredients and Tools:
- Suet (beef kidney fat)
- Dutch oven
- Oven
- Fine mesh strainer
- Heat-resistant containers (Stainless steel, glass, or silicone)
- Mason jars or similar containers for storage
- Preparation:
Start by removing any remaining meat from the suet. Cut the suet into tiny cubes. This small size ensures even rendering and prevents burning. The cutting process is time consuming and messy. For my second batch, I bought suet from the meat market in pellet form. - Rendering in the Oven:
Preheat your oven to 225°F (107°C). Place the suet cubes in a Dutch oven, filling it halfway. This allows enough space for the fat to melt and bubble without overflowing.
Put the Dutch oven in the oven and let the suet render for about 5 hours. This slow process helps prevent burning and ensures a clean, clear tallow. - Checking and Straining:
Check the suet every 90 minutes to monitor the progress and stir gently if needed. When almost all of the suet is rendered, it's time to strain.
Carefully pour the rendered fat through a fine mesh strainer into a heat-resistant container.
For this batch I also used cheese cloth. - Finishing and Storing:
Pour the strained tallow into mason jars or similar containers. Tallow is shelf-stable at room temperature for up to a year if stored in an airtight container, but it can also be stored in the refrigerator or freezer for longer periods. When cooled, tallow becomes very solid, similar in texture to coconut oil. - Crisping the Cracklings:
Return the solids left in the strainer to the Dutch oven and bake them in the oven until they are crispy. This usually takes about 30-45 minutes. These cracklings make a delicious, crunchy snack or topping for salads.
When dealing with hot fats, avoid plastic containers. Hot tallow can cause plastic to melt, and even at room temperature, it can leach harmful chemicals like BPA or phthalates into the tallow. Even BPA-free containers are not safe. Always use materials such as stainless steel, glass, or silicone to ensure safety and purity.
Rendering suet into tallow is a straightforward process that yields a highly versatile and nutritious fat. Whether you're following a specific diet like mine or simply looking for traditional cooking fats, making your own tallow is a great practical skill.
Enjoy!
Written by Roxana Soetebeer, MHP, PHC
Published June 29th, 2024
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