Rendering beef tallow

[ackosel]

I acquired about 150 pounds of beef suet from the butcher. I asked him to save the leaf fat from the beef we had butchered and he also collected fat from all the grass-fed beef he butchered for two weeks and gave it to me. It's been in bags in the freezer for a couple months, and now I am thawing, grinding, rendering and purifying all that beautiful stuff for soapmaking.

One of the bags looks to contain body fat instead of organ fat. There are bits of meat in the fat. I am wondering if I should still render and purify body fat for soap or use it for something else. And if so, what can I use that for?

Edited to correct typos.

 

[AliOop]

I would definitely render it and use it for soap! My experience (with the same situation, actually) is that the leaf/organ fat renders very cleanly, is a bit softer and smoother, and is pretty much odorless.The body fat takes more time to render, isn't as smooth or creamy, and tends to have a bit more of the beefy smell. My hunch is that this is directly related to the extra cooking time, but that's just a hunch.

For soap, either one will work just fine. If you like to make lotions or body butters, I'd reserve the leaf tallow for those, where you will really notice the difference.

 

[ackosel]

I would definitely render it and use it for soap! My experience (with the same situation, actually) is that the leaf/organ fat renders very cleanly, is a bit softer and smoother, and is pretty much odorless.The body fat takes more time to render, isn't as smooth or creamy, and tends to have a bit more of the beefy smell. My hunch is that this is directly related to the extra cooking time, but that's just a hunch.

For soap, either one will work just fine. If you like to make lotions or body butters, I'd reserve the leaf tallow for those, where you will really notice the difference.

Thank you so much for sharing your experience! I'm coming to realize that AliOop is just about my favorite tallow/lard/almost-everything-else expert with such great advice, helpfulness and all-around willingness to share a wealth of information to anyone and everyone who asks for it! Thank you so much!

I also like to use tallow to stir fry veggies for my lunches, and beefy flavor in my veggies doesn't hurt my feelings at all! Those jars will be marked for soap and cooking.

One more tallow question. How do you store yours? We just don't have room in our freezers and refrigerators for 150 pounds of tallow, especially with chicken butchering season in full swing and goat butchering coming up in a few months. There are no USDA approved methods for canning tallow, but I simmered mine until all the water evaporated out (it stopped splattering), ladled it into hot glass quart canning jars and put lids on them. All but one sealed. I assume they'll keep at room temperature for a good while, but maybe not as long as freezing? Is there a way to tell if they spoil before I can use them? Maybe I can find room in the back of a refrigerator for the body fat jars that will be used for cooking, just in case.

 

[AliOop]

Awww you are too kind! I had so much help when I first joined here, it's only right to pay it forward!

The canning sounds like a great solution for tallow storage! I do store mine in the freezer, but it is supposed to be fine for months if stored in a cool, dark area, and that's even without canning.

You could also extend the life by adding some ROE. Of course, DeeAnna has a great article about how to use that. Just watch your decimal point on the usage rate.

 

[ackosel]

Thank you so much for your help. I've got a gang of helpers chopping fat so I can grind it and get it rendering.

 

[AliOop]

Related story: my friend who has chickens and cows was on her way to my house yesterday with fresh eggs and unrendered beef fat. Before arriving, she was in a terrible car crash. She's shaken up and sore, but otherwise ok. I haven't wanted to ask her but am hoping they removed all the mess before towing her totaled vehicle to the junkyard in the 100ºF+ heat.. Otherwise

 

[ackosel]

Oh my goodness, I am glad she is okay! I do wonder what happened to the eggs & fat, but maybe it's best to leave that question unanswered for a while.

When I was about 6 years old I was with my mom when her car hit some ice and sideswiped a pickup. Nobody was hurt, but the people in the pickup were on their way back from grocery shopping. The whole back of their truck was covered in broken eggs!

 

[Syd Kahn]

Related story: my friend who has chickens and cows was on her way to my house yesterday with fresh eggs and unrendered beef fat. Before arriving, she was in a terrible car crash. She's shaken up and sore, but otherwise ok. I haven't wanted to ask her but am hoping they removed all the mess before towing her totaled vehicle to the junkyard in the 100ºF+ heat.. Otherwise

could care less about the tuff - or car - prayers for her...

 

[AliOop]

could care less about the tuff - or car - prayers for her...

Agreed, thank you so much for praying! I also don't give a fig about the eggs or tallow. I only care about the car in the sense that it's something she and her husband have to deal with, on top of her being very sore and shaken up. She's having some PTSD-type flashbacks, which is normal but still so distressing.

 

[AliOop]

UPDATE: My friend texted me today to say she was bringing the eggs and the tallow. I asked her how the eggs managed to survive, and she said, "Most didn't. New batch." She's doing much better and now mostly embarrassed that the accident was her fault - first time in 60 years. Her husband told her to wait another 60 years before doing that again. Her response was: "Yeah, it was a one-star event - do not recommend."

Anyhoo, she brought me a huge garbage bag filled with large slabs of beef fat, which I promptly shoved into the garage freezer. @ackosel can you send your crew to help me chop this up and get it rendered?