Tallow (beef) recipe feedback please!!

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rperr2011

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Location
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Hi all,

I'm looking for feedback on the following recipe using beef tallow, as I haven't used tallow before. I lowered the Coconut Oil from another version of this recipe to lower cleansing to 16.

Any suggestions? Thank you!

Recipe Oils, Fats and Waxes​

Oil%Grams
Castor Oil576.2
Coconut Oil, 76 deg20304.8
Olive Oil37.5571.5
Tallow Beef37.5571.5
Total1001524

Recipe Totals​

Liquid Required213.25 g
NaOH Weight at 99 % Purity213.25 g
Oil Weight1524 g
Super Fat5 %
Total Batch Weight1950.5 g
Lye Concentration50 %
Liquid : Lye Ratio1:1
Saturated : Unsaturated44:56

Recipe Properties​

Property%Recommended
Bubbly Lather2114 - 46
Cleansing1612 - 22
Condition5344 - 69
Hardness4429 - 54
Longevity2825 - 50
Creamy Lather3216 - 48
Iodine5541 - 70
Ins151136 - 165

Fatty Acids %​

Lauric10
Myristic6
Palmitic18
Stearic10
Ricinoleic5
Oleic41
Linoleic6
Linolenic1
 

Attachments

  • Tallow Recipe Totals.png
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Your recipe has a fairly high oleic number; so it might not be a long lasting soap.

Have you thought about using rice bran oil instead of olive oil? Here is a slight revision of your recipe which will give you a slightly higher longevity number.
7% Castor oil
20% Coconut oil
35% Rice Bran oil
38% Beef Tallow
 
Last edited:
Below is my favorite tallow recipe that I sold for many years. You can change the HO Canola for any liquid oil and delete the PKO adding it to the CO. My Superfat is 2% with a 33% Lye Concentration.
Sorry, but I don't see the recipe in your post. Could you repost the recipe? Thank you!

Your recipe has a fairly high oleic number; so it might not be a long lasting soap.

Have you thought about using rice bran oil instead of olive oil? Here is a slight revision of your recipe which will give you a slightly higher longevity number.
7% Castor oil
20% Coconut oil
35% Rice Bran oil
38% Beef Tallow
Thank you for the idea! I will consider substituting rice bran oil for the olive oil.
 
Sorry, my computer crashed. I fixed it above.

Thank you for reposting it!

What do you think of this modification of your recipe?

Recipe Oils, Fats and Waxes​

Oil%Grams
Tallow Beef40200
Lard, Pig Tallow (Manteca)20100
Coconut Oil, 76 deg17.587.5
Olive Oil17.587.5
Castor Oil525
Total100500

Recipe Totals​

Liquid Required70.02 g
NaOH Weight at 99 % Purity70.02 g
Oil Weight500 g
Super Fat5 %
Total Batch Weight640.05 g
Lye Concentration50 %
Liquid : Lye Ratio1:1
Saturated : Unsaturated48:52

Recipe Properties​

Property%Recommended
Bubbly Lather2014 - 46
Cleansing1512 - 22
Condition4744 - 69
Hardness4829 - 54
Longevity3325 - 50
Creamy Lather3816 - 48
Iodine5041 - 70
Ins155136 - 165

Fatty Acids %​

Lauric9
Myristic6
Palmitic21
Stearic12
Ricinoleic5
Oleic37
Linoleic5
Linolenic1
 
Last edited:
When first trying a new recipe, a small 500g batch and SoapCalc Default Settings is recommended -- so you can tweak it, if needed, from there.

For a low-cleansing bar try just tallow and a bit of coconut and castor.

Here is a nicely balanced option that works for tallow or lard or a combo. No need to add salt or sodium lactate. It is hard enough without those and offers the full benefits of a using a tallow soap.

Tallow Coconut Castor.png
 
When first trying a new recipe, a small 500g batch and SoapCalc Default Settings is recommended -- so you can tweak it, if needed, from there.

For a low-cleansing bar try just tallow and a bit of coconut and castor.

Here is a nicely balanced option that works for tallow or lard or a combo. No need to add salt or sodium lactate. It is hard enough without those and offers the full benefits of a using a tallow soap.

View attachment 72696
Thank you for this recipe. I will take your advice and make the first test batch using 500g total oil weight and use a Pringles can instead of the original higher number in the recipes I posted above (which is for a 5 lb log mold).

What percentages of tallow and lard do you recommend when using both? 40% and 20% like cmzaha?

I was hoping for a harder bar with lower cleansing than a previous recipe I have been using so I'm glad the tallow/lard combo will allow for that. This soap I'm trying to design here is nonvegan so there's no issue with using these products.

Thanks again for the feedback.
 
Last edited:
Below is my favorite tallow recipe that I sold for many years. You can change the HO Canola for any liquid oil and delete the PKO adding it to the CO. My Superfat is 2% with a 33% Lye Concentration.
Hi cmzaha, where do you get your beef tallow and pig lard here in Fullerton? I have never made tallow/lard soap, but just recently got a request for it and don't really know much about it.
 
Not cmzaha, but most members can answer that question.

Option #1 Look for Great Value Shortening locally.
Ingredients: Beef Tallow, Lard, Hydrogenated Beef Tallow, Soybean Oil, Mono-and Diglycerides, Bha And Bht Added To Help Protect Flavor.
Simply sub it for the Tallow, Lard, and Canola in @cmzaha 's recipe. Add the PKO, Coconut & Castor.

Option #2 Lard is readily available at your local grocery store. Buy tallow from Soapers Choice.

Option #3 Buy all your ingredients at Soapers Choice to spread the cost of shipping over 4 or more items.
 
Not cmzaha, but most members can answer that question.

Option #1 Look for Great Value Shortening locally.
Ingredients: Beef Tallow, Lard, Hydrogenated Beef Tallow, Soybean Oil, Mono-and Diglycerides, Bha And Bht Added To Help Protect Flavor.
Simply sub it for the Tallow, Lard, and Canola in @cmzaha 's recipe. Add the PKO, Coconut & Castor.

Option #2 Lard is readily available at your local grocery store. Buy tallow from Soapers Choice.

Option #3 Buy all your ingredients at Soapers Choice to spread the cost of shipping over 4 or more items.
Thanks so much! I've been looking at recipes and am a bit daunted, although I don't know why. The lady who requested the soap said she used to get Grandma's Lye Soap locally but can't find it anymore. I keep reading about how people on the forum render their own fat, but I'm not sure I'm up for doing that, and we are city slickers, so I'm not sure there would be a local source of finding something from a farmer, which is why I asked cmzaha, because we both live in Fullerton. I was hoping I could just find something that is ready to use. I don't want to make 100% pure tallow/lard soap, and keep seeing that people often combine it with castor, coconut and olive oils, so I thought I would try that. I'm only making a small amount so this might work pretty well. I appreciate the info.
 
You're welcome! If you make it, I think you will really like it! GV Shortening adds a bit of creaminess to the lather.
 

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