This is the ultimate guide to rendering the best tallow ever. Nutrient dense, versatile… tallow is amazing stuff. This is my method for how to render and purify tallow so that it is odorless and white.
How to render and purify tallow
This is the wet rendering method for making tallow, with some extra purification steps. It is the best method for how to render and purify tallow for soap, tallow balm, or candles. Or you can cook with it! It turns out so beautifully. Tallow balm made with tallow rendered using this method has no beef smell at all.
What I really like about this method is that it isn’t technically a refining process. None of the nutrients or beneficial properties of the tallow are altered, as they would be in refined and deodorized tallow that is available commercially. You get the best of both worlds: gorgeous, white, odorless tallow, with all the great benefits.
I have another really popular blog post on how to render tallow in a crockpot here. That method is the dry method for how to render fat. It’s good for when you want to know what to do with beef fat trimmings, and is a quick, very easy way to render some tallow for cooking.
That dry method does tend to leave behind a bit of a beef aroma in the finished tallow, but that can be just fine if you’re only cooking with it. This method I’m about to show you is perfect for when you want odorless, white tallow.
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What is beef tallow?
Beef tallow is rendered beef fat. Render just means to cook fat down so that it is melted. At room temperature tallow is solid, and it melts to a liquid when you heat it.
Tallow is something that our ancestors used and treasured. It is hard to find something that is as versatile and nutrient dense as tallow.
Tallow can also refer to rendered fat from other ruminant animals, like sheep.
Beef tallow benefits
Beef tallow is one of the healthiest fats there is, whether you use it in cooking or for skincare.
When you cook with tallow, it adds rich nutrients, has a high smoke point, and wonderful flavor. For skincare, tallow provides a wide abundance nutrients that are highly beneficial for skin. I talk all about beef tallow benefits here, and about tallow skin care here. Get my tallow lotion bar recipe here.
For a while, healthy animal fats like tallow and lard became less popular. That’s because vegetable oils were pushed as being healthier options… which isn’t true (source)!
Vegetable oils are unstable at higher temperatures, and oxidize, which releases free radicals. Beef tallow is stable at high temperatures and tastes so much better than any highly processed, industrialized vegetable/seed oil.
Tallow, especially when it comes from grass fed cattle, contains so many beneficial nutrients (source). Grass fed beef tallow is:
- abundant in conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) which has powerful anti-inflammatory properties
- rich in minerals
- full of fall soluble vitamins A, D, E, K, and B12 (source)
Tallow is definitely part of a Nourishing Traditions diet. Sally Fallon has this to say about tallow:
Suet and tallow are very stable fats and can be used for frying. Traditional cultures valued these fats for their health benefits. They are a good source of antimicrobial palmitoleic acid. –Nourishing Traditions, page 19
And did I mention how delicious tallow is? It seriously makes the best French fries you’ve ever had.
Beef fat uses
One of the things I love so much about tallow is how versatile it is. I cover the entire list of all the many beef tallow uses in this post here.
Here’s a summary of some great beef tallow uses:
- Cooking, whether sautéing, frying, or baking
- Candles
- Soap
- Balm for skin care, scrubs, salves, lip balm, and more
- Deep conditioning for hair
- Protecting and conditioning leather and wood
- Lubricating machinery
- Waterproofing
I also have lots of different tallow recipes on my blog. I’ve actually been named the Tallow Queen by my awesome YouTube channel subscribers 🙂 Here at Bumblebee Apothecary, you’ll find all kinds of ways to use the tallow you make!
Where to buy beef fat to render into tallow
When you look for beef fat to render, you’ll want to look for fat from 100% grass fed, grass finished cattle. That will give you the highest nutrient content in the finished tallow.
Also, the leaf fat from around the internal organs and kidneys is the most desirable fat compared to trim fat. Leaf fat is the purest, will render the cleanest, and contains the most beneficial nutrients.
In another blog post, which you can read here, I talk all about where to find the best places to buy beef fat. Craigslist and your local Weston A. Price chapter are great places to look.
If you want to buy some high quality, already rendered tallow from organic, 100% grass fed beef, this is a high quality one you can buy online.
Getting ready to make tallow
There are basically two parts to this process: the rendering step, where I’ll show you how to make beef tallow, and the purifying process, which is what makes it odorless and white.
You’ll want your beef fat to be ground, or at least cut up into small chunks. If possible, ask your butcher to grind the beef fat for you. It will render more quickly that way.
If getting it ground isn’t possible, you can cut it up into small pieces. It’s easiest to do this if the tallow is cold. You can also try grinding it with a food processor.
I will say this: I’ve rendered a LOT of tallow in my lifetime, and I’ve tried all the methods there are, including cutting it up with a knife, grinding it in a food processor, and grinding with a Kitchenaid mixer attachment. None of those methods are my favorite for getting small fat pieces. They’re all very messy and labor intensive.
Here’s the best way I’ve found to deal with big chunks of tallow that the butcher didn’t grind for you: Put the big pieces of fat into the crockpot with the salt and water (as explained below) and let the fat get nice and soft for a few hours.
Next, whizz up the soft fat with an immersion blender until you have a soupy mixture.
Then just finished the rendering process by following the directions below.
How to render tallow
For rendering, you just toss your raw beef fat (also known as beef suet) into the crockpot, and add some salt, and plenty of water. For my big, 10 quart crockpot, I use around 3 TBSP or so of salt and around 6-8 cups of water. You can adjust these amounts depending on how much fat you’re rendering.
Next, turn the crockpot to low. Over the next several hours, you’ll see the beef fat melt into tallow. It’s a good idea to stir the tallow a few times throughout the rendering process, so that the heat can get to it all as evenly as possible.
Once all of the tallow is rendered, you’ll see any gristly parts sink to the bottom, and all of the fat will have melted into golden tallow. The time it takes to render depends on how big or small your chunks of tallow are. You know it’s done rendering when you can’t see any pieces raw fat left.
Once the rendering is finished, it’s time to strain. I like to strain my tallow through a metal strainer. You’ll be straining out the solid gristle chunks, discarding them, and keeping the tallow and water together in a clean container.
Keep in mind what type of container you’re straining into. You want something that the finished, hardened tallow can easily pop out of. I like a big metal mixing bowl.
Once all of the tallow and water is strained, put it in a cool place so that the tallow can harden.
While the tallow is cooling, wash the crockpot so that it’s ready for the next step.
How to purify tallow
Once the tallow has hardened, just pop the firm tallow cake out of the bowl. The water will stay behind. It is probably quite brown, and maybe even gelatinous.
Notice the bottom of the tallow cake. It will have brownish sediment on the bottom. These are the impurities that the salt has pulled out of the tallow. Those impurities make the tallow softer and and to have a beef smell. Scrape the brown places off so that you’re left with only white tallow.
Next, put the tallow back into the crockpot. Add fresh water and salt (the same amount as last time), and set the crockpot to low.
You want the tallow to heat to a simmer, and simmer for about an hour with the water and salt.
Once that’s done, strain through a metal strainer, this time lined with organic cotton, fine mesh cheesecloth.
Allow the tallow to harden in a cool place.
This time, when you pop the hardened tallow out, you’ll notice that the water is much clearer. There will also be much less sediment on the bottom of the tallow cake.
Scrape off any brown places that are there.
At this point, you can either do another purifying step, or just leave the tallow as is. If you use high quality leaf fat, like I do, just the rendering and one purifying process should be good. If you’re using fat from other parts of the animal, you might want to purify it one more time.
After it’s finished with as many purifying steps you want to do, you can either store the tallow in a big cake with plenty of airflow around it. Keep it in the open air so that any remaining water can evaporate, or you may end up with mold.
Or, you can chunk it up, melt it down, and pour it into a storage container. If you choose to melt it and pour it into a storage container, be sure and watch for any remaining water that might settle at the bottom of the melted tallow. Don’t let this water go into the storage container, or the tallow may mold.
How to render and purify tallow instructions
Ingredients:
- 100% grass fed, grass finished beef fat
- 4-8 cups water
- 2-3 TBSP salt
Instructions:
- Ask butcher to grind beef fat. If this is not an option, grind it in a food processor while it is very cold, or cut it into fine pieces with a knife.
- Put ground or cut up beef fat into crockpot.
- Add salt and water. For a larger amount of fat, use more salt and water. For a smaller amount, use less.
- Turn crockpot to low, and allow beef fat to render for several hours, stirring occasionally.
- When rendering is finished, strain liquid tallow and water into a large bowl.
- Allow tallow and water to cool in refrigerator or other cold place.
- While tallow is cooling, wash crockpot.
- When tallow is very firm, remove tallow cake from bowl and discard water.
- Scrape bottom of tallow cake to remove discoloration.
- Cut tallow cake into quarters and put them into clean crockpot.
- Add same amount of salt and water.
- Turn crockpot to low and bring tallow and water to a simmer.
- Allow to simmer for about an hour.
- Strain tallow and water into large bowl again.
- Allow tallow to cool a second time.
- When tallow is solid, remove tallow from bowl and scrape bottom of tallow cake again to remove any discoloration.
- Store tallow in chunks, or melt tallow in a double boiler and pour into jars for storage, being careful to not get any water into finished tallow.
Tallow Rendering FAQ’s
I’ve gotten a lot of questions about rendering, storing, and using tallow. Here are some commonly asked ones.
What does the water and salt do?
The wet method for rendering tallow helps to prevent burning, which is key in preventing any lingering beef smell in the finished tallow. Using water also helps to keep the heat very consistent.
The salt helps to draw the impurities out of the tallow. It does this both during the rendering and purifying steps. There is no salt left in the finished tallow, as the salt stays in the water that you dump out.
I still use a crockpot to render using the wet method. The crockpot is a great source of even, low heat, which is exactly what you want for rendering fat. You could do this on a stovetop or in the oven, but you’d need to watch it more carefully to make sure it doesn’t get too hot.
How do you store tallow?
Once the tallow is purified to your liking, it’s time to store it. You can either store it in chunks, or melt it down and pour it into jars. If you plan to make soap with it, now is a good time to weigh out the amounts you’ll need for batches of soap.
If you choose to melt the tallow down and pour it into jars, be careful to not get any water in the jars. I like to melt my tallow in a big glass bowl or pitcher in a pan of hot water on the stove. Any water that is left will settle to the bottom of the bowl or pitcher.
As I pour the melted tallow into jars, I’m very careful to leave the drops of water at the bottom of the pitcher, and not let any get into the tallow storage jars. If water gets into the tallow, it could mold.
Properly rendered tallow is quite stable at a cool room temperature. You can keep some for a while on your counter top, if you use it up within a few weeks or so. For a bit longer storage, you can keep it in a cool basement.
If you need to store your tallow long term, like for several months or more, it’s best to refrigerate it or freeze it. It will last for a very long time in the refrigerator or freezer.
How long does tallow last?
Tallow is very shelf stable. It will last at room temp for several weeks, and in the refrigerator or freezer for months or years.
Can you reuse tallow after frying?
Yes! When I cook with it, I make sure to not let my tallow burn. After I’m done using it for frying, I strain it and keep it in the fridge for next time.
How can I get tallow to render more quickly?
Ground fat will render much more quickly and evenly than fat that is left in large hunks. When you buy your beef fat, ask them to grind it for you. If that’s not possible, you can grind it yourself in a food processor, as long as the fat is nice and cold.
Or, you can chop it up finely with a knife. Both of those methods are somewhat labor intensive, though. If you can get the butcher to grind the fat for you, you’ll save yourself a lot of time and effort.
If the butcher where you buy the fat can’t or won’t grind it for you, find another butcher and ask if they’ll do it. That’s actually what I do. I get beef fat from several different farms, and their meat processors don’t usually grind it. Then I take all my packages of frozen fat to my local butcher, and they grind it all for me for a very small fee.
If getting your fat ground is just impossible, I discovered another hack that works really well. Put your big pieces of fat in the crockpot with water and salt. Let it start to render until the fat is nice and soft.
Then, take an immersion blender and whizz the soft fat up with the water until you have a soupy mixture. Let it render for a few hours more, then strain. I find that I can extract a lot more tallow this way, compared to trying to render big chunks of fat.
What temperature does beef fat render?
You want the temperature to be as low as possible. Basically, you want the beef fat to melt without burning.
The low setting of a crockpot works very well for this.
How do you render tallow on the stove?
If you’re doing your rendering on a stovetop, you can follow these same steps using a pot on the stove. Low heat is the best place to be.
How do you render beef fat in the oven?
To render beef fat in the oven, you can follow this same process, using a heavy pot or dutch oven with a lid. Again, keep the temperature very low. I wouldn’t go higher than 220ºF.
What is beef suet?
You might be confused about what is tallow verses suet. Suet is just another name for tallow. Sometimes people use the term suet to refer to the highest quality beef fat, which is the fat that surrounds the kidneys and other internal organs.
This fat around the internal organs is also called leaf fat. Whatever you want to call it, the fat around the internal organs is the highest quality fat. It is hard and smooth, and contains the richest concentration of beneficial nutrients.
What is the difference between tallow vs. lard?
If you’re new to tallow, you might be a little confused on the difference between lard and tallow. I give the complete comparison between tallow and lard here.
In short, tallow is rendered fat from ruminant animals, like cattle and sheep, while lard is rendered pork fat. Both are great for various uses. Lard makes delicious pastries and pie crusts, since it is very mild in flavor.
Lard from free range pork is high in vitamin D. Between the two fats, tallow is my favorite. This is because tallow from grass fed cattle contains not only vitamin D, but also vitamins A, D, E, K, minerals, anti inflammatory conjugated linoleic acid, and lots more.
You can use this same method, or the dry crockpot method to render lard, just like you render tallow.
Where can I buy tallow?
Sometimes, you just want a quick, non messy option. Or make you can’t quite find raw beef fat yet. Whatever the case, this high quality tallow from organic, 100% grass fed beef is what I recommend as a very good option. You can use it either for cooking or skincare.
Grass fed tallow recipes and information
Reasons why skin loves grass fed tallow
Tinted lip balm recipe with tallow and honey
Diaper rash cream with tallow and clay
Have you rendered your own tallow before?
What did you make with it? Share in the comments!
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How to Render and Purify Tallow
This is the ultimate guide to rendering the best tallow ever. Nutrient dense, versatile... tallow is amazing stuff. This is my method for how to render and purify tallow so that it is odorless and white.
Ingredients
- 100% grass fed, grass finished beef fat
- 4-8 cups water
- 2-3 tbsp salt
Instructions
- Ask butcher to grind beef fat. If this is not an option, grind it in a food processor while it is very cold, or cut it into fine pieces with a knife.
- Put ground or cut up beef fat into crockpot.
- Add salt and water. For a larger amount of fat, use more salt and water. For a smaller amount, use less.
- Turn crockpot to low, and allow beef fat to render for several hours, stirring occasionally.
- When rendering is finished, strain liquid tallow and water into a large bowl.
- Allow tallow and water to cool in refrigerator or other cold place.
- While tallow is cooling, wash crockpot.
- When tallow is very firm, remove tallow cake from bowl and discard water.
- Scrape bottom of tallow cake to remove discoloration.
- Cut tallow cake into quarters and put them into clean crockpot.
- Add same amount of salt and water.
- Turn crockpot to low and bring tallow and water to a simmer.
- Allow to simmer for about an hour.
- Strain tallow and water into large bowl again.
- Allow tallow to cool a second time.
- When tallow is solid, remove tallow from bowl and scrape bottom of tallow cake again to remove any discoloration.
- Store tallow in chunks, or melt tallow in a double boiler and pour into jars for storage, being careful to not get any water into finished tallow.
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Thanks so much for this, Marisa! I’m brand new to this process, and you made this rookie feel like a total success. Definitely saving to pass along, should someone else I know need it!
Thanks for the easy & clear instructions. I made the tallow-as instructed. After sitting all night with the lid off the mason jars I can tell there is a bit of water in the jar. Should I remelt the tallow & let the cake sit out for a few days to let let the water evaporate 100%
I have little to no smell. Which is great. I did cut out much of the meat, blood,& gristly parts of the tallow I got from the butcher Did this help with no smell & very little sediment on the chilled tallow?
I’m seeing some conflicting info online about the initial rendering process. You’ve noted that most of the gristly chunks will sink to the bottom and the melted golden tallow will be closer to the top, but I’ve found plenty of other online resources saying the opposite…the crispy/gristly bits will float and the melted fat will be at the bottom. Can you clarify please? Is it possible that the “wet” rendering has the chunks sink while a “dry” rendering has them float? Just want to know what to look for to help guide me while I’m rendering. Thank you!
what a wealth of information! Thank You <3
do you get your "raw" fat in 5 lbs, 10 lb bags or what is a reasonable amount to try at once? New to this and so excited 🙂
Hi, I was wondering what’s the best way to clean all the leftover fat on your utensil. I didnt realise how messy it would be and took forever to remove.
Suet and beef fat are not the same
I’m in the middle of rendering my first batch of tallow. What would happen if I burned it? How would I know? Would it be salvageable? I’m on my second purification and it’s not hardening. It’s the texture of grainy mashed potatoes unless I refrigerate it!
Hello! I’m having issues with removing the beef scent from my tallow. I did a small batch of beef suet that was just under 5 lbs. to practice with. I started this on Sunday 9/1/24 doing the wet method in a crockpot by adding distilled water and sea salt, cooked for about 8 hours strained through fine mesh strainer and cheesecloth. Yesterday the tallow barely had any sediment which I removed, returned to crockpot adding water and salt again for a few hours then strained and now letting it solidify again. Today, same thing only a few brown specks on the bottom. It still smelled strong of beef. I removed specks put back in crockpot with water and salt for a few hours again. When in liquid form it still is very beefy smelling. I have a little less of 2 qt. How many more times do I need to keep doing this? What am I doing wrong? Any suggestions? Thank you!
I’m having this same problem- did anything help you remove the beef smell?
I’ve received info if water and salt are used, it not only removes impurities, but also healthy fats, minerals and amino acids. Do you ever do the dry render?
The tallow smells just like the bone broth. My hubby can’t stand the smell, I love it!
I would like to try and make it.
But, does it have a strong smell while rendering?
From your pictures, it looks like the crockpot is outside.
I once tried making bone broth, but the house smelled so bad for so long, that I’m afraid to render fat.
My tallow is not hardening during the purification process?
Hi! Thank you for this post. I am new to the world of tallow. I recently bought some to use for cooking and some skin care products, but it isn’t a solid at all. The canister says it’s pure beef tallow, but why is it so soft? Any ideas?
Hi there! I am currently in the process of purifying my tallow using your method. My question is, how long do I leave the tallow cake or chunks to dry out? How do I know when all the water has evaporated? Also, your video is amazing and does a great job explaining the process! I’m curious about the real time to see if I’m making this take way longer than it needs to be. How long does it take you from start to finish typically with a few purification times? Right now I’m on my second purification process and the third day (Day 1 trim, render, and chill. Day 2 first purification and chill. Day 3 second purification and chill). I understand the more learned you become in something the quicker your process gets, but is it possible to do this more quickly than I currently am? I’m dying to make my lotion already and feel like it is taking way longer than I anticipated.
The tallow hardened and I separated from the water but it tastes salty? Do you just wipe down the tallow to get rid of the salt?
Yes, the salt stays in the water, so if you dry the tallow it shouldn’t have salt left on it.
Thanks for these instructions. I had already rendered some beef fat without the water and salt in a crockpot. Then I tried your method adding the water and salt. Definitely takes away the scent and is whiter. However it does not seem to solidify like the batch I did w/o the water and salt. I drained it and separated the water, etc, but side by side same temperature it has not firmed up like the other batch. Is that common or did I so something wrong? Thanks so much.
It sounds like you have soft trim fat tallow. Leaf fat (from around the internal organs) is much harder.
can this soft tallow still be used to make soap or not advisable?
can i use himalayan salt?
I recently bought the big tub of organic grass-fed tallow from Fatworks, and was disappointed that it is yellow and does have a bit of odor. I wonder if they didn’t fully purify it? The jar I bought previously from Fatworks was white and just about odorless. I still used the tub tallow to make balms, but I can still perceive the odor a smidge under the essential oils. Bit of a bummer.
All the tallow ive seen from fatworks was rendered but not purified . That could be the case with you bought . Maybe try purifying it a few times
I had the exact same experience. Always bought their small jars to make balm and have been happy with them but they can be hard to find so I recently splurged on the big bucket. Was disappointed to find that it smelled really strong and had some brown bits around the top. Here trying to figure if there’s a way to further purify it!
Great post! Such a good idea. Does the tallow taste salted?
So, I used the above method to render the suet into tallow. The butcher had ground up the fat (I specifically asked for leaf fat), so it melted nicely. However, there still is definitely a smell to it; not strong, but a smell nonetheless. Will infusing it with herbs before I make soap be sufficient to mask the smell?
Same for me. Went through the process 3 times and it still smells heavy/beefy. Somewhat disappointed as I was wanting to use it on my skin, but not if I’m going to smell gamey.
Hey!!
Thanks for all this! I’m purifying my tallow in a slow cooker and even after a couple hours it is not simmering. I have about 6 cups tallow, 8 cups water and plenty of salt. How long should it usually take for it to simmer?
Thanks!!
I requested the fat from the beef my mom, sister and I just split. I had no idea just how much fat I was about to get!!
Using the wet method you outlined here wa ls great! I have a few cakes to purify once more before I’m satisfied but it was a fun experience! I used two 18qt electric roasters at about 225 degrees to help speed up the process.
I tried making this with grass fed and finished beef kidney fat. I rendered it in the crackpot as the recipe states but I didn’t get the brown bits at the bottom. I purified it once so far and it still smells very, very strong. Should I keep purifying until the smell is gone? Thanks in advance.
Yes, once in a while it can still have a little smell, just because there are so many factors (season, quality of fat, breed of cattle, etc.) but this is the best method to get the most odorless tallow possible. You can try several purification steps, and that often helps. Adding essential oils typically covers any remaining smell in my experience. Hope this helps!
Thank you so much for sharing this method and know how! I had to share my story of trying this the first time:
So I followed all the steps, and after I got mine out of the fridge the first time and popped it out of the bowl, the bowl came out clean! No water left over, and I had the most beautiful dark brown jelly on the bottom of my tallow cake! I scraped it off and saved it. And later when I had a cold, I took one table spoon of my jelly, and one cup of boiled water, and it made the most tasty broth I have ever had!! It was a clear jelly too, I was able to scrape the jelly off without getting any chunky bits.
Thanks for sharing your knowledge with me!
-Meganne
What would your thoughts be on using Hog Leaf Fat? Our local beef supplier does not slauter beef in house but they do slauter Hogs and Sheep. I was also able to get a few Deer Call fat this year.
i tried this and ended up with a huge bowl of liquid fat that never hardened, arrrgh!
If I ever have super soft trim fat tallow, I let it harden in the fridge or freezer. Leaf fat will be very hard at room temp.
I have leaf fat and purifying 4 th time now- still very soft and yellow… do you know if it eventually get white and hard? ????
Yes, it can still have some color, just because there are so many factors (season, quality of fat, breed of cattle, etc.) but this is the best method to get the lightest color possible, meaning the tallow has not been burned 🙂
Hi Marisa
Thanks for sharing these info. I have seen some vedios in YouTube, adding milk and milk cream to the tallow .. as per them, milk whitens the tallow and cream gives it a nice creamy smell…..
What do you think ?
If my 100% grass-fed beef fat was white, I’d be worried. Grass-fed beef fat is yellow and so is the tallow. This is due to the vitamin A content. White tallow is from grain-fed cows who tend to have a whole lot less vitamin A (a fat soluble vitamin) because they are not eating fresh greens which are extremely high is vitamin A while grains are not. Same for chicken fat. Free-range chickens have yellow fat and factory farmed chickens have white fat.
I’m happy to help! When I say “white” I mean as light colored as possible. Light colored as opposed to dark colored tallow that is dark from being burned when it was rendered too hot. Yes, fat from animals on pasture will have color to it compared to factory farmed animals. Hope this helps!
Depends on the type of cow. Angus:Jersey = white:yellow
I’m infusing pre-rendered tallow with herbs currently in the crockpot but has a beefy smell. Is it too late to use the water method to help remove smell?
I am attempting my first batch of tallow to make moisturizer. Wondering, how do i know when the tallow “cake” is dry? It has been sitting out on the counter for 2 days now and still feels wet/oily on the outside. The bottom of the cake is grainy… it tastes like salt, can i just scrape this off?. Wondering how long i can leave it open on the counter without worrying about mold/going bad. Thank you!!
Can I use Iodized salt for this wet method? Also what is the best way to wash everything? I’m worried my drain will plug up after washing the bowls/ spoons etc.
Never put any grease down the drain; it will block in no time and you will have to use caustic soda to clear it or call a plumber.
Wipe utenails, etc with paper towels and throw away before washing.
I used leaf fat and the water method. I am so happy with the outcome. For the first time my tallow does not have an odor. Thank you so much for sharing this water method.
My tallow isn’t gardening into a cake.
Hi there, I’m new to tallow rendering and this is my first try at rendering tallow.
I followed along with your wet method recipe but my tallow isn’t hardening. We are doing the stovetop method and have rendered it more than once on low on the stove now trying to reduce it more and make sure we got the water all out as much as we can.
When I thought it was fine, it was clear, and could see impurities, kinda orange gooey stuff at the bottom of the pot, so strained that through a cheesecloth in a strainer into our metal bowl and put in the fridge overnight. When I checked in it this morning, still not a hard cake like in your pictures. Kinda thick and goopy. I decided to put it back in the pot as it wasn’t hard, and couldn’t scrape off the impurities easily. So trying a second round of salt water added into it, and hoping it works.
Any insights why this is happening, or what I might have done wrong?
Thanks so much, amy
Thank you for such an informative and helpful post! I have tried using both the dry method and the wet method, but I find it difficult to know when to stop cooking the fat with the wet method. Is it simply when all the chunks sink to the bottom? The rendered fat looks quite different when compared to the dry method. The dry method fat looks crispy and dry, but with the wet method there are fat pieces that still look blubbery, but I have been cooking them in a crockpot for almost 20 hours. If you can share any pictures of your drained fat using the wet method it will be extremely helpful. Thanks again.
Hi! So I make and sell tallow balm and want to venture into other tallow products. When doing the dry method, which is my current method, tallow lasts FOREVER on a counter top, much longer than a few weeks. Does the wet method really change the shelf life that much that it is only a few weeks at room temperature?
Hey, thank you so much for this! Am I supposed to leave the top off the crockpot while the tallow is rendering?
hi marissa!
i went through the rendering/purification process multiple times and then did a melt without water and salt to pull out any remaining water.
as my tallow is drying on the counter it is covered in like “sweat beads” but they seem like oil rather than water. i live in colorado so it would seem that it if were water, it would definitely be evaporating.
anyways, do you have any ideas about this? thank you in advance. i’ve appreciated your tutorials so much!
-emily
Hi Marisa! Recently discovered your amazing posts & videos and am very grateful! I made my first balm before finding you, and even though I direct-melted local sourced suet (doubt it was grass-fed) and added a few drops of geranium & rosehip seed oil…it sold me on the skin benefits. I personally don’t think it smelled too beefy, but I am excited to try your method so that it’s extra pure & even more beneficial! I found great sources for better quality suet & may even try Buffalo suet. Have you ever tried that as well? My other question is this: I want to incorporate more tallow in our cooking as well. If I am water-melting say 5lbs at a time, do you think it’s ok to jar up some after the initial melt for cooking, then do the second purification process for skin care? Or do you feel that the full process is best for both skin and cooking? I appreciate your advice! ❤️
Hi Marissa! I’ve been rendering tallow for about 6 months now. This last render (my first one of this batch) no water on the bottom but ALL gelatinous. Is that okay? What do I do with it?
I’d love to know an answer to this question! This is my first go with rendering lard. I followed your wet method on a tiny amount of beef tallow from just an ordinary beef meal (as opposed to huge chunks of fat), and it worked wonderfully. Today, when I went to pour out the water from the first heating of the lard, there wasn’t any water – it was all gelatin! I’m very surprised, but wondering if I can use the gelatin in broths/soups? In the bowl the layers were gelatin on the bottom, then gristly bits in the middle, then lard. Truly baffled by the gelatin!
I’ve been using your method for a while now and love it! But the last 2 batches of balm I made solidify in the jar but you can see there is trapped water in the bottom. What did I do wrong, how can I prevent this (freezing or air drying??), and is that balm still salvageable??
Thank you!
I just had this happen too. Is it wasted, or can it be fixed?
Hello! Why does my tallow feel grainy? Too much salt? How do I get rid of the grainy feeling?
It sounds like you have soft trim fat tallow. Leaf fat (from around the internal organs) is much harder. To prevent the gritty texture, I make the tallow solidify very quickly, in my deep freezer. This prevents the fat molecules from separating out and making the gritty texture, which is what happens when the tallow cools slowly. Hope this helps!
Gently re-melt, let cool for a few mins then whack in the fridge or freezer. The grainy feeling is the different fats solidifying at different rates. Make them solidify at the same time and you get rid of the grainy feeling.
Hi Marisa,
Thank you for sharing all the wonderful recipes!
I would like to ask you if I could do the same purification process on a Dutch oven? I do not own a crockpot and would prefer to use what I already have.
Any suggestions or modifications?
Thank you 💖
If it’s a cast iron Dutch oven I wouldn’t go any higher than low medium low stirring every 30 minutes on a stove. You can also do this in the oven in your lowest temperature setting. Covered. Storing the same. I’ve done both.
Hello, I’ve just wet rendered some tallow the first time and I’ve strained it. It’s sitting in the fridge right now to harden but now I’m wondering if I let it render long enough…it was only about 6 hours. Will it be ok or will it finish rendering when I go to do the first purifying reheat?
Hi Marissa
I’m new to your page and love all the info you share.
I just tried to render my first batch of tallow. I used a slow cooker and after 14 hours the fat was still not completely melted. I did blend the fat with a stick mixer before cooking, does it have to be a very smooth consistency when blended? My stick mixer didn’t do a very good job of chopping it up finely. Thanks 😊
Thank you so much! You may need to render a bit longer. You can also try blending the fat with the water using a stick blender, then let it render longer. That will make the fat chunks smaller so they can render quickly. Hope this helps!
Hi. I ordered tallow from fatworks as you recommended but it has a very strong smell. I am using it for skincare and was wondering if there was a way to get the smell out. Or, can you recommend someone I can buy tallow from that doesn’t have a smell? I do not want to render myself!
Thank you so much for all of your information!
Thank you! I don’t know of anyone who sells odorless tallow. You can try some purification steps, and that may help, but if it has a smell from getting too hot while rendering, you may not be able to get rid of all of it. I find that adding essential oils works well to cover any remaining smell 🙂
Hi there,
I actually have a question about the already rendered tallow you recommend for purchase, i just got some from that brand and notice it is a bit yellow and does have a light (but quite present) beef smell. I’m wondering if you notice this smell sticks around when you make balms with it or if the scent maybe fades out when you mix it with another oil to make the balm? I love tallow but don’t want to smell like a cooking pan 😁
Thanks!
I find that adding essential oils usually covers the beef smell quite well 🙂
This is something I would like to try and you make it sound very easy to do. Thank you for the information. Is it possible to can the tallow for longer shelf life?
You’re welcome! Yes, as long as the tallow has no water in it, it is very shelf stable, and lasts for months at room temp, and forever in the fridge or freezer 🙂
I rendered some local fat, but I didn’t realize it would need time to dry out, unless I do what you suggested in melting the cake and trying to drain the tallow off the remaining water. Here’s my question. I want to make soap with my tallow. Should the tallow cake be completely dried out or water free before using it to make soap? I know everything has to be measured for the soap recipe, so I’m assuming yes. I do have store bought tallow I can use for my first batch of soap while this cake dries.
It’s a good idea to dry it out, but not crucial, as you will be adding lye water when making soap 🙂
Hi,
I’ve just rendered some tallow. Got some ox fat from my local butchers for free (yey!) , and i also chopped some fat that i got off the meat i was planning to use for pemmican. I used the crockpot method but didn’t add water.
The tallow i got is still pretty much on the soft side even after 2 purification runs and the night in the fridge.
I just gave it one more cleaning run but i wonder whether i should bother anymore. I just wanna use it for making pemmican, so.i don’t mind the smell. I’m more concerned about shelf life of pemmican i wanna make with it. Normally, one without berries is supposed to have 25+ years… as long as i can get a few years shelf life with softer tallow, i’m fine…
It sounds like you have very soft tallow from trim fat. Leaf fat is a lot harder. I think that as along as there is no moisture in the tallow, it should still have a good shelf life.
Hello, I just finished my second render, and it still has not solidified. It has been sitting in my fridge for a couple hours now. Is there anything I can do or does it sometimes take longer?
It can take a while, and if it is taking a long time, you most likely have soft trim fat. leaf fat makes harder tallow. You can solidify it in the freezer to speed the process up 🙂
I got suet from a local farmer and rendered the fat (dry first). Then I saw your article and have since tried to purify it with salt (and once with baking soda) at least 8 or 9 times and it still smells. Is it a lost cause because I dry rendered it first? Should I save my time and not use this for my skin?
Yes, I find that when tallow gets scalded from dry rendering, you often can’t remove all of the smell from purification. I like the wet method best for tallow I am going to use for skincare. The tallow from dry rendering is amazing for cooking 🙂
I can’t find where to start a new comment , but since I’ve been dry rendering I’ll post here. It’s very difficult to find leaf fat/suet that you know comes from around the kidneys. I’ve found a good frozen package at a local grocer that carries a lot of ethnic foods and supplies. I usually heat it slowly and then strain the gristle out as you suggest.
Here is my suggestion, after the first rendering you may want to reheat and strain again. I tried to strain in to my silicone molds to make little “bricks”. I usually use my suet to make savory meat pie crust (Cornish pasties). Today I was careless and spilled the melted suet. Yikes what a mess. So I’ll be sure to use a large rimmed sheet pan in the future.
What would you suggest to get the tallow off of counters, floors and parts of work tables. I’ve been using Dawn and Lestoil but I’m afraid it’s still going to drive the granddog crazy when he comes to visit. He’ll be liking everything!
Thanks for sharing! For cleanup I use hot water and dish soap 🙂
Hi Marisa.
Your articles and additional research links about beef tallow have been quite helpful in my search for knowledge, so I’m grateful for your work.
But there is an issue in my case, you all mention grass fed as the ideal type of beef fat but can I still benefit from consuming beef tallow in which the cow was grain fed? I’m from Brazil and here most cows are grain fed (might still be able to find a local farm with grass fed cow with further research tbh) besides Brazil’s “IRS” prohibits importing animal food for natural person.
Thank you! Great question! Yes, beef that is not 100% grass fed still has great benefits. In fact, Sally Fallon Morrell (author of Nourishing Traditions) even prefers grass fed beef that is finished with a little grain.
This is all soooooo helpful!! Thank you for all your posts! After a wet render, I used the tallow to make lip balm and now the plastic tubes have condensation trapped. I now know I need to let the trapped water dissipate before using. How much time is enough sit time to make sure it’s all out? I’m sure it depends upon the weather and humidity in my home, but roughly a week? Two weeks?
Also, someone above talked about heating it up to get rid of the water. Do you recommend that?
Thank you so much! Hmm I haven’t had this happen before. I have a fairly dry climate here, so that might make a difference. If you’re in a wetter climate, it might be good to let the tallow sit out with airflow for 2-3 weeks. Yes, you can melt it down and pour off the tallow, making sure to not let any water that might settle at the bottom into the container. Hope this helps!
Hi! I tried the wet version for the first time and am so excited. I have a question- the water leftover at the bottom was extremely gelatinous, which I know you said can happen. But I had wayyyyyyy more gel than solid fat. Not sure what I’m not doing right! Maybe I added too much water? Any insight into what happens when you have way more gelatinous water than solid fat would be helpful. Thank you so much!
It can happen! The raw fat you used just had a lot of connective tissue and not as much tallow as you were expecting 🙂
Thank you so much!
any uses for the gelatinous water?
Can you recommend a good immersion blender?
Yes! I have this one: https://amzn.to/3p3fKog
Hi! I’ve got a question about re-rendering tallow. I recently bought some tallow from us wellness meats because it was a good price and good quality, but using it to make whipped balm has proven quite a challenge. I emailed them to ask what type of fat they use and they say it’s leaf fat, but it just won’t whip up very well, even leaving out the olive oil entirely. They recommended re-rendering the tallow I have left, but I don’t have a lot left….I’d still like to try it though! Any advice about re-rendering bought tallow and only having a small amount of tallow? Like how much water and salt should I use for how much tallow, should I simmer it for the same amount of time, etc? Any advice would be so appreciated! Thank you!!! I have so loved learning from your website!
Thank you so much! I would try re-rendering it following the steps for purification like I explain in the post. So you’d add a tablespoon or so of salt, then enough water that it won’t evaporate, bring it to a simmer in the crockpot, and then let it go for an hour, then follow the rest of the steps, just like I explain here. It should still work with a small amount of tallow. I hope that helps!
Thank you! Also wanted to ask…what salt is best to use? I usually use the pink himalayan salt for everything but wasn’t sure..thank you!
For this, I usually use cheap table salt, since I render a lot and it just gets dumped out. But pink Himalayan would work, too!
Hi! Thank you for these instructions. After my last purification step, and popping the tallow cake out of the bowl, I put it on a cookie cooling rack to dry. I noticed though that water was oozing out for the next few hours, so I left it on the rack for 24 hours at which point there was still water oozing out. So that tells me there is some amount of water saturation in the tallow. Any idea how I can ensure it’s completely dry through before storing it? Thanks!
You’re welcome! Yes, sometimes water will come out of the finished cake. I normally melt the cake down and any water will settle to the bottom of the melted tallow. Then I carefully pour the melted tallow off into storage jars, and am careful to not let any water go into the storage jars with the tallow. Or, you can let the cake air dry for several days, but if I do this and skip the melting/pouring step, I either freeze the cake or store it in an open container with air flow so it can keep drying. Hope that helps!
Ok maybe you can answer a sort of related question.
I followed your steps and made the purified tallow and then whipped it into tallow balm with some lavender essential oil. Turned out great!
I had some extra tallow from that batch that I didn’t make into balm so that set on the counter in a jar for a bit. A couple of weeks later I melted it down and made some more tallow balm. This time I didn’t use any essential oils and now it’s got mold on the top??
Is that because I didn’t use EOs? Or maybe some water got in at some point? I didn’t add any.
Should I throw it all out? Or could I melt it down again and see if it can kill off the mold? Or get rid of any extra moisture. It’s only been a small bit on top that I have seen mold on?
I really don’t want to those it away and waste it!! 😢
I also want to add that I’ve made tallow balm many times and this has never happened!! But this is my first time west rendering/purifying it!
It sounds like some water got into the finished tallow. To prevent this, I make very sure to not let any water pour in when I pour the melted tallow off to store it. I don’t think there’s a way to salvage it. 🙁
I’ve used the dry method before for rendering lard and tallow. I want to try the wet method for more tallow to be used in lotions and candles. With the dry method, I found that I had to leave the lid OFF the crockpot or the tallow splattered when frying with it. Do you leave the lid OFF for the wet method too?
Thanks
I always leave the lid on 🙂
Hi, Thanks for this tutorial! I tried this recipe with suet from a cow we bought last year. I tried my instant pot on slow cooker alongside my slow cooker (fyi, doesn’t work 😂). So I combined them both and did it stovetop instead. Hoping I didn’t cook too hot but the color was a mild golden yellow so I think it’s fine.
I purified it once after the initial rendering and the water was almost totally clear and nothing to scrape. Still smells a little beefy. Not sure about that.
To my question, I cut it into chunks and it’s currently on my counter in an open container. It seems really sweaty even now after half a day. First, is it normal to sweat and if so, how long does it take to dry?
I may end up freezing most of it as I didn’t quite realize I’d have 7+ pounds of tallow. Tallow balm Christmas gifts just got added to the list. 😜 Thank you again for all your information!
You’re welcome! Good to know about the Instant Pot. If it still smells a little beefy, it’s probably because it got a little hotter than ideal on the stovetop. It should still be pretty good, though 🙂 I usually let it sit at room temp to evaporate any water, and here in Colorado (a dry climate) it takes several days. If I decide to keep it at room temp, I keep it in an open container, like a bag with the top left open for air flow. It lasts months that way. Freezing it is an ideal way to store it very longterm. Tallow balm makes great gifts!
I did the first purification on my grass fed beef fat yesterday. Let it sit out all night but was still soft. Put it in the fridge all day and is still soft. I went ahead and started the second purification step, just using a spoon to take out the white fat, leaving the brown residue in the bottom. There was not very much and no water at the bottom.
What do I need to do to get it to harden once I’ve purified it this second time? Am I missing something since there is no water on the bottom?
Thanks for your help.
I’m happy to help! It sounds like you’re using very soft trim fat, which will remain softer at room temperature, but in my experience you should still be able to get the process to work. It sounds like you need to add quite a bit more water during the purifying process. You could also try freezing it instead of hardening it in the fridge to make it easier to work with. Just check on it often so that you take it out when the tallow is hard enough to handle, but the water isn’t frozen solid. Hope that helps!
Hi there, I’ve used your process several times for making tallow – works really well!
My question is about adding other oils to the tallow – last time i tried mixing Jojoba oil with the tallow but it came out grainy. Is there anything I can do to prevent this?
Thanks
Yvonne
I’m happy to help! I find that tallow from leaf fat is hard and smooth, but tallow from trim fat tends to be softer and can end up grainy when made into balm, for example. One trick I’ve discovered to help this is to chill the tallow very quickly. If I’m making balm with soft trim fat tallow, I often don’t add liquid oil, and I put it to solidify in the “quick chill” section of my deep freezer. That solidifies it quickly and keeps the fat molecules from separating out and making the grainy texture. Hope that helps!
Hi form Mexico !!!
I by my organ fat with a local farmer but sometimes my tallow is cero soft … soft as lard.
I know that Tallow from grass fed cows will be harder than a non grassfed.
Do you think that my local farmer is telling me no grass fed fat ?
I used the dry method.
Thank you and have a nice day Melissa.
<3
Great questions! The leaf fat from around the internal organs will be hard and smooth, and the trim fat will be softer. It sounds like you’re getting trim fat. Hope that helps!
Hi Marisa! I tried rendering my suet and after the first round, I popped it out of the bowl to find just a tiny layer of fat on top and water underneath! Not sure what I did wrong there. Any thoughts?
I’m happy to help! It can depend on the amount of fat you render. I usually do several 5 lb. bags of raw fat at a time. I’d also look at how long you let it render. You may have needed to let it go longer depending on the size of fat chunks. Hope that helps!
I just rendered suet into tallow for the first time. I did the first rendering before I knew about this wet process. After the first rendering, I filtered it through a coffee filter. Then I found your video and ran the tallow through the saltwater process. It reduced the odor some and made it a bit lighter in color, but there were virtually no impurities on the tallow after it cooled (I still scraped the outside of the tallow block). It still has a the tallow odor to it though reduced. I want to make soap. Even though the tallow odor is much milder than it was, should I run it through the wet process again before making the soap to try reduce the odor further? How much tallow odor is too much for soap? Curious because I didn’t use the wet process for the first rendering. Thanks.
Great questions! If it is rendered without water the first time, you probably won’t be able to get rid of the beef smell completely. I’ve found that when I’ve made soap with tallow that has a beef smell, it doesn’t come through in the finished soap very much, if at all. That’s for unscented bars. If you add essential oils, it should be just fine. So I wouldn’t worry too much about a little beef smell. I probably wouldn’t bother with a second purification step, but you can if you want/have the time. Hope that helps!
It did help. I ended up rendering it 4 times. I did mistakenly render it without saltwater the first time, but I used saltwater the next 3 renderings/filterings, and I got the smell out. Thanks for the help. The soap I made is 50% tallow (the rest is shea butter, coconut oil, and apricot kernal oil). It came out great. It’s the best soap I’ve ever made.
Hello! Popping in here to ask a question related…
I rendered it on the stove.. normally I use my crock pot, but I think it got too hot. Normally it’s a nice yellow in liquid form, now it’s an orangey color and had a much more distinct smell.
If I wet render it more will the smell come out or is it never going to come out because I burnt it.
Is soap the best thing to make out of it when it smells? Or is this unusable.
How do you wash the fat out of the cheesecloth? My cheesecloth didn’t come clean.
I just run it through the washing machine – haven’t had any issues 🙂
Thanks for all the information, I am from South Africa, going to try and make my own skin products. Will keep in touch.
Great, thank you!
Will freezing help pop the tallow cake out of the bowl easier? Mine have been breaking, which means it’s hard to scrape off all the brown stuff. I used suet, too, which should be the hardest/waxiest fat
I find that freezing is a little too hard to work with, but refrigerating works well!
Can you cook with the gelatinized water that is separated from the tallow? Is there a term for this? Would it be a type of beef consomme?
Yes, some people add it to soup! Just watch the amount of salt, since it will have salt in it already. I think it’s similar to beef meat stock, since the connective tissue gives it the gelatinous texture.
Can you use these purifying methods for lard as well?
Yes you can, this works great for lard 🙂
Thank you so much for all the helpful information! I had a question- I just came across your blog the other day after we had already rendered some tallow from a cow that we butchered. I am thinking that there must have been some water still trapped in the tallow and then we put it in ziplock bags since we had to travel with it (we rendered it at my parents in another state before traveling home). Most of the tallow developed mold spots and I really hate to see it go to waste. Do you know if you can cut the mold spots out and then re-render it? I was considering trying that so that we could still use it for soap making. Thanks so much!
Yes, you can cut the spots off! I find it’s a good idea to let the tallow sit in open air for a while to avoid mold.
I just found your website. Recently we rendered some tallow from a cow we butchered, but I must not have got all the water out because it has mold spots. Do you know if I could cut out the mold spots and then re-render it so that we could still use it? I am new to using tallow. Most likely this tallow we would just use for making soap, but I am wondering if there’s any way to get rid of the mold so that I can use the tallow still. Thanks so much!
Yes, you can cut the spots off! I find it’s a good idea to let the tallow sit in open air for a while to avoid mold.
Thank you for this great post!
I made stock with flavorings like garlic, onions, herbs etc, from large beef bones that had a lot of fat and cartilage. When I was done, i skimmed a LOT of fat. I’ve tried to purify it using your method but it is now crumbly and very yellow (it was entirely grass fed. Is this going to work, or should I abandon it and use for other purposes? Was going to use for soap.
Great question! I’ve only done this with raw beef fat. I don’t recommend using fat from stock making for soap, as it has too much moisture and other things in it. I’d recommend rendering raw beef fat for soap, and then purifying it and making the soap. Hope that helps!
Thank you so much. I did end up abandoning it, as I just couldn’t make any progress, though I was hopeful. The purified tallow you show is beautiful and I will definitely follow this technique in the future.
How much ground fat (in weight) is needed to get 1 lb of rendered tallow? Just approximately I realize, but I want to be sure I buy enough!
Great question! Here is the formula I keep on hand for my shop: 20 lb. of raw beef fat will make 30 cups of tallow. Hope that helps!
First, thank you so much for sharing this information and answering all of our many questions.
This may seem like an obvious question, but do you leave the crockpot lid on or off during the rendering process?
You’re very welcome! Great question. I leave the lid on, and I think that helps to prevent the water from evaporating too fast. Hope that helps!
Has anyone used this method for pig leaf fat to make lard?
Yes! It works great 🙂
Suet is fat from the organs of the beef which is not the same as the fat from the beef trimmings.
That’s correct! Suet is harder, and trim fat is softer. Suet has more nutrients. I’ve used both for cooking, soap making, and skincare with good results 🙂
Doing the fat from a steer (including trimmings), after initial rendering and a clarifying step ours was still soft, off smelling/taste and very yellow. We were careful not mix the water, but experimenting I noticed bubbling while heating it dry and realized there was significant water trapped. So I went ahead and heated it up without additional water past 210 until the boiling stopped and it turned very white and lost all off smell/flavor. I think trapped moisture that doesn’t settle out is something that needs to be addressed too. I also tried taking it up to 350 and am still waiting for it to fully cool but it didn’t burn or acquire any off taste/smell.
Thanks for sharing!
Hello! I am on a tallow mission. I received a bunch of leaf fat from the grass fed angus cows at my work. I also raised 3 cows myself this year. Let’s say I have a lot of rendering ahead of me. So far, I’ve been rendering your way via wet method and I’m on my 3rd rendering to try and eliminate any beef smell and I feel I’m almost there (seems kind of difficult to completely get rid of). My question for you is how is it possible to get all the remaining water out of the fat? I’m assuming that the water is really only on the outside but when I’ve cut into the tallow after it has cooled I see water squeezing through. Is that anything you’ve experienced? I just do not want rancid tallow. Thanks for your time!
Great questions! Yes, I find that the beef smell can pretty much be eliminated most of the time, but there are factors that can affect it (breed of cattle, quality of fat, what they were eating, the time of year, etc.) It sounds like you’re using good leaf fat, so that’s a plus, and I find that kind of fat to be the least strong smelling. It’s also helpful to gauge the smell of the tallow once it has cooled completely. When it’s warm it will often still have a bit of a smell. The water issue might also depend on climate, but making sure the tallow gets a chance to sit and dry out helps. Here in Colorado it’s pretty dry, but other climates might need more time to make sure the water is evaporated. I let my cakes of tallow sit at room temperature with air circulation when they’re done with the rendering and purifying process. That seems to help them dry, and I haven’t had trouble with mold or rancidity. Hope that helps!
I loved your video but I’m so disappointed. I’ve tried every keyword I can think of but can’t find the same fat you’re using. It all appears to be soft like lard. I want to make pemmican (survival food) for longterm storage and think I need the kind that forms a hard cake like yours. I think the soft stuff will turn rancid. My understanding is that suet is the name of the fat around the kidneys of the cow. And that you render suet to make beef tallow. Do you have any links where I can buy the hard stuff like you have online? I’ll buy it directly from you if that’s possible.
Yes, tallow varies a lot in softeness or hardness. And you’re right, the hardest tallow comes from the fat surrounding the internal organs. Just because it’s soft doesn’t mean it will turn rancid. Unfortunately, I’m out of tallow for sale at the moment. My favorite place to find it is to buy it from local farms. This site has it, but many places are out of stock right now 🙁 https://grasslandbeef.com/beef-suet I hope you can find some locally!
HI Marisa, love your post.
Wondering if you can help me. I bought some already rendered beef tallow, it is quite soft, I melted it, added oil & essential oils and whipped it but it still has a strong beef smell. Any ideas on how I can get rid of the smell would be so so so appreciated. Hi from NZ!
Many thanks
Rachel
Thank you! I’m happy to try and help. If the beef smell is because the tallow was rendered at a higher temperature, it might not be possible to get rid of the smell completely. You can try doing one or two purification steps to try and remove some smell. The best is to render the raw beef fat yourself using my method here. Hope that helps!
Please help!
I’m so frustrated I can’t find anything about this issue anywhere online!
I did a stove top method and spooned the melted fat into a coffee-filter lined sive. Then I poured the fat into another pot with some water and let that simmer for a bit then cool. The result was a pure white block of fat and the water was completely clear so I figured I didn’t need to do any more cleansing episodes. So I put the block in a pot and let it simmer for a bit to get out any leftover water.
It’s been sitting on the counter now overnight and all day and still isn’t solid!! If I put some into the fridge it hardens a nice white… But at room temperature is practically melted. Is this normal?! The whole reason I did this was to make the whipped face cream and now… It’s just a goo…. 😢😢😢
I can’t find any answers…
I’m happy to help! Some tallow is very soft. It sounds like that’s the kind you have. It has something to do with different factors: seasons, breed of cattle, the grass they ate, etc. It makes tallow that is a little more tricky to work with, but it has all the same benefits. If I ever get soft tallow, I usually don’t add olive oil to it. You can still use it as a balm, and even whip it. Just chill a bit before whipping. I hope that helps!
Thank you so much! I really just felt like I messed up somehow. I made a batch with the olive oil not realizing it wouldn’t solidify. Half of it I chilled and whipped and keep in the fridge and put it on in the morning while getting my coffee hahaha! The other half I left at room temp and put in a travel container I happened to have so I can just pop the lid and pour a little onto my fingers. Next time I render I’ll see if its the gooey tallow or solid tallow and add the olive oil accordingly! I have quite a bit of the pure gooey tallow left over for cooking!
Thank you for your help! I’ve been enjoying using it as a moisturizer!!
Hi Marisa!
I used trim fat that was minced with quite a bit of meat.
I rendered it once and refrigerated after filtering.
The tallow is fairly soft, I’ve just done a second round but I’m still getting a beef smell – is it because of the meat content it was rendered with the first time?
Shall I do a 3rd round? Is the salt helpful for the smell also?
Thank you!
Yes, once in a while it can still have a little smell, just because there are so many factors (season, quality of fat, breed of cattle, etc.) but this is the best method to get the most odorless tallow possible. You can try several purification steps, and that often helps. Adding essential oils typically covers any remaining smell in my experience. Hope this helps!
I have the same question! I’m really excited to make my own tallow, but I’m not sure how much fat to buy for the full recipe with 6-8 cups of water. Any insight would be much appreciated!
You can use whatever will fit in your crockpot. I usually render around 4-6 pounds at a time 🙂
Can you refrigerate to get it to solidify or is it best to leave at room temperature?
You can do either! Letting it harden in the fridge will make it harden faster 🙂
I just tried out your recipe. The first purification went well but I decided to purify again because it smelled a bit beefy and the tallow is very grainy now. I thought maybe it was the salt but you said that it should all remain in the water after the tallow hardens. Is this normal? Just nervous about wasting time and energy on making it into soap if something went wrong. Also, do you have or recommend using a 0 super fat recipe for laundry?
I’m happy to help! The graininess/consistency of the finished tallow has to do with the type of fat and where it came from on the animal. The leaf fat will be hard and smooth, and the trim fat will be softer and can tend to be grainy. I find that trim fat often has more of a smell than leaf fat, too. I have made soap with trim fat many times, and it always turns out great. I haven’t designed a 0% superfat recipe yet, but if you go to soapcalc.net you can use the calculator there to make one. Hope that helps!
Thank you! I think you’re right about it being grainy because of being trim fat. The good news is that after purifying again, it was much smoother. It was still a little beefy smelling, but after making soap with it, the scent was almost gone.
Okay, wonderful!
I bought a big bag of organic beef suet thinking it was beef fat. I know lots of people eat it raw, but I just could not stomach that so I tried rendering it. Followed the salt water directions, but my tallow is bright yellow and beefy smelling. Do you think I cooked it too fast? Too hot?
Sometimes people use different terminology, but beef suet can refer to raw beef fat or rendered tallow. If you used a crockpot on low with enough water, it shouldn’t have gotten too hot. Some yellow color isn’t bad, it can vary depending on the breed. When I refer to “white” I just mean it is a gentle method that doesn’t burn the tallow, which darkens it. If you do some additional purification steps it should help to reduce the beef smell. Hope that helps!
Hello dear Marissa,
Thanks for sharing your knowledge. I tried this method using the stove as I do not have a crockpot. It worked well to remove impurities. However, when I melted the tallow at the end I did not see any water separate from it while it is still liquid. When it hardened, a bit of water separated from it.
My question is: How can I make sure there is no water left in the tallow? I am planning on getting a slow cooker soon, do you think that if I melt it in the slow cooker over a period of time the water will evaporate?
Thank you so much!
Have a great day =)
You’re welcome! The method should work the same way on the stovetop. When melting the tallow to pour it off, you might need to let it sit a bit longer. Also make sure to not stir it, so the water has time to settle to the bottom. If there is water left and it is melted completely and not disturbed, the water should collect at the bottom. If you do melt it in the crockpot it could help the water evaporated, but I would be careful about the tallow getting too hot in the crockpot. It might get darker in color and have a “meat” smell if it gets too hot. Hope that helps!
Oh I see, I was stirring it while melting to pour and I didn’t leave it long enough it seems, thanks for the helpful tips Marissa, have a great day!
dear marisa i have question; in soap production factory tallow was used as one type oil.From this tallow, waste was removed during refinning.And removed waste used as biogas with mixing wood shaving but it has very bad smell this odor afect human .so can i control and eliminate this bad smell from this waste
That’s very interesting. If I’m understanding correctly, I don’t think you have to deal with this waste when you make tallow soap at home. I hope that helps!
Hi Marisa! I rendered my tallow last year in a crockpot initially and strained it twice through a cheesecloth and it looked pretty darn white so I put it in storage (the freezer).. This fat was from 2 cows that I personally raised, grass fed only. I saw your post and decided I wanted to make the balm and tried last night. I tried purifying it again but it still smells beefy, even after I put essential oils in and almond oil (instead of olive oil). I really want it to be odorless besides the essential oil smells… Do you think I should keep purifying it over and over? I also tried the baking soda “trick” and that did not rid it of the beefy smell. In fact the balm felt a bit chalky on my hands once dried and I think that has to do with the baking soda. Just thought I’d pick your brain on this… Thanks!
If you’ve only done the purifying step with salt once, you could try doing it a second time. Otherwise, it sounds like you’ve covered your bases. Sometimes, if the tallow got too hot while rendering with the dry method, it isn’t possible to completely get rid of the smell.
During the last wet rendering, I pour the tallow carefully, avoiding the water, into my container. But there will be a small amount of tallow left over. Can I let that last cake air dry so I don’t waste any precious tallow? Does that make sense?
Yes! That’s exactly what I do. I let the last little bit of tallow harden on top of the water, and then remove it once it’s firm. Then I let it air dry. Definitely don’t want to waste any! 🙂
Does the tallow taste salty doing it this way ? Thank you for the information
No, the salt stays completely in the water. Hope that helps!
Thank you! I made some tallow yesterday and burned it, so I purified it 3 x and used it for tallow balm. I use it as face cream or night cream. I am now rendering a couple of pounds of suet, to use in my pemmican.
Wonderful! Enjoy!
Can you use this process to de-smell tallow you’ve bought elsewhere? I’ve bought tallow that’s come beautiful, pure white and not smelly and then I’ve also bought some that’s yellow with a beefy smell, which is fine for cooking but not soap and skincare making 🙂
thanks!
It would be worth a try! I think it depends on why it smells, like if it got too hot and started to burn during rendering, or if it has impurities. I think it would deodorize tallow that smells from not being pure, but I don’t know if it can remove burn smell. If you try it, let me know how it goes! 🙂
Thanks! I’m trying it today. I also just read you could do baking soda in the last purification round, so I may try that as well. I’ll let you know how my experiments go.
🙂
Oh interesting! I’ve never tried the baking soda. Let me know how it works! 🙂
Worked like a charm with just one round of purification with water and salt.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for this video/info! It’s been massively helpful 🙂
I’m so glad!!
You are amazing to share all your knowledge! thank you thank you!
That is so sweet, thank you so much!
Why would you use the regular tallow rendering method at all? Is it the difference between beef fat and leaf fat? Wouldn’t you need the purified method for skin care products and even prefer it for food too because of the smell or taste? I’m curious. I saw another tallow rendering video in which the folks put water in on a stove too to prevent burning to the bottom of their pot. I just rendered tallow and watched their video and yours after. Mine did burn to the bottom. In your regular video you don’t add water though. So when would you not use the purifying method? In either method, do you use the fat after it’s rendered? The grissles?
The crockpot method (with no water and no purification) is for if you want a quick way to render and don’t mind a bit of beef smell. This is often fine for cooking. I do prefer the wet method with purification steps for both skincare and cooking, so I do all of mine that way. I feed the leftover bits from rendering to my chickens. They love it 🙂
Marisa,
Thank you for sharing this method. I am wondering how you clean your utensils and cheesecloth? I don’t want the tallow to clog my drain. After using the cheese cloth, do you throw it out or can it be reused?
Thank you so much!
You’re welcome! I squeeze the cheesecloth out really well afterward, so I don’t think there’s much tallow left in it at all. Then I put it through the laundry. For the utensils, the tallow is warm when I’m working with it, so it doesn’t coat them and there isn’t much left on them. I just wash them as normal with other dishes.
Thanks for posting this Marisa. I have done this previously with beef fat (but not the leaf fat). I ‘washed it’ several times after rendering, but the beef smell remained which isn’t great for balm etc.
I’ve just obtained a big bag of leaf fat so I’m gonna try your wet method 😁😁
A question – is it necessary to remove every last bit of meat etc that clings to the fat before rendering? You don’t mention it but I’m sure Ive read elsewhere that you need to have removed every little bit of ‘non fat’ bits. It will add a lot of prep time which is why I’d rather not do that if I don’t have to 😁
You’re welcome! Leaf fat is great. I don’t try and remove every last bit of meat, gristle, etc. That would take way too long 🙂 I get those removed during the rendering/purifying process every time I strain the mixture. Hope that helps!
When storing in chunks, you said it needs plenty of air flow, so how do you store it? Wrapped in a linen cheesecloth?
I just store it in open cardboard boxes 🙂
Great tutorial! I have pork fat in the freezer to render, but have been intimidated, I don’t want it to smell! Do you know if the process would be the same for lard? Thanks!
I believe it should work the same way with lard 🙂
This is very helpful. I rendered some lamb fat that I was given and the smell was very off putting even though it turned out white and beautiful looking. I did not use water or salt. I am going to try this method with the beef fat I have in the freezer. The video was also easy to follow. Thanks!
You’re very welcome, I’m so glad 🙂
Thanks for this! I recently tried my hand at rendering tallow for the very first time using your tutorial, but it did smell slightly like beef. I used it for soap making and I didn’t mind it too much. But this tutorial changes everything and I’m excited to run my previously rendered tallow through your wet process. Thanks so much, Marisa!
I’m so glad! You’re welcome 😊
Very informative post thank you!
I’m glad! 😊
Hi Marisa! I am buying grass fed beef suet from a local farmer. How much do you use when you make this? They sell it by the pound.
Hello! I usually use around 4-6 pounds at a time, but whatever will fit in your crockpot will work fine 🙂
Is there a way to tell if you have leaf fat or trim/back fat, just by looking at it? I sourced local grass-fed beef suet and I am not sure which one I got.
From fat that I’ve used, the leaf fat is usually in big white pieces without a lot of meat or connective tissue, and the trim fat is in smaller pieces with more meaty gristly bits attached. I hope that helps!