Beef Suet (Tallow)
Beef tallow is essentially rendered beef fat. In culinary terms, beef tallow is adjacent to suet or lard but has a special rendering process that makes it unique.
What’s the difference between beef tallow, suet and lard? Firstly, “lard” is a term typically reserved for rendered pork fat sourced from pigs, although it can also describe duck fat. Tallow and suet are the terms used for beef fat, but you may also see them used to describe other types of ruminant animal fat, such as goat, sheep or elk.
Tallow comes from the hard fatty tissue that surrounds organ meats, most often the kidneys and loins of the cow. Before it is rendered, this fat is called suet. Because it hasn’t been processed yet, suet has a slightly tougher and grittier texture than tallow. Suet is best suited for use in pastries, dumplings and pie crusts, where the texture won’t be noticeable.
When suet is melted slowly, the tough and grainy bits can be easily strained out, leaving behind a smoother, firmer and more versatile product known as tallow. When used for culinary purposes, beef tallow has a very mild beefy or meaty flavor.
Before refrigeration and food preservatives were common, beef tallow served a vital role in people’s daily lives. Tallow is solid at room temperature and is shelf-stable for about twelve months. It can last about 12-18 months when kept in the fridge and up to two years in the freezer.
This versatile product can be used in food preparation as an ingredient or cooking oil. Outside of the kitchen, beef tallow can also be used to make candles, soaps, cleaning products, skin salves, healing ointments and industrial lubricants.
Beef tallow is essentially rendered beef fat. In culinary terms, beef tallow is adjacent to suet or lard but has a special rendering process that makes it unique.
What’s the difference between beef tallow, suet and lard? Firstly, “lard” is a term typically reserved for rendered pork fat sourced from pigs, although it can also describe duck fat. Tallow and suet are the terms used for beef fat, but you may also see them used to describe other types of ruminant animal fat, such as goat, sheep or elk.
Tallow comes from the hard fatty tissue that surrounds organ meats, most often the kidneys and loins of the cow. Before it is rendered, this fat is called suet. Because it hasn’t been processed yet, suet has a slightly tougher and grittier texture than tallow. Suet is best suited for use in pastries, dumplings and pie crusts, where the texture won’t be noticeable.
When suet is melted slowly, the tough and grainy bits can be easily strained out, leaving behind a smoother, firmer and more versatile product known as tallow. When used for culinary purposes, beef tallow has a very mild beefy or meaty flavor.
Before refrigeration and food preservatives were common, beef tallow served a vital role in people’s daily lives. Tallow is solid at room temperature and is shelf-stable for about twelve months. It can last about 12-18 months when kept in the fridge and up to two years in the freezer.
This versatile product can be used in food preparation as an ingredient or cooking oil. Outside of the kitchen, beef tallow can also be used to make candles, soaps, cleaning products, skin salves, healing ointments and industrial lubricants.
Beef tallow is essentially rendered beef fat. In culinary terms, beef tallow is adjacent to suet or lard but has a special rendering process that makes it unique.
What’s the difference between beef tallow, suet and lard? Firstly, “lard” is a term typically reserved for rendered pork fat sourced from pigs, although it can also describe duck fat. Tallow and suet are the terms used for beef fat, but you may also see them used to describe other types of ruminant animal fat, such as goat, sheep or elk.
Tallow comes from the hard fatty tissue that surrounds organ meats, most often the kidneys and loins of the cow. Before it is rendered, this fat is called suet. Because it hasn’t been processed yet, suet has a slightly tougher and grittier texture than tallow. Suet is best suited for use in pastries, dumplings and pie crusts, where the texture won’t be noticeable.
When suet is melted slowly, the tough and grainy bits can be easily strained out, leaving behind a smoother, firmer and more versatile product known as tallow. When used for culinary purposes, beef tallow has a very mild beefy or meaty flavor.
Before refrigeration and food preservatives were common, beef tallow served a vital role in people’s daily lives. Tallow is solid at room temperature and is shelf-stable for about twelve months. It can last about 12-18 months when kept in the fridge and up to two years in the freezer.
This versatile product can be used in food preparation as an ingredient or cooking oil. Outside of the kitchen, beef tallow can also be used to make candles, soaps, cleaning products, skin salves, healing ointments and industrial lubricants.