Beef Fat

[Sharon Simpson Thumann]

I have roughly five pounds I am going to render. Has anyone else rendered their own beef fat?

[Susan W]

Sharon, I just googled it. Is yours clean of all veins etc? If not, trim it. She said it's easier if it's cold. Then put it through a food processor....if you don't have one, I am sure chopping it up is fine. Here comes the fun part..YOU CAN DO THE REST IN YOUR SLOW COOKER. How cool is that? She said hers was pretty full and it took about 4.50 hours. Be careful not to burn it. She said when it's finished, all the crispies will be on top (I totally want to eat those) and the clear liquid will be at the bottom. Then you strain it like ghee through cheesecloth. The picture of the finished product in a big mason jar is so pretty.

[Tom Denham]

A slow cooker approach sounds great. I made some in my Dutch oven. Here is my recipe/report... http://www.wholelifeeating.com/2011/08/beef-tallow-an-excellent-cooking-fat/

[Moluv]

I rendered @13 lbs of fat in a big steel kettle on my stovetop in the same manner I had rendered lard in the past which is to cut into chunks and add a cup or two of filtered water to get it started. By the time all the fat melts the water has evaporated. And then strain it. That took a few hours on the stove but didn't take a lot of active work. I used the tallow for cooking fat but I also made a large batch of hand cream which all my friends loved.