Making tallow is so easy, especially if you have an instant pot! Tallow is useful and inexpensive, benefiting your kitchen, body, and more. If you are curious how to purify it for skincare products, I have the steps outlined below!
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Not only is it so easy to make tallow, it really is such a traditional homemaking and homesteading skill that benefits your kitchen and health.
In our modern society, we waste so much. It kills me to throw away something that could’ve been used.
Even something like bones that are considered inedible, can be turned into bone broth or tooth remineralization powder.
I remember as a little girl, my great grandfather lived on a Native American reservation. My grandmother, his daughter, lives on the same reservation today. As a child, I was enamored by my family’s ancestry and culture. It greatly impacted my outlook today. I loved that I got to visit the reservation as a young girl!
I especially took great appreciation over the years in how our ancestors before us viewed animals by using the whole animal, leaving nothing to waste.
Being a Christian, I think it is important to honor God’s creation, and one of those ways is to do just as generations before us have done; thanking the Lord for the blessing of our food, and showing gratitude for the creature’s death by using the whole animal, at least to the best of your abilities.
What is tallow and its health benefits?
Tallow comes from the fat in beef or mutton (sheep). It is a saturated fat and solid at room temperature. With some heat, it will melt.
To make tallow, you start by melting the beef fat. It is then purified through a process of straining, cooling, and scraping off the impurities.
This process makes it more shelf stable and ready for uses outside the kitchen such as: soaps, lotions, creams, etc.
Healthy beef fat nurtients1:
- Vitamin Rich: A, D, E, K, K2, and B12 – Fat soluble vitamins are easily absorbed with the consumption of beef fat! This helps support a healthy immune system.
- Omega 3’s – aids in heart health.
- Fatty acids: oleic acid, palmitoleic acid (antimicrobial properties), stearic acid, and linoleic acid
- Conjugated linoleic fatty acid (CLA) – “There is some evidence to suggest that CLA consumption reduces the incidence and progression of some types of cancer in humans.”2
- Choline – regulates memory, mood, muscle control, and other functions. It also helps in the formation of the membranes that surround your body’s cells. While choline is made in small amounts by the liver, it is necessary to consume it through diet to acquire a necessary healthy amount.3 Another great source of choline is from healthy farm fresh eggs.
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Why grass-fed and organic?
Not all animal products are equal. So where should you get beef fat from?
We all know that grass-fed and organic beef is best. You will want to source your beef fat from this type of cow.
This is because it will have more of the health benefits described above. Sourcing from a grass-fed cow will result in up to 4x the CLA, more omega-3s, and a higher concentration of fat-soluble vitamins.
You can use any of the fat from beef or sheep to make tallow. However, most people want the fat that surrounds the animal’s kidneys because it has the highest concentration of the health benefits mentioned above. This cut of fat is called “suet” or “leaf fat”.
In addition, consuming healthy fats releases the hormone glucagon, which signals the body to burn stored fat for energy. Perhaps after all this time, the bad name placed on fats was wrong.
I think the true culprits are processed sugars and processed carbohydrates. However, that’s for another article later. On that note, we switched our flour to einkorn years ago and our family has personally seen great health results from it.
After seeing all the health benefits tallow contains, I think it is easy to say it is a healthy option.
How can you use tallow?
Well, here is a very short list of practical ways it can benefit your home:
Kitchen uses: Tallow was the original Crisco. Crisco was a terrible substitute. A HUGE benefit to cooking with tallow is that it doesn’t create free radicals when it’s cooked.
Don’t throw out the tallow you cooked with in a fried recipe. Reuse it! Just re-strain for multiple future uses!
Another great use would be in a pie crust for beef pot pie!
Do you use cast iron cookware? Tallow is great for seasoning cast iron.
Soap: A great addition to homemade soaps that will bring a moisturizing element.
Skin Care: Have you heard of whipped tallow? This is personally my favorite use of this product.
It works great as a diaper rash cream and a nourishing lotion for eczema or dry skin.
I have a wonderful lavender whipped tallow recipe that I use on my stretch marks, heels, and scar tissue – it has done wonders in these areas and my skin has never been softer!
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How to make tallow
EQUIPMENT
- Pressure Cooker (Crock pot can be used but cooking times will increase to 12-24 hours.)
- Stainless Steel Bowl
- Stainless Steel Mesh Strainer or Cheesecloth (stainless steel is best for cleanup)
INGREDIENTS
- Beef Fat – any amount, just don’t fill the instant pot more than the max level indicated. Mutton fat can be used as a substitute.
- 1 cup Water – regardless of the amount of fat you are processing. The water keeps the fat from burning to the bottom of the pot.
INSTRUCTIONS
Step 1: Dice the beef fat, then place the fat and water into the instant pot. You will manually set the instant pot for 2 hours on high pressure.* Make sure the toggle is set to “Sealing”. Once the time is up, allow the machine to depressurize naturally. This will take about 30-45 minutes.
Step 2: Using oven mittens to protect your hands from the steam, pull out the inner pot. Place a few ice cubes at the bottom of a metal bowl, then carefully pour the liquid through a fine mesh strainer into the bowl. Once all the liquid is in the bowl, place the bowl in the refrigerator for 4 hours or overnight.** After it has completely cooled, you will have a layer of hard tallow on the top and gelatin on the bottom.
Step 3: Using a butter knife, run it along the inside of the bowl and gently lift the tallow out. On the bottom of the tallow will be some impurities. Scrape them off with the butter knife and discard.
This is optional: If you are planning on using your tallow for beauty products or soap products, then a second or third purification is required. The next steps are for this process. However, if you are using the tallow for cooking, then you are done and can store it. I recommend to remelt it and pour it into a mason jar, or save it long term in the freezer for future use.
Purifying for Beauty Products
Each purification step does not have to be done in one day. As a mama to four littles, I spread them out over several days, getting it done after bedtime. Don’t feel you have to rush through all these steps and get it done in one sweep.
Step 1: After scraping off the impurities, gently remelt in a clean skillet on low heat.
Step 2: In a glass bowl filled half way with water, pour your warm tallow into the water. Give it a good stir with a whisk or fork.
Step 3: Place in the refrigerator for 4 hours or overnight. The tallow and water will separate and the impurities will fall to the bottom of the tallow.
Step 4: In the morning, or after 4 hours, the tallow will look white. Using your butter knife to pop out the tallow, flip it over and scrape off any impurities again. If there are little to none, it is ready for processing into beauty products or soap. If it has a lot of impurities, redo these steps one more time.
Step 5: It is ready to be used in your beauty, lotion, or soap product recipes.
Above is a picture of a small amount of impurities that was scraped off.
After this, I was done with the purifying process. I gently wiped off the water from the tallow and stored it in the refrigerator until I was ready to make my Lavender Whipped Tallow recipe.
NOTES
*If you don’t chop up the beef fat, double the cook time to 4 hours.
**I recommend using a bowl or a shallow pan. Getting this out of jars is more cumbersome.
Does tallow smell bad?
This is definitely objective. Personally, I really like the smell. It does have a slightly “meaty” smell to it. The smell is very mild.
If it bothers you, you can easily mask it with essential oils. I have a lovely whipped tallow recipe using lavender oil and other oils that naturally benefit your skin.
I have a really sensitive sense of smell and even with the masking of essential oils, I detect it easily. My husband doesn’t smell it at all once I added the essential oils.
How long does tallow last?
Tallow is very shelf stable and will last a long time if stored properly.
At room temperature it will last for up to 6 months.
However, in the refrigerator it can last for up to a year.
Lastly, in the freezer, it can last for years.
The more purified the tallow is, the longer it will last.
Let me know in the comments if you try this recipe!
For one believeth that he may eat all things: another, who is weak, eateth herbs. Let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not; and let not him which eateth not judge him that eateth: for God hath received him.
Romans 14:2-3
Instant Pot Tallow
Equipment
- 1 Pressure Cooker (Crock pot can be used but cooking times will increase to 12-24 hours)
- 1 Stainless Steel Bowl
- 1 Mesh Strainer or Cheesecloth (stainless steel is best for clean up)
Ingredients
- Beef Fat or mutton fat
- 1 cup Water
Instructions
- Dice the Beef Fat.
- Place the Beef Fat and 1 cup Water into the instant pot.
- Manually set the instant pot for 2 hours on high pressure.* Make sure the toggle is set to "Sealing".
- Once the time is up, allow the machine to depressurize naturally. This will take about 30-45 minutes.
- Using oven mittens to protect your hands, pull out the inner pot.
- Place a few ice cubes at the bottom of a metal bowl, then carefully pour the liquid through a fine mesh strainer, into the bowl. Once all the liquid is in the bowl, place the bowl in the refrigerator for 4 hours or overnight.**
- After it has completely cooled, you will have a layer of hard tallow on the top and gelatin on the bottom.
- Using a butter knife, run it along the inside of the bowl and gently lift the tallow out.
- On the bottom of the tallow will be some impurities. Scrape them off with the butter knife.
- This is optional: If you are planning on using your tallow for beauty products or soap products, then a second or third purification is required. The next steps are for this process. However, if you are using the tallow for kitchen cooking, then you are done and can store it. I recommend to remelt it and pour it into a wide mouth mason jar, or save it long term in the freezer for future use.
Purifying for Beauty Products
- After scraping off the impurities, gently remelt in a clean skillet on low heat.
- In a glass bowl filled half way with water, pour your warm tallow into the water. Give it a good stir with a whisk or fork.
- Place in the refrigerator for 4 hours or overnight. The tallow and water will separate and the impurities will fall to the bottom of the tallow.
- In the morning, or after 4 hours, the tallow will look white. Using your butter knife to pop out the tallow, flip it over and scrape off any impurities again. If there are little to none, it is ready for processing into beauty products or soap. If it has a lot of impurities, redo these steps one more time.
- It is ready to be used in your beauty, lotion, or soap product recipes.
Notes
Resources
- https://draxe.com/nutrition/tallow/#Nutrition_Facts
- den Hartigh L. J. (2019). Conjugated Linoleic Acid Effects on Cancer, Obesity, and Atherosclerosis: A Review of Pre-Clinical and Human Trials with Current Perspectives. Nutrients, 11(2), 370. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu11020370
- https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Choline-HealthProfessional/
Looking for more inspiration to use the whole animal? Try these other great recipes
- Lavender Whipped Tallow – An alternative to processed lotions
- Instant Pot Bone Broth
- Turkey Alfredo
- Venison Roast in the Instant Pot
I love learning more about beef tallow! Thank you for the directions on how to render the tallow, yours looks so clear and beautiful!
I am glad you found the article informative! Please let me know how your tallow turns out! If you need any help feel free to reach out!