Bios Beef Frying Tallow

Beef tallow has a high smoke point and holds heat evenly, which makes it a phenomenal option for frying oil! Rendering your own beef tallow at home is super easy--and much cheaper than buying it at the store!

For frying tallow, only one simple rendering is required. If you want to obtain a purer tallow to use for baking (in place of shortening) or in skincare products, there's a little more to the process. For now, we'll introduce you the simpler process of rendering frying tallow. All you'll need is:

• Bios Beef fat
• A sharp knife and cutting board
• A large spoon
• A crock pot or roaster pan and oven
• A mesh strainer bag (We like this one amazon.com/dp/B00S2B1YGI)
• Jars to store your finished tallow in

All the prep work that's required is to remove the fat from its package and trim away any excess sinew. You can leave your beef fat frozen or let it thaw before cutting into it. Frozen fat is far less messy to deal with, but it will be harder to get all the sinew trimmed off. I find it easier to cube up the fat chunks into approx. 1-inch pieces, but this step is not required; it will just take longer to render down if you choose to keep the fat chunks intact. You also do not have to trim sinew, but it will make the straining process at the end easier if it is removed.

Once your fat is prepared, you'll transfer it over to your crock pot or roaster pan. If rendering in the crock pot, you'll render on low for a minimum of 4 hours, stirring about every hour. If rendering in the over, I like to turn my oven as low was it will go (250* F) and render it for 4-6 hours, stirring about every hour. It's important to ensure that the tallow is not burning, and stirring helps to keep it from doing so. If it does appear to be singeing, reduce the heat. As the fat renders down, cracklins will be left; this is normal, and you'll strain them out later. You'll know your tallow is done rendering when there is no white left on the cracklins and they look crispy (but not over done). The oil in your pan should be a yellow gold in color but clear enough to see through.

When the tallow is done rendering, allow it to cool enough that it won't burn you before straining. I like to put my strainer bag over a funnel and funnel the tallow right into storage jars. You'll need to squeeze the strainer bag to make sure you get all the oil through. As the tallow cools, it will harden to a shortening consistency and turn a creamy white. Jars will seal themselves as the tallow cools. Opened jars should be stored in the fridge. Use the tallow as fry oil for chicken fried steaks with Bios Ranch cube steak, breakfast hash, or any other recipe that calls for frying oil!