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A lot of people I've spoken with basically end up trashing the fat of their kills after butchering. I want to throw out there that rendering animal fat is about as easy as making soup/stock and it keeps a LONG time without refrigeration. I make soap as a hobby, and it's great for that (superior to all vegetable based soaps IMO), but it can also be used for a ton of other things. Candles, food source, cooking oil, gun grease in a pinch, salves/lotions/shaving cream, a LOT of other things and supposed to have other sort of holistic benefits when it's from a wild animal. Preppers probably know a lot more about that stuff than I do.
There's a ton of information about how to DIY render animal fat online to anyone that's curious.
And if anyone does do this already or knows anyone who does in Oregon, it would be great if you'd shoot me a message. Would be willing to buy with cash or can trade with soap after I make it.
If this belongs in the classifieds section I apologize but I figured a lot more people would see it here and could get some ideas on using it themselves too.
 
I started to render some from a cow years ago. That was a logistical nightmare.
 
Well if you had posted this a few months ago I could have given you a healthy supply, maybe next season. Not sure if you can sell it per regulations/law but I wouldn't anyway cause it goes to waste otherwise.
 
I rendered some bear fat one time to put on my shoes. I kept it in a mason jar. It soured within a year. Maybe I did it wrong.
I think bear fat is more along the lines of lard than tallow. And lard doesn't keep as long. A year sounds about right on a shelf. If you want it to keep longer, freezing should do it.
 
I've rendered both bear and deer fat....
( Use the grease and tallow for patch lube and a period correct rust preventive )
Its best done outside ...and a lot of work.
Andy

Did you dry or wet render? I've always used a large electric crock pot or two (can find them at thrift stores for a few bucks if needed) and it's a pretty small amount of work after you get the hang of it.
Make sure all the meat is separated from the fat, freeze it, shred in a food processor. Cook on low in crock pot, stir about every half hour. After a few hours you'll see cracklings rise to the top and the fat should look kinda like thick lemonade. Strain CAREFULLY (hot fat burns so big gloves that can handle heat and a thick apron type deal is good) into a fine mesh strainer lined with cheese cloth over a container. I then pour that in mason jars (seal the jars in a hot water bath if you want).
Cracklings can be fried after you separate them and used basically as bacon bits. Good way to get kids to eat green veggies.
 
I once put a good sized cooked piece of deer fat from one of my hunts attached to a piece of meat in my mouth and started to chew it. I was hoping it would be like marbled beef. Biggest mistake ever. I can't imagine using it for cooking oil or soap. Taste was about how their scent glands smell. I am pretty aggressive now about trimming as much fat off the carcass as possible.
 
I once put a good sized cooked piece of deer fat from one of my hunts attached to a piece of meat in my mouth and started to chew it. I was hoping it would be like marbled beef. Biggest mistake ever. I can't imagine using it for cooking oil or soap. Taste was about how their scent glands smell. I am pretty aggressive now about trimming as much fat off the carcass as possible.

Venison fat smells/tastes pretty foul before and during rendering. By the end of the soap making process, it fortunately doesn't retain that scent at all and makes probably some of the best soap you've ever used if made well.
 
Oh, and pro tip to follow up on that point, some of the more gamey fats like deer are best rendered outdoors or in some sort of shed/barn where there's a lot of ventilation. I do it on my back porch. Crock pots with an extension cord make it easy.
 
Good to know, thanks. I age my kills and process my own meat. My wife has even made soup stock from deer bones which turns out awesome. I may have a use for all that deer fat, now...but maybe after I move to a property further from neighbors.
 
I use to in my younger years, Deer fat usually gets a bum rap because It is heavily influenced by what it eats. Also, the fat (tallow) around the organ meats is a throw out if wanting to cook with it (for us). If you improperly hang it too warm will start the rancid process and dramatically increase the "gamey" aspect. Rendered cooking fat done very soon from Deer who feed primarily on good grass and grains and not those from the desert will produce very acceptable cooking fat.

That said, I'm not fond of it for cooking other than biscuits and simple breads so no longer keep it.


Bear fat is different, and delicious for nearly all frying. Diet applies to a lesser extent than deer, along with freshness and handling which also still apply. Old age will also encumber it with flavors not always pleasing.
Unfortunately for me, I haven't killed a bear in some time. Also, while my wife likes bear meat and things cooked in its fat, she doesn't like me cooking it in the house as it leaves a sent lingering in the walls she doesn't like. Outdoors, the barbecue, and the trailer house are fair game though and I have no problem with that. We did the soap thing, but we found better things to do.

For cooking though; instead of the effort of rendering the whole bear, Consider putting small chunks of bear fat in freezer zip bags or a vacuum sealer and freezing. (that's what we do /did) just pull out a small chunk and let it render itself on a low/ moderate heat while preparing whatever your frying. Keep it moving so it don't stick. heat to the sizzle the water out and render but not splatter. Experiments will show how big the freezer chunk size should be for your frying needs. When running thin we add butter or other oil to "stretch" but still have the flavor.
 
My wife used to have a hippy chick friend who made her own soap...Even old Ivory soap is better than what she concocted, but then she was the 'mother earth' type and thought she was 'saving the planet'.
 
I have rendered lamb/mutton and beef fat and used to make soap and black powder lube. For making soap, the small "bar ends" of Ivory and Dial can be added to the mix which adds a bit of aroma, but not necessary for soap-making. You will probably need to access some lye for soap.
Sheep and beef tallow can be used for lubing your balls and candle-making. Pure tallow candles tend to be runny and have a distinct odor. I did several pours of sheep tallow and beeswax, which worked fairly well but was expensive due to $$$ of beeswax. Addition of Stearic Acid will make your candle harder and easier to release from molds. Candles can be dipped (slow method but best for tapers) or cast..
A certain chain whose name rhymes with "sobby bobby" has everything you might need. Good idea to do outside or in an outbuilding due to possible fire hazard! Not to mention the logistical issues in using the Old Woman's kitchen...;)
 
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Good source of glycerin for your "experiments"! Read jules verne's " mysterious island". Most modern explosives use some sort of material rendered from "unclean" animals. Say goodbye to paradise mustafa.
 
My wife used to have a hippy chick friend who made her own soap...Even old Ivory soap is better than what she concocted, but then she was the 'mother earth' type and thought she was 'saving the planet'.
She must have been an awful soap maker because even pulling the first soap recipe that pops up on google and stumbling your way through it will make pretty nice soap.
 

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