This post contains content that is purely from my own independent research, experiences and personal opinion. I am not a doctor, and you should always consult a physician regarding any health concerns.
Have you heard of Beef Tallow yet? Well, it is definitely the new thing from lotions to cooking. I personally have switched some everyday items in our house to beef tallow. I first heard of tallow from my sister-in-law and have been hooked ever since.
What is Beef Tallow?
Tallow is fat from animals that has been rendered into a texture similar to shortening. Rendering is when the fat is cooked down and strained to remove anything other than fat so you can have a pure clean tallow. There are a number of different health benefits to using tallow. It contains different vitamins including vitamin A,D,K and E. It has anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties.
1st Item: Lotion
The first thing I started using tallow for was lotion. I have sensitive skin and notice the older I get the more I react to different lotions, make-up (that’s a whole other blog), skin care products and pretty much anything you use on your skin. So, I decided to get back to the basics. I mean people used to use fat for EVERYTHING back in the day.
Beef Tallow is great for a lotion because it is naturally SPF 4. It also makes your skin shimmery. Every time I use this on my legs in the summer, I get comments that my legs look great and am asked what I use. By the way, I love this on my legs in the summer because I don’t get the dry knees and if I’m in the water my skin doesn’t get dried out. This lotion is also great if you go barefoot a lot. It does wonders on cracked dry feet! I literally use this lotion Head to Toe, yes even my face (every night before bed).
General Recipe
- 1/4 Cup Beef Tallow
- 1 – 2 Tbsp Oil (olive oil, coconut oil) this just makes it less thick
- 45 drops Essential Oil (this is optional and you can use any oil scent you prefer)
My Recipe
- 1 Cup Beef Tallow
- 45 -60 drops Frankincense Essential Oil (you can use more drops for the ratio,180 for a full cup, but I don’t like it too strong)
- I use Frankincense Essential Oil because it has great benefits for your skin. The smell isn’t for everyone (my husband particularly doesn’t care for it)
- Also, I don’t add the olive oil to my lotion anymore. I find it makes lotion greasier (which tallow is fat and a little already goes a long way). I also like it thicker.
This is the beef tallow I use Stellar – Beef Tallow
2nd Item: Butter/Shortening Substitute for cooking
The beef tallow I use is food grade. After I am done making some lotion, I keep it in the kitchen cupboard ready to use in my recipes.
I don’t use beef tallow in ALL my cooking, I mean I do love me some Butter. Here is a list of the things I do use beef tallow in.
- Homemade Biscuits
- Homemade Pie Crust
- Homemade Bread (in my bread machine)
For the biscuits and pie crust I measure out how much butter or shortening the recipe calls for and use the same amount of tallow. I place it in the freezer while I continue getting all my ingredients and workspace set up. The tallow seems to stay colder longer that butter, therefore, it stays crumblier when cutting it into the flour mix. So, the crust and biscuits turn out nice and flakey.
This is the beef tallow I use is Stellar – Beef Tallow
3rd Item: Boot Conditioner
Yes, I said it. We use beef tallow for boot conditioner in our house. We have a lot of cowboy boots in our home, and it works amazing. Not only does it shine them up SUPER nice, but it also helps to keep it protected from water. Note to self: Make sure when your kids use it to condition their boots that they don’t double dip straight out of the container! A couple times I have gone to use my tallow and I opened it to find a bunch of dirt in it! Haha!
(I do also use tallow to condition our black stone and any cast iron cook ware)
Here is a link for the beef tallow that I use Stellar – Beef Tallow
While these are the 3 Things Beef tallow is great for there are many other uses for this up-and-coming product (that has been around for ages).
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