>Rendering ten pounds of suet was no easy task--very messy and took all
>day and into the night.  I didn't care much for the aroma either.

The trick I've found to this is to just leave it alone.  Last time I
did this I cut up about 10 lbs of suet, put it into a stock pot, set
it on the lowest setting my stove has, and then left it for 24 hours.
I then ladled out the liquid into mason jars and discarded the rest.
I didn't try to squeeze more liquid from it; it's incredibly messy to
work with.  Also, I figure suet is cheap (free last time I got it),
and even this wasteful technique produces more than I can possibly
use.

It does have a strong beef fat smell; I don't know anything you
can do about that.

>Grinding jerky into a powder is impossible with my food processor and
>only a little better with my blender.  What I got was shreds, and could
>only do it in very small batches.  The end product was a rather
>greasy-tasting, cococut cluster-textured, unchewable sort of thing.

I had that experience the first time I made it, too.  I also
found the product kinda bland, like eating greasy gravel.
Here's a few tips:

    () others on this list may disagree, but I find pemmican tastes
much
    better when heavily spiced and lightly salted.  Salt the jerky,
    not the raw meat, else you risk oversalting.  On the other hand,
    I season the raw meat, for concentrated flavors.  So far, the best
    spice combination I've come up with is chili powder, dried lime,
    cumin and oregano -- classic chili flavors.  The dried lime makes
    all the difference; you can buy dried lime at Indian grocery
stores.
    I've also tried curry spices (a few variations: tandoori, masala,
    thai curry), teriyaki (wheat-free tamari -- it isn't paleo but
    I eat it anyways), worchestshire sauce (homemade, only non-paleo
    ingredient is tamari) & burgundy wine (a classic jerky recipe),
    moroccan bbq dry rub, and ray's bbq sauce.

    () the key to getting an edible texture is to blend it a lot --
until
    it's completely powdered.  I start with ground beef, which is
easier
    to blend (also easier to mix spices into).  I press it into thin
    patties on the dehydrator, and then put them through the blender
on
    high one at a time.  This gets me to about the shredded coconut
stage.
    Then I put all the chipped jerky back into the blender and blend
    on low to medium speed while using a plunger to push the mixture
    back into the blades.  This process will often overheat my
blender,
    and has to be done in stages.  It's worth the extra work though;
    making it smooth makes it edible (IMHO).
    (BTW, I'm using a VitaMix for this).

    () if you're using suet, be sparing with it. It has a waxy taste
    that's not very appealing.  On the other hand, if you're using
    regular beef fat, you can add more of it to get a smooth creamy
    texture.  I've been using suet lately, since I finally found some,
    but I actually prefer the texture of beef fat.  Both types of fat
seem
    to keep just fine.

A good final product will still taste greasy, and dry (at least to
me).
You need to hold it in your mouth for a while to soften it.

-Bruce