On Mon, 15 Dec 1997, Kent Multer wrote:

> QUESTIONS:
>  1.  Is "tallow" the same as suet, or is this a more generic term for
> animal fat?

Tallow is the rendered fat from the suet.  The term "suet" itself
refers to a particular fat deposit around the kidneys.

>  2.  Also, what about lard?  Ray's recipe in the archive uses the words
> "lard" and "tallow" as if they are equivalent; but in another message, he
> said that lard is pork fat and will not work correctly.

That's right.  Lard is pork fat, and it has different ratios of
fatty acids compared to tallow.  For example, lard contains about
11% polyunsaturated fats, while tallow has only about 4%.
Chicken fat is about 21% polyunsaturated.  On the other hand,
lard is the winner in monounsaturated fats, at 45%, with chicken
fat just slightly less and tallow a bit further down, at about
42%.

> QUESTIONS:
>  1. What about removing moisture?  Does it settle to the bottom of the pan,
> so that it's easy to separate?  Or does it just boil or evaporate away?

It should all boil away.  When the tallow stops popping, it's
done.

>  2. Ray's book says to "render" the suet twice -- "render" apparently means
> the whole process of heat, filter, and cool.  Is twice really necessary?
> (Bob doesn't think so, and the recipe in the archive doesn't call for it.)

The point is to remove all moisture.  I personally don't see why
two renderings should be necessary, but as it was described here
on the list some time ago, the second rendering involves the
addition of a bit of water to the cooled tallow.  Then heat it
again and wait for the water to cook off.

Todd Moody
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