I have quite a bit of fat cut from a brisket I smoked this weekend.
I have never used my sous vide to render fat but I was considering it.
I searched online a bit but, I wanted to check here as well.

Has anyone here used your sous vide to render beef fat?

Any tips?

Why would you want to do this with a boil-n-bag?

Render it on the pit, you get a lot better end product. Not everything needs to be sous vide cooked.

I was going to use it for baking and other cooking. I thought I might be able to throw a bag in the water before I leave for work and strain it and put it away when I get home. I'm not in a hurry. Just thought I'd give it a try and see if I like the results.

I have seen people put it in a cast iron and stick it in the oven then strain it when they are done. Seems to work fine.

Thank you all for you responses. To be clear, I have rendered fat before in the ways you are describing. I want to know if anyone has rendered fat using the sous vide and if you would mind sharing what you may have learned from the experience.

HTownAg98 said:

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You can do it sous vide if you're wanting it to be a "set it and forget it" situation. You're still going to have to boil off the water when it is done.

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Or stick it in the fridge, and pull the solidified fat off.

I used a crockpot to render bear lard a couple of years ago. Was super easy, and I'd personally do that instead of SV. I really don't like SV at high temps for long times like would be required to render tallow/lard.

I've tried using SV to do this when rendering large amounts of fat from a butchered steer where I had them give me all of the fat, thus was looking for the most efficient method. SV even at 205 didn't work worth a darn, but may have been improved if I had ground it up first. I still had to use a second method after removing the heated up bag of fat.

The best thing that worked for me was to use the aforementioned step of running it through a grinder and then put into a roaster pan (crock pot if just from a single brisket), and leave on low for several hours. It must be stated that the crock pot portion needs to be done outside or you will smell up your entire house! Once the fat has been rendered, simply strain the solids out and you'll have the best medium for frying potatoes I've ever used!

Another maybe unrelated question on beef fat...

I just realized that I did not freeze a huge container of beef fat that I had after making short ribs for 18 people. It has been in my fridge since last week of December.

Anybody know how long it will last in the fridge before I need to toss it?

Just smell it, if it's rancid you'll know. I keep bacon fat in the fridge perpetually, use what I need, refill when I've got more and I've never had any issues.

schmellba99 said:

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Why would you want to do this with a boil-n-bag?

Render it on the pit, you get a lot better end product. Not everything needs to be sous vide cooked.

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This. I've started running through a grinder and then putting in a foil pan and rendering it when I smoke briskets. I put some on the briskets when I wrap in paper, and then pour some on the meat before I slice as well. Good stuff, at least taste wise. Not healthy!

I trimmed a brisket and put the fat in a dutch oven on the stove top, low simmer for 4-5 hours. It was amazing. I put it in a mason jar and used it to add a little season to things I'd pan-sear.

To the other posters question: I was also concerned about how long it would last. It was in the back of my fridge for a LONG time. It never smelled bad or seemed to turn, but my wife eventually had me throw it out after 6 months+.

Did a quick search online and it looks like tallow keeps for quite a while.

Storage locations for Beef Tallow
Storing tallow is relatively simple because it is a shelf stable cooking fat. Tallow can be stored in a:

• Pantry Tallow stored at room temperature has a shelf life of up to 12 months.
• Refrigerator Tallow kept in a fridge has a shelf life of 12 to 18 months.
• Freezer Frozen tallow can be kept in a freezer for over 24 months.

I pressure cook my brisket fat then throw it in throw the liquid in the fridge to solidify and make tortillas with the fat