EAT MOAR FAT! I'm finally GETTING it. page 89

[NourishedEm]

That's a sensible attitude.

My next culinary experiment in the world of high fat is in process, Pemmican made from venison and rendered bone marrow. Has anyone tried rendering the marrow? Does it melt well? I know the fat left in the pan after roasting bones is a wonderfully clear pure tasting fat that works really well for cooking.

So the venison is in the dehydrator and bones are defrosting. I will report back how it goes.

I am trying to clear some space in my freezer for my lamb which I will pick up the first Saturday of October. Venison and bones were taking up too much room. Pemmican doesn't need refrigeration.

I have rendered beef marrow before, it's a beautiful fat to use, similar to tallow but softer, due no doubt to the higher concentration of monounsaturates in bone marrow. You may need to keep your pemmican in the fridge, depending on how soft your finished product is.

[sbhikes]

I've only made pemmican with beef tallow which I purchased from US Wellness meats. I dried my meat as much as possible and used my ordinary glass blender to grind it, doing so in small batches. I did not put salt in it. I did not like the taste without salt. So I melted it all back up and added more tallow and salt. It still wasn't salty enough for me. I would add even more next time. Also, the meat was crunchy which I did not like. I let it sit unrefrigerated for several months and that softened it up a little better, let the fat penetrate a little better into the meat.

I really liked using the pemmican on a backpacking trip melted into a pot of home-dehydrated sweet potatoes and other veggies. I liked it so much, I thought perhaps the beef is not necessary and maybe I could just bring hockey pucks of beef tallow with shredded coconut, and separately bring other meats, such as dehydrated cooked pork tenderloin. Then I could really make some tasty beef tallow coconut curry dishes on my next trip. I licked the spoons from making the coconut pemmican and it was pretty good, actually. I keep meaning to see if I can eat a whole hockey puck of coconut pemmican by itself.

[seaweed]

coconut pemmican

that would just be dessicated coconut in tallow? i have a love of biltong as well but it is very hard to get here. other than high end snack food for big $s. so that is something else i need to work out how to make as you can just take a hunk of that tramping.

[Paleobird]

This guy seems to have "written the book" on pemmican making.

http://www.traditionaltx.us/images/PEMMICAN.pdf

I'm going by his recommendations for drying the meat except doing it in a dehydrator (less messy). But he is very insistent about doing it at a lower temperature so as to DRY the meat not COOK it. He says the taste, texture, and nutrition are all better if it is just dried.

I'm roasting the bones so I can extract the marrow. Then he says you can either do the stove top rendering method which requires a lot of stirring, or just put it in a baking dish in the oven for about a day on a low heat. That sounds easier.

Some pemmican purists don't like to add spices but I have every intention of spicing these up. Not sure with what yet but I'll work that out.

[Leida]

I have made yet another attempt at de-baconizing our pork order! I have been seeing Pork Belly on food TV for 2 days in a row, and, boy, I think I can cook it even if I don't cure it into Russian salo (frozen bacon made with just salt, spice and garlic). Russian, or Chinese, I am keeping fingers crossed to win against the wily butchers and farmers who keep curing our meat! Kindda funny when everyone is panicking about the bacon shortage.

I hit amazing 78% from fat yesterday. Alas, I also hit almost 1700 calories, so the weight is still holding. I think though, if I get maintenance this week, it is actually a good thing. But, will try fat fast to cheescake baking time, hoping to keep calories under 1,300 today. Only have time for walking, no gym.

Oh, in GREAT news about gym - no exaggerated soreness today, pretty pleased. Maybe excess calories helped?

[solstice]

thanks for that link on pemmican. I have never tried this...we have oven dried venison jerky before. I dont even know what pemmican is...but it sounds right up my alley! Also, rendered venison bones scare me...are they NOT gamey like venison fat? We always trim off the venison fat because it doesnt taste very good IMO...however, perhaps the marrow is different? Deer season opens this weekend...we need to restock!

[Lawyerchick12]

This guy seems to have "written the book" on pemmican making.

http://www.traditionaltx.us/images/PEMMICAN.pdf

I'm going by his recommendations for drying the meat except doing it in a dehydrator (less messy). But he is very insistent about doing it at a lower temperature so as to DRY the meat not COOK it. He says the taste, texture, and nutrition are all better if it is just dried.

I'm roasting the bones so I can extract the marrow. Then he says you can either do the stove top rendering method which requires a lot of stirring, or just put it in a baking dish in the oven for about a day on a low heat. That sounds easier.

Some pemmican purists don't like to add spices but I have every intention of spicing these up. Not sure with what yet but I'll work that out.

thanks PB! I never really understood what pemmican even was...this was a good little read.

[sbhikes]

The low temp drying is probably similar to how much better a steak is when you cook it super low temp in the oven and then eat it super rare.

Yeah, coconut pemmican was just melted tallow mixed with shredded dried coconut. The tallow barely pooled into a liquid if I left an indentation in the melted mixture. Otherwise the consistency was fairly dry. I might hate it, but I thought it was worth a shot. I thought the coconut would sort of hold it all together on backpack trips. Perhaps I should just bring tallow all by itself in a well-sealed container.

[kimberley]

If you are one of the lucky ones who does see the pounds melt off all the way to perfect weight without hardly having to try hard, then you are lucky. If you aren't, then you don't have to beat yourself up wondering what on earth you are doing wrong, why you aren't having the success others are, why are you being so perfect and it's still not working and all that stuff. That's just the way it is for a lot of people. Those people tend to slink off the discussion forums and quit their diets and don't tend to write about their experiences, hence a lot of people will wonder what's wrong with them when actually nothing is wrong. Or worse, like that Griff guy, they get attacked on forums and driven away because the success they had wasn't "good enough" for everybody else.

Weight loss is very very slow for the majority of people. If it's slow for you, you are NORMAL, not damaged, defective or doing it wrong. Just keep going, keep yourself focused on what has been successful, get outside help if you suspect a real metabolic problem and basically stay the course. That was the main point.

Thank you! It is so very frustrating to know you are doing everything right but are not seeing results. I actually had a doctor accuse me once of eating more calories than I reported. I DO weigh and measure and count everything I consume and have done so for years! Once upon a time I was a runner--marathon, half-marathons, lots of weekly miles and weight-training, but I certainly never had the "runner's body" that most people assume all runners have. Since hitting menopause 2 years ago, I have had a helluva time controlling my weight in spite of all my efforts. I have so many days when I just want to give up trying, but I won't allow myself to do that.

So thank you for saying I am NORMAL and not damaged, defective, or doing it wrong!

[seaweed]

Also, rendered venison bones scare me...are they NOT gamey like venison fat? We always trim off the venison fat because it doesnt taste very good

usually the fat is off the lumps of deer i get given. i got some on the last one and rendered it and it was very nice. i dont find venison gamey tho so that could be it. i have rendered lard off wild hogs too. only young mild tasting ones but it still was white.

Yeah, coconut pemmican was just melted tallow mixed with shredded dried coconut

do you know if it is beef or sheep tallow?

finally feeling good this morning. off to the gym so a good test. got a flask of pork broth for a post workout meal. i think i have nutted it out that it was eating too many calories to prevent cravings for the wrong things wearing me out lol