Deer Fat Is Like Wax! (can it be eaten?)

[HowToBe]

We received some deer meat recently; some rib cuts, a roast (with a single bone through it), and some ground meat. I cooked up the rib cuts and the meat was good (I haven't asked yet what the others thought). Here's the thing that's got me curious; deer fat obviously has a high melting point - higher than beef fat - that makes it difficult to eat. It does not liquefy no matter how long I hold it in my mouth, or even if I chew it. It only melts just enough stick to the top of my mouth, and then I have to scrape it off.

So I did a search to determine if there were any people who eat this stuff, and found nothing. I was thinking that it could be used to make some very solid, shelf stable pemmican that might not melt even on a hot day. However, is the stuff even digestible? If so, it could be a good survival food even if hard to swallow. But because of its consistency you would basically end up swallowing it in lumps...

For your entertainment; My bowl of broth is cold, so I've been skimming the fat off the top, chewing it (it reminds me of beeswax), then sticking balls of it to the edge of my bowl. When I come to a small piece of bone, I stick it in one of the tallow balls to keep it out of my way. ;D :P

 

[Meager1]

Yes it can be eaten. Save the solid pieces you have, in a zip lock bag and keep them in the freezer, they`ll last a long time. When your making soup drop in a piece or two.

Or use tiny pieces as chap stick for your lips or to moisturize your face, hands etc, since it`s the best thing for your skin you`ll ever find.

Don`t throw it away! I save all I can get and use every bit of it.

 

[curious_richard]

Here's the thing that's got me curious; deer fat obviously has a high melting point ...

I am curious. Your deer had fat? I have had deer and antelope, and have seen NO fat at all. None. Maybe your deer had a very easy life.

So I did a search to determine if there were any people who eat this stuff, and found nothing.

Maybe this deer fat is very unusual. When I cook deer or antelope, I add a lot of fat, usually bacon.

I was thinking that it could be used to make some very solid, shelf stable pemmican that might not melt even on a hot day. However, is the stuff even digestible?

I am sure it is digestible and healthy. I think your idea of pemmican is good, if you want to use that fat for preservation. I am still surprised that you found fat in your deer meat...

 

[HowToBe]

curious_richard: Not very much fat at all. But we cooked it in the crock pot (slow-cooker) with water, so the little fat there was floated to the surface. By appearances, this meat is indeed very lean as you would expect.

Since it appears that deer fat is not popular for food purposes, it might be possible to buy it reasonably - something I'll look into.