Suet can be used to fry foods.
Sebo is a term in our language that comes from the Latin word sebum . The concept refers to the raw fat obtained from herbivorous feeding animals and which, once melted, has various uses.
Tallow can be found in cows , lambs , sheep or oxen . It is generally the hard fat that is located around the kidneys and on the back of the animal .
Characteristics of sebum
At room temperature, tallow is solid: however, its melting point is low, since it is between 45º and 50ºC . In this way, casting is very simple.
Raw suet should be kept refrigerated so it can be preserved. On the other hand, industrial tallow, already processed, can be stored without refrigeration when vacuum packed.
It is important to note that, sometimes, the notion of tallow is applied to other fatty substances , whether obtained from different animals or vegetables. With tallow you can make candles , produce soaps , make lubricants or even prepare bird food .
Soap is made with tallow.
Benefits of its use in cosmetics
It is necessary to make it clear that, in recent years, there has been a notable increase in the demand for sebum when it comes to undertaking different beauty treatments and even to shape cosmetics of various kinds. And it is considered that this product offers a long list of aesthetic benefits, among which the following stand out:
- Makes hair look shiny.
- It helps to make blemishes disappear from the face and even eliminates unsightly pimples.
- In the same way, it is considered to be a great ally when it comes to reducing wrinkles to a minimum.
- It is also a very appropriate element to take care of your hands. In this specific case, we can determine that sebum serves to stop having dryness problems and even to eliminate cracks.
Tallow in gastronomy
Tallow also allows the development of various gastronomic preparations. This ingredient is part of several typical recipes of British cuisine , such as haggis , mincemeat , dumpling and Christmas pudding .
In some cases, suet is used to fry foods . A famous American fast food chain used suet for years to prepare its French fries (or french fries ), combining it with a little oil .
It should be noted that excessive fat consumption can cause cardiovascular disorders in humans since these substances tend to block the arteries.
A colloquial expression
We cannot forget that the term in question is also used colloquially. Specifically, it is used as part of the expression “ball of tallow”, which is used to insult a person who has a few extra kilos.
We can also highlight the existence of a story that is precisely titled: “Ball of suet” . It was written by the French author Guy de Maupassant ( 1850 – 1893 ) and thanks to it he achieved great success.
The story was published in 1880 , it takes as its setting the occupation of France in 1870 as a consequence of the Franco-Prussian War and its protagonist is a woman “with a happy life” named Elizabeth Rousset , but nicknamed after the title of the story.