If you have been listening closely to the lyrics of your favorite Christmas carols or paying attention to traditional holiday stories, you may have heard the word suet used. There are plenty of words in those songs and stories that are unfamiliar. But, have you ever wondered just what suet is? And what is it used for?

Suet is a hard, crumbly saturated fat found around the kidneys that comes mainly from cows but can also come from sheep. The fat is removed from the meat, clarified, chopped, and then boiled in water—which removes any impurities. When the mixture cools, the fat and water separate. The fat is the suet. Suet has a high smoke point which makes it ideal for deep frying or for use in making pastries. Though, bird enthusiasts know it works well in birdseed cakes.

Suet has a fairly bland and mild flavor with a slight meaty scent. But, there is no meat flavor when cooked. It is used mainly in traditional British foods like puddings and pasties. And, it is probably most associated with mincemeat pie. Suet provides a richness to British puddings that you just don’t get from butter. And, when used in pie crust the result is a very flaky texture that stands up well to a wet filling.

You may see instances where the words suet and tallow are used interchangeably. But in fact, they are two different things. Tallow is the rendered fat from a cow. It’s a little complicated but the easiest way to understand the difference is that suet is an ingredient used to make tallow. Tallow is also more shelf-stable.

Suet can be difficult to find on this side of the pond as it’s difficult to store. And, frankly doesn’t enjoy the same following as our British friends. You can find it online though. And, it might be worth a try if you want to give a traditional figgy pudding a go. Read more…