Beef Tallow Day
July 13
About Beef Tallow Day
Beef Tallow Day takes place on Monday, 13 July 2026. The day celebrates beef tallow, the rendered fat traditionally used for cooking, and was created to highlight its culinary uses and its place in food history. It falls on the same date as National French Fry Day, a deliberate pairing given that tallow was once the classic fat for frying chips and fries.
How to Celebrate Beef Tallow Day
This is a food day built around getting into the kitchen, so the best way to mark it is to cook something. Here are eight ways to take part.
- Fry your chips in tallow – Swap your usual oil for beef tallow when making homemade chips or fries. The high smoke point gives a crisp exterior and a distinctive savoury flavour that vegetable oils cannot match.
- Roast your potatoes in it – A spoonful of tallow in the roasting tin produces golden, crunchy roast potatoes. Many traditional Sunday roast recipes relied on beef dripping long before vegetable oils became common.
- Sear a steak – Use a knob of tallow to sear beef in a hot pan. Cooking beef in its own rendered fat is a simple way to deepen the flavour of the meat.
- Render your own batch – Ask your butcher for beef suet or fat trimmings, then slowly melt them down at a low heat and strain the liquid. Homemade tallow keeps for months and cuts down on food waste.
- Bake a traditional pastry – Suet, the hard fat around beef kidneys, is the basis of classic British puddings and pastries. Try a suet crust for a steak and kidney pudding or a dumpling for a stew.
- Make tallow candles or soap – Tallow has a long history beyond the kitchen. Pour rendered fat into moulds with a wick for a simple candle, or use it as a base for handmade soap.
- Try a tallow-based skincare balm – Whipped tallow balms have become popular as a natural moisturiser. Many people make their own using rendered fat and a few drops of essential oil.
- Share what you make – Post photos of your tallow chips, roast potatoes, or rendering experiment online and tag friends to join in. Food days thrive on people swapping recipes and results.
What is Beef Tallow Day?
Beef Tallow Day is an annual food awareness day that celebrates beef tallow, a cooking fat made by rendering and clarifying beef fat. It was created by the Healthy Fats Coalition to raise the profile of animal fats and to encourage people to rediscover an ingredient that was once a staple in kitchens across the world. The day appeals to home cooks, chefs, butchers, and anyone interested in traditional cooking methods and food heritage. It is mainly observed in the United States, though tallow and its close relative, beef dripping, have deep roots in British and European cooking too.
When is Beef Tallow Day?
Beef Tallow Day falls on Monday, 13 July 2026. The date is fixed and the day is held on 13 July every year, chosen to coincide with National French Fry Day, a nod to tallow’s historic role as a frying fat. Because the date does not move, you can mark it on the same day each year alongside other July food celebrations.
The History of Beef Tallow Day
Beef Tallow Day was established in 2017 by the Healthy Fats Coalition, an organisation that promotes animal fats as part of a balanced diet. The Coalition set the day on 13 July so it would line up with National French Fry Day, drawing a direct line back to the era when chips and fries were cooked in beef tallow rather than vegetable oil. The aim was to challenge decades of perception that animal fats should be avoided and to remind people of tallow’s long culinary heritage.
The history of tallow itself stretches back thousands of years. Long before refined vegetable oils existed, rendered animal fat was one of the most important cooking fats available. Beef tallow and beef dripping were prized because they kept well without refrigeration, withstood high cooking temperatures, and added rich flavour to fried and roasted food. In Britain, beef dripping spread on bread was a common and filling meal for working families, and chip shops fried their chips in it as standard. Tallow also had countless uses beyond food, forming the base of candles, soap, and lubricants for centuries.
Tallow fell out of favour through the second half of the twentieth century as vegetable and seed oils became cheaper and were widely promoted. Many fast food chains and chip shops switched away from animal fats. In recent years, however, tallow has enjoyed a noticeable revival. Interest in traditional cooking, nose-to-tail eating, whole foods, and reducing reliance on heavily processed oils has brought rendered beef fat back into home kitchens and onto restaurant menus. Beef Tallow Day sits squarely within that revival, giving the ingredient a moment in the spotlight each July.
Fun Facts About Beef Tallow Day
- Beef Tallow Day shares its date, 13 July, with National French Fry Day, a pairing chosen because fries were traditionally cooked in tallow.
- Tallow has a high smoke point of roughly 200°C, which makes it well suited to frying and searing at high heat.
- Beef dripping, a close relative of tallow, was the original frying fat in many British fish and chip shops.
- At room temperature tallow is solid and white, and it can keep for months when stored properly without needing refrigeration.
- Tallow has been used for centuries to make candles and soap, not just food.
- Rendering your own tallow at home uses fat trimmings that might otherwise be thrown away, making it a low-waste ingredient.
Why Beef Tallow Day Matters
Beyond the cooking, Beef Tallow Day is about food heritage and making the most of the whole animal. Rendering fat that would otherwise be discarded supports a less wasteful approach to meat. The day also keeps a piece of traditional kitchen knowledge alive, encouraging people to try methods their grandparents would have taken for granted. If you enjoy days that revive classic cooking, you might also like National French Fry Day, which shares the same date and the same fried-food spirit.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Beef Tallow Day?
Beef Tallow Day is an annual food day celebrating beef tallow, the rendered fat used for cooking. It was created to highlight tallow’s culinary uses and its long history as a kitchen staple.
When is Beef Tallow Day in 2026?
Beef Tallow Day is on Monday, 13 July 2026. It is held on 13 July every year on a fixed date.
Why is Beef Tallow Day on the same day as National French Fry Day?
The Healthy Fats Coalition chose 13 July specifically to coincide with National French Fry Day, because chips and fries were traditionally cooked in beef tallow before vegetable oils became common.
Spread the Word
Join the celebration and share your best tallow chips, golden roast potatoes, or home-rendering results on social media with #BeefTallowDay and #BeefTallowDay2026. Tag your friends and challenge them to swap their cooking oil for tallow on 13 July.
Related Awareness Days
- National French Fry Day – Held on the very same date and the reason Beef Tallow Day exists, since fries were once fried in tallow.
- National Hot Dog Day – Another July celebration of classic comfort food, falling just two days later on 15 July.
- National Fish & Chip Day – A celebration of the British chip shop classic, traditionally fried in beef dripping.
Links
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