Pemmican - The Ultimate DIY SURVIVAL FOOD!

Pemmican has been a long-time staple of native Americans and backwoods hunters. It is the original survival food and, in my opinion, is better than any energy bar or backpacking food out there. In this video I'll show you how to make pemmican with a super simple pemmican recipe. At its most basic, pemmican is simply dried meat and rendered fat, aka tallow. When made with just meat, fat, and perhaps dried berries, it is a shelf stable survival food that will last for decades without refrigeration. If you're into food preservation, you'll want to add this to your arsenal. Today I'll be using beef tallow, dried elk meat, dried blueberries and dates, and pecans. Due to the oils and moisture in the nuts, my version won't have a super long shelf life but it'll last way longer than I need it to. I'll eat it all during the elk hunting season.
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[@DaZebraffe]

Also also: Pemmican doesn't need to be eaten like an energy bar, like you were doing. It absolutely can be, that's a perfectly valid way to consume it. But there's loads of other ways to use it, that turn it into a proper meal. Like pan-frying it, or adding some local vegetation and turning it into a stir-fry. The most common way the Native Americans used it, was to put it in some boiling water with local vegetation, to turn it into a kind of on-the-trail soup.

[@N8Dulcimer]

Saying eating it like an energy bar is a valid way to consume it is like saying eating a dry brick of ramen is a valid way to consume it lol. I first heard of incorporating berries and nuts from hikers and thought "why would you add berries to your soup base?" Pemmican is essential for primitive skills and native american skills enthusiasts because you are already going to be foraging, just by happening to pass herbs, tubers, and greens, and you're going to want to boil them anyway for sanitation. Pemmican is meant to easily dissolve in the water and make the meal highly nutritious, plus delicious. I don't know where the idea of eating them as a food bar came from, but it seems to be a modern hiker thing, considering none of the "primitive skills" books ever mention berries or nuts, yet all the "bushcraft" ones do. Pemmican is basically just nutritional fortification for the boiled vegetables you forage. When you combine an assortment of edible plants with a healthy amount of animal fat and protein, you have a very well rounded diet. It is not intended as a 'survival food' and while it is possible to live off pemmican, it was never intended to be eaten alone. It was intended to allow someone out on a trip to be able to have thorough nutrition from foraging without having to hunt any animals. The funniest part is people talking about how it doesnt taste good. No shit! Neither does a spoonful of beef stock! You're not supposed to eat it! Berries might make it tolerable, but if you prepare it in a soup it's delicious.

[@PenTheMighty]

@@N8Dulcimer Eating ramen dry is pretty popular in Asian countries. It's common for school kids to take the packet of seasoning, and add it to crushed up ramen noodles and munch of them like chips. This works well for camping when you don't have ready access to water and want to eat something with a bit of flavor.

[@N8Dulcimer]

@@PenTheMighty I used to eat it like that as a kid also. Now as an adult, I chop and boil some veggies with the seasonings, let an egg soft boil in the water, stir in the noodles, then crack the egg. Which do you reckon tastes better and which do you reckon is more nutritious? I know it's not an exact analogy with ramen but my point is that pemmican is intended as a soup base and it doesn't taste as good dry because it's not meant to be eaten dry.

[@wanderingcalamity360]

​@@N8Dulcimer The natives used to make pemmican with saskatoon berries. It's not a new thing.

[@DaZebraffe]

@@N8Dulcimer Eating it "dry" is absolutely one of the way *the Native Americans who invented it, themselves* would sometimes eat it. Just because it's not as enjoyable as it is in other forms, doesn't make it an invalid way of eating it. And if you'd bothered to read through my *entire* initial comment, rather than reacting as soon as you read "that's a perfectly valid way to consume it," you would have seen I *already addressed* the fact that using it to make soup was the most common way Native Americans used it.

[@CloudfeatherRusticWorks]

My friend uses beef tallow for making soap. We found a super efficient way of rendering the tallow... After you grind, put it in a giant pot with water. Bring to a boil, pour through cheese cloth and let cool. Everything separates and the tallow forms a solid disc on top. It keeps the tallow at a much lower overall temp, so it ends up with a much cleaner smell and doesn't get that funk that comes from crock pot rendering.

[@clayhayeshunter]

Great tip

[@NDFlyFisher]

That’s how I have always rendered fat.

[@gregkirchner1108]

Thanks for the tip ! Now you gave me a idea, "Smoked Pemican." I am a BBQ Pit Master and my style of doing brisket I put the brisket on a rack in a deep sheet pan, I save the juice for chili and other recipes. The fat solidifies in a orangish mass (because of the smoke and spices) on top. Would using some of this give the Pemican a BBQ flavor? Just curious?

[@gregkirchner1108]

@@Freedom_Half_Off I'm going to do what Clay did to remove the excess moisture. After he strained it from the crockpot he heated it up again on the stove until there were no more bubbles coming up.

[@Binjh76]

That crock pot ensutes all the water is released for longevity of the pemmican

[@GrannyTheftAuto]

Roald Amundsen used pemmican on all his expeditions, he was first to reach the geographical South Pole in December 1911 and he sailed the Northwest Passage for the first time in 1903. He used half and half of fat and meat, he added oatmeal and peas. And for the dogs he made dog pemmican with fishmeal and more fat. His description: "Pemmican tastes excellent, takes up little space and can be eaten raw, fried or boiled." Especially as provisions on a sledge expedition, it is invaluable".

[@clayhayeshunter]

good info!

[@bogsplash8612]

That's where I first read about pemmican too. Thought it was done kind of dried corned beef, which I guess it is kind of, but it's good to have seen what it really is and how it is made .

[@user-ii1iy8fz1d]

Thankyou, lovely we bit of history. ❤

[@noeldeal8087]

Sounds like the dogs got the better recipe...🐕🐶🐟🐟🙂

[@Downs-Indroam]

This is the type of information our young people should be watching. Very detailed and easy to digest , so to speak 😂 Thanks!

[@billybluerocket]

Defo,!! I'm guna make this with my nephew.

[@noeldeal8087]

I see what you did there...😎❤

[@ItsGoodintheWoods]

Fantastic demonstration! Pemican is good stuff. I have always said, "it's survival food. If you don't like it, you're not hungry enough." When you are truly hungry, just about anything tastes good

[@clayhayeshunter]

I can attest to that...

[@Daves_Not_Here_Man_76]

Ive been white man hungry before. I agree. If you're hungry, you'll eat almost anything.

[@timothylongmore7325]

My son asked me how my pemmican was. I told him if you're hungry it tastes great. He laughed. Thanks to me and his Mom he's never been "hungry". I also told him my BFF Arlo loves it. I used fat from my grass-fed highlanders which probably closer to bison fat than store bought corn fattened beef so it tasted different. I don't have the cattle anymore so probably wouldn't make it with store bought suet. I also long ago made a pemmican knock off with ground venison ,raisins, and some oat meal. It was pretty good.

[@levig233]

Hunger is the best spice ;)

[@tinksgolightly8250]

Hahahaha my grandma used to always say "hunger is the best sauce." Never a truer statmenr! I say it to my 12 yr old daughter when she doesnt like what I cook. She looks at me like im an idiot 🤣

[@jamesunderdal8976]

And 100% healthier then any type of store bought survival food for damn sure.

[@clayhayeshunter]

Truth!

[@stevenlewis6781]

So I’ve been watching all the videos on pemmican. I just made a batch from about 4 pounds of beef that I had made into jerky and vacuum sealed in the freezer. About a pound of jerky. I have some Wagu beef tallow I use for searing steaks and other things. It’s probably much spicier than regular pemmican. I’ll say this, I let my dog lick the bowl I mixed it in, and she looked at me like, “who do you need me to kill for some more “ lol.

[@clayhayeshunter]

haha

[@HellsCaretaker]

Ich hab nochn Mopped inne Muffathalle stehen

[@orangedragon4713]

Dogs and cats are naturally carnivore animals just like us humans. So its no wonder they go crazy when they get of taste of actual meat instead of the overly processed dog/cat food in the bag that is full of "Natural" ingredients and vegetables. Which are foods that Dogs and Cats would not naturally eat in the wild.

[@pepepepito623]

Clean, that pot very good!or your next recipe will be: streptococcus pemican...

[@noeldeal8087]

Wagu beef tallow... fancy. 😎🙄

[@OdegardOnline]

The key to longevity is getting all the water you can out of the tallow, meat and fruit. I generally add just 10% by weight dried fruit to the meat and then about 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of salt per pound of the dry mixture, then equal parts by weight dried mixture and rendered tallow. For my last batch I smoked the meat for an hour before I dried it and ground it up and the flavor was absolutely amazing! It's definitely the best trail food ever. Thanks for a great video

[@clayhayeshunter]

Great tips.

[@larrybulthouse455]

You Simon Kenton you!! I think the salts important as that is the cure to curing and preserving all meat.

[@OdegardOnline]

@@larrybulthouse455 actually, the original native recipes that lasted for years didn't require any salt. Rendering the tallow and completely drying the meat is all that's necessary to preserve it

[@KeithOlson]

@@clayhayeshunter I saw that you have a freeze dryer. Wouldn't picking up some liquid air to flash freeze the ingredients, then freeze drying them give you a better product in the end? I'm curious as to why you chose the food dehydrator, instead.

[@phlday01]

As far as dryness is concerned, the honey added to the experimental batch may attract and retain moisture as honey, like all sugar is hygroscopic.

[@gerrygadget]

Tip: For the berries, you can chill the blender pitcher/blades. That way the friction-generated heat doesn't happen as fast.

[@clayhayeshunter]

Good tip

[@instinctivearcher6146]

You can use meat grinder instead of blender to grind dried meat, nuts, fruit, salt, etc... The sticky berries get ground into the dried meat eliminating that issue. Add a little solid tallow in also to keep the blade and other moving parts lubricated.

[@clayhayeshunter]

Great tip

[@robertbutler8005]

Thanks for taking the time to show this old classic. Great to have on a hike or hunt. Fruit and honey look like a good add in.

[@Billytomtom18]

Hey Clay I watched your videos on making clean water next to a muddy stream, it was great in my opinion. I have been a tradesperson most of my life which often made me think out of the box. I love cooking, since I am 66 years old and my Mom was born in 1910, everything she cooks was from scratch. The food back then was much safer. I have traveled X-Country by train 3 times as a kid, I have great memories of seeing this Beautiful Country, the 3 days on a train was was like watching an amazing movie. Driving X-Country was great also, the Painted Desert is Magical. I will share your videos with certain members and friends who appreciate DIY cooking. As me and my wife lived in a rural area of upstate NY, the outdoors were all around us. During blizzard storms we had no power and we would melt snow to flush the toilet or just let it melt for drinking. A simple kerosene heater kept us safe until the Army Corps of Engineers could repair the dirt and shale road we lived on, it was originally a seasonal bungalow colony, but I converted it to a full time house, it a fun project. I have worked on both types of wells powered by a surface or jet pump or a deep well with submerged pumps etc. I think anyone who enjoys the wonderful outdoors should have a basic understanding of survival knowledge. Blenders are a basic tool for almost every kitchen, like making bread crumbs and stored safely in mason jars. Canning is a fun way to preserve many types of food as I believe you are fully aware of, having a root cellar is a great way to store canned foods in mason jars. Mason jar are affordable and last forever if you take care of them, perhaps you could do a video on preserving jams, peppers etc to keep your pantry full when you’re unable to get out to a store. Many years ago my neighbors would buy bushels of tomatoes at the end of the season, the family would save all their large soda bottles, sterilize them and make giant pots of marinara sauce and cap them with a capping press. I bet they are still available somewhere ??? Thanks Clay, I think your videos are great !!!

[@jstu8]

Thank you for sharing those great memories and great info!

[@TuskKult]

Pemmican is my go to for hunting, hiking and camping in cold weather conditions especially. Delicious once you get used to it and it makes it so much easier to hit those cold weather high calorie requirements! I put blueberries in mine too, it makes it almost like a silky sweet meat chocolate or something and I love it.

[@clayhayeshunter]

Great description!

[@FCWW87]

“Silky sweet meat chocolate.” If you ever have to utter those words, you’ve gone off the trail! Haha, I’m kidding. This stuff seems like good survival food. I’ve never been hungry enough to need it, and I’ve been hiking and camping since I was a kid (36 now.). If I ever need to pack for a long term outdoor adventure, I will absolutely consider this!

[@RovingPunster]

I'm disabled now, but i used to hike extensively back in my teens and twenties. My last trip was a 2 week excursion to the pacific northwest in Aug 1989, when my group did Raineer, St Helens, and Adams. Concentrated "grab n go" foods like pemmican are great for long strenuous excursions like that, when you NEED those calories, and want to avoid luggin around unnecessary water weight or bulk. If I could go back in time, i'd definitely have packed along a supply of bars like this.

[@silvermediastudio]

Great presentation.. preserving these ancient techniques is so important, and awesome to see you getting your boy involved with it early. Picked up the same Excalibur dehydrator last year and I'm not a kitchen gadget/appliance kinda guy but it's a game changer!

[@carrdoug99]

Just made some using cocoa butter as the fat (I noticed cb and tallow had the same melting point). Turned out really good. I also used freeze-dried raspberries and strawberries, cocoa powder, and sea salt.👍👍

[@clayhayeshunter]

Sounds great

[@bobanderson6656]

cool. what's the shelf life with the cocoa butter?

[@carrdoug99]

@bobanderson6656 supposed to be similar to tallow. I guess the cocoa flavor fades, but that's about it (never noticed cocoa butter tasting like much anyway). I'm thinking of adding rolled oats (won't last as long), honey, and chunks of dried fruit. Meat candy bars 👍👍

[@Hawk7886]

@@carrdoug99 sounds pretty interesting!

[@carrdoug99]

@clayrobinett840 From everything I've read, it has a very long shelf life. The only negative I've read in that regard is that CB loses some flavor over time.

[@monsierlemaire8282]

Best pemmican tutorial I've seen. Thanks, Clay. This is on my list of stuff to try later this year.

[@clayhayeshunter]

Have fun!

[@DaZebraffe]

Alternative way of getting the fruit dealt with: Dry it up in the dehydrator, anyway. Grind into that "gum" you mentioned. Spread this over some wax paper and put it *back in the dehydrator.* Grind some more when it comes out. If it's still gummy, *do it again.* The reason fruit goes gummy when you try to just powder it after one time in the dehydrator, is because of all the sugar. Sugar likes to hold onto moisture, so the larger the fruit particles, the more moisture it'll like to cling to. But drying them the best you can, then running them through the blender, will give you smaller particle sizes, allowing you to draw out more moisture. It may take many repetitions that keep you going until you have a more of a fruit dust than a fruit powder, but most fruits can eventually be turned into a powder rather than a gum. Note that everything said above also applies to vegetables known for being high in sugar content. Carrots, beets, sweet onions...lots of things like this, will also at least partially gummify the first time you try to grind it after drying.

[@DaZebraffe]

Also, alternative flavoring idea for your pemmican: Dry up and grind some kind of allium (onion, garlic, leek, etc.), some herbs, and various greens, and toss those in, to create a savory version.

[@Tess1061]

Ok, question: if you were to get ALL moisture out of fruit/veg, would the shelf life of the pemmican then be long again or does it still impact the shelf life to being shorter?

[@DaZebraffe]

@@Tess1061 Bear in mind that I'm no expert, so I might just be talking out of my butt here, but: I would imagine it would still have a little impact on the shelf life, owing to the fact that fruit is just more susceptible to that than meat, by nature. It would probably have a much lesser impact, though.

[@bigmambahful]

@@Tess1061Moisture is the enemy of all stored and dried foods like pemmican and jerky. Like when making biltong, the less moisture, the longer the shelf life.

[@pjsurfer25]

Thank You for showing your process for making this. I’ve been wanting to do this but really didn’t feel comfortable giving it a shot until I saw this video. You broke down every step with all your best practices plus the comment section enlightened me more with possible variations in processing the tallow to flavoring the final product. Awesome keep it up. You got a sub from me.

[@clayhayeshunter]

Good luck

[@noeldeal8087]

I subscribed too and I'm clueless when it comes to outdoor stuff!!! 😎

[@thomasesteb9589]

You are the real deal and I thank you for zero bs or hype. Stay strong live long Clay 👍

[@vangelina09]

Watching him mix that up took me back to my childhood backyard mud cuisine 😂

[@CraftinglifeintheBush33]

I literally just decided yesterday to make pemmican and bought the tallow I need. I’m using goat meat from one I raised, plus blueberries and elderberries. This video was perfect timing, thanks brother!

[@clayhayeshunter]

Good luck!!

[@4thgear759]

You can dry your blueberries right down to almost no moisture. They will blend into a dry powder. I put them in the oven on 200 and go for around 12 hours when they cool you can tell they are dry. Use wild berries as they dry quicker, and are healthier

[@annikadjurberg6762]

What about if you want to keep them whole for texture ? Does that work ?

[@4thgear759]

Yes that would be fine . Make they are totally dry as its the moisture that will cause issues. another important part is the length of time you are planning to store them. long term has to have nothing that will compromise the pemmican. Clay stated he liked using nuts in them but was using them in the near future. hope this helps @@annikadjurberg6762

[@Grateful_Grannie]

I didn’t know about the 2nd cooking of tallow to remove last of moisture. Makes sense. Fruit needs to be fully dehydrated, as well as meet. Could blend up & dry on trays at same time as meat. Honey powder would also have zero moisture. There are some amazing comments in this section. A treasure trove! Thx for doing taking time to show your process. Looks delicious!

[@douglassettler8201]

My family in the northwest are salmon fishermen. They make a version of it with salmon and berries mixed in. I’ve some in a soup and just plain. It was honestly great plain like a powdered jerky. They warned me not to eat too much because it was like it was a concentration and highly nutritious. It gave me lots of energy and it was hard not to eat too much when it tasted so good. I love it!

[@clayhayeshunter]

Very cool!

[@gordie4059]

Awesome stuff! Up here in Canada Pemmican was a staple for the Voyageurs during the fur trade era. Old school protein bar plus meal replacement!

[@clayhayeshunter]

Very cool!

[@mz4637]

What happened to canada?

[@edwardpardy7866]

​@@mz4637Trudeau fucked us all over and let the rainbow parade take over our values.......

[@guypehaim1080]

Thanks for doing this. I might try it just to see what it's like. I like the use of honey since honey never spoils and because of that I think it will act as a further preservative for the pemmican.

[@BiNumLi]

Honey and all sugar will make you thirsty. Think about that depending on where you are going and the availability of spring water.

[@bogsplash8612]

Having read a lot of stuff about the explorers of the 1700s and 1800s I was always reading about pemmican. Now I know more about what it is and how it's made. Thanks👍

[@xionix4]

I've seen other pemmican tutorials, but this one made me confident that not only can I do it, I also won't forget how. :P Thanks.

[@protectyour2a482]

Good for extended hunts and can be mixed into dehydrated foods for protein

[@ZSnuffBox]

Thank for another great video, Clay. I just recently made your original pemmican “recipe”. Pro tip: Pastry cutter to work those gummy fruit balls into meat powder. 👍🏻

[@clayhayeshunter]

Great tip!

[@pariahthistledowne3934]

Juniper Berries are an old-Fashioned addition that is really nice...i like it.

[@gmacka6333]

You have a hell of a cool kitchen. All the gadgets.

[@frankmorris7751]

Can't wait to try this, as I'm becoming more and more obsessed with food preservation! I plan to use honey that I fermented garlic and spring onion bulbs in. Honey also contains excess water and fermenting alliums releases that water along with honey's high viscosity (not sure of the chemical reaction). It will also add another layer of savory flavor. Has anyone added powdered herbs? My mind is going in so many flavor directions. 😅

[@user-xw7kq1fk8d]

How about sundried powdered mushrooms foraged and/or bought. Sundried so they manufacture a nice bioavailable vitamin D3

[@user-xw7kq1fk8d]

Wild onions. Chia seeds. Garlic mustard, an awfully destructive invasive species. Harvest as much as you can before it seeds

[@MordimersChessChannel]

Thenks for the recipe. As for the solidified fat in your jars... you can experiment with making "smalec", you can easily find the recipe in the internet. Basically you combine it with onion, spices, a bit of meat and it's a perfect as a spread on home made bread with pickled cucumbers on the top. Can eat it other way as well and add other ingredients for flavor, just it will shorten its longevity.

[@maggaman1603]

My mother used to make a ground pork dish where you serve it cold and spread it on hot bread or toast, It's called conton. The cold fat liquifies into the bread, it's delicious.

[@fretlord4201]

Very cool. It's one of those things to have in your back pocket to make you useful in a Mad Max situation.

[@briancopple4238]

Good video Clay, love learning new recipes that will keep for long periods of time!

[@clayhayeshunter]

Glad you like them!

[@Nate-sy1vf]

Clay to keep the fruit from gumming up and just a touch white flour. Worked wonders when running it in the blender

[@clayhayeshunter]

Great tip!

[@BackwardsHatNation]

Top tier content as always. Want to try my hand at pemmican this year.

[@mz4637]

why bother when you can go to mcdonalds?

[@rickgrimes47]

​@@mz4637 You ain't gonna survive mister!

[@londonbabe2467]

What a fantastic kitchen you have. It’s bigger than where I live.

[@F34R3D]

the excitement of new Clay upload , great stuff as always

[@davefarnsworth3020]

Thanks for covering the details on this. Glad you added honey, saved me from asking.👍👍

[@clayhayeshunter]

Glad it was helpful!

[@smoothvern165]

Great video! I’ve made pemmican for many years, but your video showed me easier ways to do it👍👍

[@shirleymiller5056]

Thank you for best pelican recipe to follow, I made it many moons ago and hope for a better result this time Greetings from medic Shirleygirl, who is almost carnivore, work long hours and need a back up food source in the field Look forward to more ideas! Love and light

[@waynegosson1793]

Excellent video my man. Good stuff!

[@craigjones7401]

Thanks for posting this. Just started the carnivore diet this year due to some other health challenges. Also going to start my first season of bowhunting this fall. Was wondering what I was going to do for food while I was out in the woods. This will be perfect.

[@clayhayeshunter]

Good luck

[@Hawk7886]

I wouldn't skip on multivitamins if you aren't consuming veggies, you'll wreck your shit

[@mikafoxx2717]

​@@Hawk7886What vitamins would they lack? Go on. Vitamin C doesn't seem to ever lack when not eating any carbs.

[@goyanz76]

​@Hawk7886 please explain I believe you are misinformed

[@Hawk7886]

@@mikafoxx2717 Vitamins A, B, C, K, E can all be hard to obtain if you're strictly consuming muscle meat, but may be obtained if you add organs. You can also have difficulty sourcing enough Boron, Calcium, Potassium, Copper, Magnesium, Manganese, and Lithium if you rely on purely meat-based sources. You may only need trace amounts, but it can still be difficult to do without plant-based sources. You may also have difficulty sourcing enough Polyphenols and fiber. Multivitamins are cheap and easy to take. Obviously you shouldn't take health advice from youtube and you should talk to a real, _legitimate_ doctor before starting or continuing a diet as severe as a strict carnivore diet. Just be smart about it. Humans evolved as omnivores.

[@puertoropelu2257]

So for a survival perspective or adding this to a survival cache you have, how would you recommend storage ?? Would Mylar bag with oxygen packet help this stay long for 20+ years. I’m really wanting to make essentially a stockpile of these but want to make sure it’s stored properly especially when it comes to meat etc

[@Volkswagenvanrunning]

I know this is a very late reply, but we use a chamber vacuum sealer, 02 absorbers and thick Mylar bags - the chamber sealer forms the Mylar around the pemmican bar beautifully and we can make very uniform bars. We've eaten three-year-old bars ('winter' pemmican with 50/50 bison and tallow) and they're as good as fresh. We found a freeze-dryer to be far superior for drying the meat, but the cost of a freeze-dryer is far beyond a dehydrator. There are plenty of great videos out there about rendering pharmaceutical-grade tallow as well. One note is to make sure the tallow is not too hot as you don't want to 'cook' the meat. Fine line between 'warm enough to pour without being hot' and 'starting to solidify'.

[@Toimu13]

As a kid, I got it at Philmont Scout Ranch. Cut it up and fry it with potatoes!

[@user-lf5oh7um7y]

Thank you for the recipe and teaching.

[@JpSki84]

Good stuff. Never made it with elk, but make it with grass fed beef, pecans, and fresh picked blackberries from the yard. It's also good with fresh, ripe picked muscadines.

[@clayhayeshunter]

Great idea!

[@LastIberianLynx_GameDev]

Great. Unless im missing something. Doesnt adding fruits make it lose the shelf life thing? I made pemmican from chicken and also turkey. No nuts and no fruits. It tasted great to me because i was in a ketogenic diet. So the texture was something different. Also 4 bites of it makes you feel like not eating more. Its the perfect survival food.

[@clayhayeshunter]

Nuts will decrease shelf life but I think you'll be ok with berries as long as they're dehydrated well.

[@hoperules8874]

Duuuude! This sounds like the tastiest protein bar!!!! And its so healthy!

[@willk605]

Definitely have to make some of this! Thanks for the info

[@instinctivearcher6146]

According to one historical source the tallow should be "hot enough for frying donuts" so like 350F. The final texture will be more enjoyable. I've also done the mixing in a big double boiler to keep everything hot until very well combined. If the dried meat fibers aren't totally saturated with fat the texture can be unpleasant as the tallow texture is more noticable. It should be too hot to knead by hand.

[@clayhayeshunter]

Thanks for the info

[@nathanbailey9153]

I've read just the opposite, so I'm curious what historical source states this. The sources I've read state the tallow should be cool enough to handle, so you DON'T cook the meat. John and Geri McPherson state this very clearly in their book(s), and even have a little saying that goes with it "Cooked meat kills", or something like it, if I remember correctly.

[@instinctivearcher6146]

​@@nathanbailey9153 The Fat of the Land by Vilhjalmur Stefansson compiles many primary sources from times and places where pemmican was produced in large quantities and served as a staple for months or years.

[@instinctivearcher6146]

​@@nathanbailey9153 I think there's an assumption that you have to knead the meat and tallow together but I think you're MUCH better off in every way if it's hot enough to mix by stirring with a big spoon instead.

[@nathanbailey9153]

@@instinctivearcher6146 Thank you, I'll have to take a look at that book and check out the sources. I appreciate you providing the source.

[@Jaden48108]

That's a lot of work! My favorite survival food is a PayDay candy bar. Doesn't melt and makes the grade as far as calories go. But this is valuable information. Always wondered what goes in pemmican.

[@Brndndutton]

Awesome video. Can't wait to try this out.🤟

[@splinter2804]

Love this...and appreciate all the fine details

[@patrickgreen2361]

Just found this channel. Binge watching. Very informative, entertaining. I’m a happy camper! South Louisiana.

[@clayhayeshunter]

Awesome! Thank you!

[@p0ssesst]

I like that even inside his house, it looks like he's in the woods.

[@trcass1]

this was a great video. thanks for sharing. I'm always looking for snacks/food to take out for a day of hunting. most of the time its home made jerky. Thanks for sharing your recipe.

[@devildogsbushcraft7898]

I'm so glad to see you using Elk. That's is even better than grass fed fed cows. There is only one thing you can do to make it even better. Either use the elk fat, or buy grass fed beef tallow. Which is usually more affordable than frags fed beef itself. Great job.

[@json9069]

"...delicious bar of pemmican..." said no one ever before 😅 Thanks for this recipe - can't wait to try it!

[@JohnJohnson-zz8re]

Great video. Will have to try it. Pretty time intensive. Love the fact that it will last a long time (without nuts). I usually carry Clif bars. Thanks for showing us.

[@clayhayeshunter]

Hope you enjoy

[@milesmanges]

Thank you for showing us in these dark times

[@johnd0e25]

Definitely something I need to try to make one of these days, thanks for the tips

[@clayhayeshunter]

You bet!

[@honorata1935]

Great idea, thanks for sharing. All the best.

[@Erhudreamer]

This was absolutely fascinating.

[@JuliaJulia007]

It's practical and looks like your recipe tastes good.

[@DuxLindy]

really good video with a lot of solid tips. seems obvious but i never thought to grind the fat first to make things go a little more smoothly

[@michelleahrens3359]

Thankyou for sharing your experience and knowledge I arsed anew this about the fat thanks ....good life 😊

[@johncarson3648]

Really enjoyed this Clay Cooking video!

[@frankjustis]

Thank you for passing on important knowledge!

[@craiglawrey7518]

Great video, Clay. Thank you very much!

[@vickikenton5439]

Great survival food AND a good hiking food.

[@tx.tactical3165]

Can't wait to give this a try...thanks

[@jamespike5161]

My local butcher sells Wagyu beef tallow. It’s amazing. Texture of a bar of soap when it’s solid, beautifully white, and absolutely delicious. Might have to make some bougie pemmican.

[@garrysekelli6776]

Make Erbsen-Wurst it's a survival food which doesn't spoil, uses animal fat and peas or beans, then it is rolled to a sausage shape for easy storage and battlefield consumption.

[@gregorychaney7604]

Great cooking show! Props to the camera person. Keep up the good work. Cheers from Alaska

[@clayhayeshunter]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@logans3365]

Who knew rations could make your mouth water, I want to try some of this

[@skippylippy547]

Great video. Thank you! Very valuable information.

[@alcatraz_bane]

Best video about pemmican, thank you.

[@bearskinner2601]

Awesome instructional video. Thanks!

[@rockyroad90]

Thanks. Great video; It answered most of the questions I had. Now I can make it with confidence.

[@clayhayeshunter]

Glad it was helpful!

[@jonmurph589]

Excellent demonstration 👍

[@knowledgeseeker3188]

Thank you for the great information.

[@MrMann703]

With mine I incorporated some dehydrated greens along with rolled oats to make a more balanced meal pemmican bar. I lived off of it for a few days and felt great. The next batch I make I'm going to experiment with adding moisture back into it for meat pie type recipes and try using it for soup type meals as well

[@jn7420]

Great Video!! Deer season is around the corner. Will be using Venison! :)

[@notownsavage2024]

Thanks Clay, it looks yummy!

[@andys5562]

Holy Moly, I can't believe you added MORE salt, lol. Great video, thank you.

[@wreckcreationandenginenuity]

Definitely going to make some for upcoming early muzzleloader in Colorado.

[@lemhanback9595]

Definitely going to give this a try.

[@mdsuave13]

pro tip. if you don't have a dehydrator, use a dehumidifier. Place it on baking sheets with a rack and sit it in front of the dehumidifier, it will take overnight, at least 6-10 hours. Also, if you have animals, beware, they WILL find the meat. I make jerky with this method using a coat hanger and cloths pins.

[@BiNumLi]

Really. Great idea. Would you make a box? Thinking the dehumidifier would work faster in an enclosed space.

[@JL-xn3zy]

Great stuff Clay!

[@Stan_L]

Great video! Thanks for sharing.

[@cheddar2648]

Great info here, thank you for offering it to us. I want to try this with some venison I have in cold stores.

[@tiddybearkush]

I would like to try making this. Seems like perfect to have on trail.

[@blueridgeboy7721]

Just subscribed man that's awesome I'm definitely trying this in a few weeks.

[@clayhayeshunter]

Thanks for the sub!

[@quakslikeaduck]

Thank you for icluding the tips like how to know when there's no moisture left in tallow. Haven't heard anyone mention it so I've probably been doing it wrong.

[@clayhayeshunter]

No problem

[@timothylongmore7325]

Great thing about pemmican is you don't want it until you're real hungry and then it taste great. When I've had enough I've got enough energy to finish my day.

[@eduffy4937]

Imagine how different this country would look if people adopted this daily....

[@seanacus8476]

That was so much better than the black tar chewing gum. Great vid! Great audio, great, b-roll. Nicely done.

[@clayhayeshunter]

Agreed 🤣

[@herrdave920]

Superbly helpful video, man!