I’ve got a confession: I’ve wanted to make Pemmican ever since I found the recipe for it in The Lost Ways.
Invented by the natives of North America, pemmican was used by Indian scouts as well as early western explorers. These people spent a great deal of time on the go and depended on having portable, high-energy, highly nutritious, and filling foods that would last for long periods of time.
My friend Alan had mentioned on other occasions that he, like me, wanted to enhance his food reserves with this nutritious food. So, last weekend I cancelled all my awesome plans of staying at home and watching TV, in order to surprise him by showing up with the necessary ingredients to make a DIY pemmican video.
I grabbed my camera and headed out the door. On my way, I stopped at a local supermarket and purchased what we’d need to make a batch of pemmican. It’s super simple; here’s all you need:
- 6 lbs. Beef
- 2 lbs. Rendered Beef Tallow
- 3 oz. Blueberries
When I arrived, Alan was pretty excited about the idea. We decided that he’d do all of the talking and I’d do the filming. So here it is:
In addition to being nutritious enough to be a stand-alone survival food, you may be surprised to learn that pemmican doesn’t taste bad, either. In fact, with time, it will grow on you.
I hope you enjoyed the video and that it will inspire you to try making pemmican yourself. And remember that many other survival secrets of our ancestors are still to be discovered if you get The Lost Ways book! Click the image below for more!
Gonna give it a try… thank for sharin’
Before I go any farther, what store does one go to for rendered beef tallow please???? How many people know what tallow is???? Blue berries, are those frozen, fresh or what??
When he is heating the fat on the stove he is “rendering ” it. You can use warm lard if you do not wish to render fat. You pour into your dried meat and fruit mixture just until it sticks together.. You can put your dried meat in a pillow case and beat with a hammer. Same with the dried fruit if you feel you must. I find chopping easier. You don’t need food processors and fancy equipment to do this. You can use dried raisins, cranberries or what ever berry you want. You can add a sweeter if you wish. I like raw local honey if I am going to add it. I keep some in my truck to give to folks in need on the street in winter and I have used the unsweetened kind to cook with when I lived without refrigeration. I would heat it up strain off the fat to use in baking or what ever and make stews, soups, meat pies etc with the “degreased” meat and berries. If you dry your meat with hickory or mesquite you can get a smokey flavor to the Wasna / Pemmican as well if you want.
What is the purpose of the berries? I’m new at this prepper business . so I am still learning. What is the best way to store this?
that bunch of blueberries looked fresh to me. For you have to dry them.
You could go to your local butcher. Fresh blueberries would be good, but frozen would do.
I made it out of buffalo, deer, and goat with beef tallow. I have used blue berries (doesn’t care if fresh or frozen), strawberries, cherries, bing cherries and raspberries. Have that with my 20 year old sourdough flour.
The message was way too long. Just wanted to know the price of the book. Would probably get more sales if you cut all the talking and got down to brass tacks.
Giant scam
I am currently making my first batch right now. I got the book, and I am going the none berry route since it will last longer that way. also I am using lard instead of rendering the tallow my self. as long as it is 100% animal with no plant oils added to it, it should work fine. took me a wile to find this. Crisco is decently out of the question for using. latter down the road I will speak to the local butchers about getting some fat to render the tallow for future projects, including making soap.
You MUST use beef tallow the fat from around the kidneys, not the muscle fat, and not pig lard becauese if it is not tallow fat ( from around the kidney fat) it will not last long and go rancid , …..makemitnthe way theyndid back in the 18th centry stop doing things ur way, dont add or take away , dont put spices or nuts, …
I wonder if I could add Ascorbic Acid( Vitamin C Powder) to the mixture, adding health Benefits and without Refrigeration??