Zany_in_CO
Saponifier
TIP: When my soap starts to seize up, I set the timer and walk away for 5 minutes. When I return, the batch is going into gel, it's very warm and easy to stir (for one full minute) and pour into the mold.
What soapy thing have you done today?
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Thanks, I forgot that tip! I was planning a multi color pull through design with a new recipe (higher soy wax percentage) and a new EO blend (getting overconfident...) but forgot about ylang ylang accelerating. I managed to get most of the soap into a mold, but one of the splits got hard immediately and I just pushed it aside and forgot about it. It was such a great idea (in my head and IMHO). I was going to call it Persian Market, or something like that. I'm saving it for confetti soap!TIP: When my soap starts to seize up, I set the timer and walk away for 5 minutes. When I return, the batch is going into gel, it's very warm and easy to stir (for one full minute) and pour into the mold.
Zany_in_CO
Saponifier
Ladka
Well-Known Member
I ordered 2 kg of beef tallow at my butcher's. Now that the rules for lockdown have been released a bit I can cross the boundaries between municipalities territory and go buy it.
And I learned something new: like there are two types of pig lard there are also two types of tallow: leaf tallow from the visceral fat and the hard fat from the back of the animal. He's going to provide the hard fat.
I'm after a recipe for a soap with good logevity for my five grandsons. I will also try to increase bubbling.
And I learned something new: like there are two types of pig lard there are also two types of tallow: leaf tallow from the visceral fat and the hard fat from the back of the animal. He's going to provide the hard fat.
I'm after a recipe for a soap with good logevity for my five grandsons. I will also try to increase bubbling.
I just ordered my soap cutter too! Thanks a bunch,
rdc1978
Well-Known Member
Hooray! Cutter buddies!
I collected the fat from some very chubby chickens the neighbor gave me for stewing, cleaned it and made my first chicken fat soap. The fat was very yellow and the uncolored batter in the bowl looks even yellower due to the honey and maybe the goat milk I added. The green batter is what happened when I added some leftover indigo dispersed in oil. Isn't that a pretty color!? I don't expect it to stay green, but tomorrow will tell.
Ladka
Well-Known Member
Indigo is not supposed to fade so if chicken fat looses its yellow you may get a more blue soap. Will be interesting to follow - please take photos and post your observations.
How much chicken fat did you use? I used about a third and added almost two thirds of beef tallow for better hardness and longevity.
I expect to be able to get more chicken fat and am collecting more info on its properties in soap.
I've got the oils and lye ready for 6 batches of soap after work today. Decided I needed to get back on the horse and get my stock back up since I'm almost out of soap....yikes....never said that in 9 or more years now.
My recipe: chicken fat 40%, beef tallow 25%, CO 20%, OO 10%, grapeseed oil 5%; which gave me stearic + palmitic 30%, oleic 34%, Linoleic 14% and lauric + myristic 16%. That's a little higher on the cleansing than I usually go, but I'm planning to give my neighbor some soap and she has 2 teenage boys.
The soap is still quite green this morning. Will post photos later today when I take it out of the mold.
Been on sabbatical for the last year.....life got in the way. But I'm back to it.
Under the heading of There are no Stupid Questions: How do you do more than one batch of soap in a single session? Do you finish one, clean the equipment and do a second, then repeat for a third, etc.? Newbie here, never considered doing more than one per day/night.Almost out of soap!
A
amd
I think all of us have different ways - keep in mind that most of us doing multiple batches in a day are selling. I multiples of mixing containers, spatulas, small containers for separate colors, and molds. Usually the only thing I need to clean on soap binge is my stick blender. Depending on batch size and the recipe, if it is a recipe that plays well and both soaps are simple, I will mix up the full batter that I need for however many batches I'm making, mix that up to emulsion, separate the weight for each batch, then it's simple enough to add scent, color and pour in the mold. I only do this with my super simple soaps that have a good recipe that I only want to pour a small batch for.
Last night my soap dungeon was finally put together so I could work in it. So daughter came and helped me make a foaming sugar scrub and a custom emulsified sugar scrub.
Adobehead
Well-Known Member
Have you rendered before? I know you are an experienced soaper..... but I learned a few things the last time it did it about the size of the pot and whether ot not to cover it. Lesson learned while on my knees cleaning up when it all climbed out of the pot onto the floor. After I cleaned, I left the lid ajar so it wouldn't happen again and guess what? It happened! Today I am at it again, in a much bigger pot with a big plastic bag under my cooker and will remove the lid as soon as it boils, it takes a while here because of the altitude.
Good luck and can you tell me about the two types of lard? I didn't know that!
ravenscents
Well-Known Member
Ladka
Well-Known Member
Yes, I've rendered both lard and tallow before.
I don't intend to process the entire mass in one go but split it in two portions. I'll probably render one immediately and freeze the other to process at a later time.
Thank you for the warning and sharing your unpleasant experience.
I'd heard of two types of pig lard long ago and also knew it had been used for pastry although we never used it in our kitchen (preferring margarine and butter and oil).
Leaf lard is obtainet from the visceral, or soft, fat from around the kidneys and loin of the pig, and "common" lard (also called back lard or just lard) from other parts of the pig. Leaf lard is considered the highest grade of lard. In my soaping experiments leaf lard gave even a whiter soap than common lard.
The other day when I spoke to my butcher he surprised me with the question whether I was after leaf tallow - and I did not even know the same distinction applies also for beef fats. Anyway, he does not offer leaf tallow at the moment and I'll get the ordinary tallow for my soaping.
Got all 6 batches of soap done last night. Feeling accomplished. Now waiting to cut them after work today.
ravenscents
Well-Known Member
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