The Fat Revolution: When Did We Become So Afraid of Fat?

Meara (00:01.894)
So yet when you really look at it, the idea is the same where people cooked with fats that were available to them in their culture and their climate. And so traditional food doesn't look the same for everybody. And I think sometimes we we forget we forget that not everybody's the same when it comes to eating different things.

Maggie (00:24.61)
Yeah. And and and you say that in in different parts. So well I guess let's explain what what tallow is. And tallow is essentially just rendered fat. And that comes from I think technically from cattle and sheep is like your typical where you get tallow. But you would get tallow from goats and elk, antelope, bison.

Meara (00:36.123)
Mm-hmm.

Maggie (00:53.55)
and deer. and then poultry, you can render down poultry fat too in and I I think I think that's referred to as Schmultz. Is it you know? I think I think it's called Schmaltz. must be a German thing. Yeah. I guess. Again, it's you know what was available. and then of course you have

Meara (01:05.754)
I I've never heard of that.

Meara (01:11.046)
What is that used for? Cooking too? For like different cuisines, I guess, or what was available to them? Yeah.

Maggie (01:23.102)
lard from pigs. but we don't recommend you eat anything that comes from pigs. Very dirty animals. And I know a lot of people do. And again, what you have available, but

Meara (01:30.49)
Yeah, I wouldn't for sure.

Meara (01:37.946)
Yeah. Yeah. And we actually keep all three in our kitchen, tallow ghee and butter.

Maggie (01:44.195)
Mm-hmm.

Meara (01:45.69)
The one thing that honestly surprised me was just how normal it became because at first the ghee concept or not ghee, the tallow was strange to me. I like I wanted no part of it because I wasn't familiar with it and it was new and it seemed like it was gonna take forever even though I wasn't the one that was doing it. but now it's just another ingredient in our house. So

Maggie (02:08.226)
Yeah. I I didn't I didn't eat I didn't eat anything made with it at first. I was fine putting it on my skin, but I'm like, I just don't know about eating that and then my husband's like, just just try it. And I did and it was fantastic. Not tallow itself, but food cooked with tallow. it's very good.

Meara (02:16.142)
That's weird.

Meara (02:28.282)
Yeah.

Meara (02:31.725)
and fries, deep fr fries and tallow. my gosh.

Amazing. so sometimes when I'm in the grocery store, not sometimes, now it's all the time when if if I go to the grocery store because usually I I'll just have them deliver it to me. But now that I've been forcing myself to get out a little bit more often, I'll pick up a box or a bottle and flip it and the first thing I do is just look at the ingredients. I just want to see what's going on in there and what's happening because, you know, while some of the foods have been around the longest, they don't have

lots of ingredients like butter, cream eggs, beef, you you know, you know what they are. And I think that's something that's that's worth paying to it paying attention to there. And I don't say that out of a place of perfection because I still buy convenient foods. You know, I was just over here snacking on some popcorn that probably has loads of weird stuff in it. But and I still buy things in packages, but I do find myself asking way more questions now than what I did before. What is this? What's in it?

Maggie (03:11.425)
Simple.

Meara (03:35.652)
What purpose does this serve? And that's the question that I would have never asked twenty years ago.

Maggie (03:37.324)
Yeah.

Maggie (03:40.985)
And it's it's scary. There's who's that one girl? Is it Food Babe? Where she goes into all these different like ingredients and it's scary what some of these things are. I just found out Hidden Valley Ranch. I like their ranch. it has some kind of like preservative in it that is used. Is it used for for automobiles or s it's really

Meara (03:47.002)
I have no idea.

Meara (03:51.992)
Yeah, yeah.

Meara (03:56.526)
I do too. It's terrible. They bleach their sauce to make it white.

Maggie (04:09.298)
Really awful stuff and I'm just like, I can't believe this. How is it legal to put this in there? And when you go overseas, like to Europe or somewhere, the same companies making the same foods are making them different and they have less ingredients. Why? Why can't they make it like that here? Why aren't they forced to make it like that here?

Meara (04:20.73)
Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm. Yep. Yep, yep.

Meara (04:31.014)
Yeah.

Because okay, I don't want to get into it. Yeah, my husband's country Skittles, they are they taste nothing like what we have here, but they're the same thing and they don't have half the ingredients in them that that they have here, and their pop doesn't have half the things that they have here. and I was shocked when I went over there the first couple of times. I just started grabbing stuff off the shelves. Give me this and give me this because it doesn't have anything in I'm gonna eat more of it and give me this. So

Maggie (04:50.86)
Yeah.

Maggie (05:01.346)
You know, it's it's not realistic to fully change everything, you know, to throw everything out in your pantry and to start doing all this stuff at once. It's it's small changes and you know, getting used to one thing at a time. you know, and and you need to realize, everybody needs to realize that the American people

Meara (05:12.847)
It's not.

Meara (05:20.121)
Uh-huh.

Maggie (05:31.095)
are an experiment. We are being experimented on by all of these companies and all these people higher up. and they're in cahoots with the medical establishment. You know, the sicker that we become, the more money they make. And we become addicted to these foods that they're making. so you just have to decide do you want to be an experiment?

Meara (05:33.2)
Mm-hmm.

We are.

Meara (05:40.453)
Mm-hmm.

Meara (05:48.474)
Pharmacy.

Meara (05:54.438)
Mm-hmm.

Maggie (06:00.75)
Or, you know, don't you? Or do you not? You know, it you just have to make that decision and then start changing your your habits.

Meara (06:04.911)
Yeah.

Meara (06:11.206)
Yeah, I think we've made food way more complicated than what it needs to be. And I am gonna say that, you know, there are those of you out here like, Well, I don't have money to do all of it. You don't have to have money. To be honest, sometimes I still buy store bought butter.

And I like Carrie Gold and and all the high end ones, but sometimes I'm like, I don't really want to spend all my money on this. And I don't want to buy these silly old Kroger brand butters. Like it has junk in it. But like I said, when you flip the package over and look at the ingredients, you'd be surprised. I flip the package over and there was like butter and cream for a dollar and some change. And I'm like, okay. And my husband's like, You're buying this junk Kroger butter, and I'm like, Look at the ingredients. He goes, well, how do you know those are real ingredients in there? And you know, because now we're

so set to thinking, okay, well this is, you know, we you know the true brands. but at least it didn't have other additives in there. So

Maggie (07:05.133)
Yeah.

Maggie (07:08.65)
Right. So the only thing the only thing in that aspect that you need to worry about is what what what was the cow's diet? And that's gonna you know, that's gonna tell you if it's if it's nutrient dense at all. And butter typically is not nutrient dense. even if you get it from like, you know, grass fed cows. and it then it probably gets more nutritional if you're making it from

Meara (07:16.678)
Yeah.

Meara (07:23.556)
Mm-hmm.

Yeah.

Maggie (07:38.041)
from raw cream, from raw milk. which I I have done and and man is a delicious. It's it's amazing. I my friends have some Amish friends and they they're like, hey you want to try this butter and I'm like, yeah, I do. Because I had been making butter from from raw milk. From raw cream. And I tried it and it was like a million times better than mine.

Meara (08:04.186)
Mm-hmm.

Maggie (08:04.736)
I'm like, I don't get it. I'm like, I know I'm doing it all the same way. And they're like, they do this every single day. Like they grew up learning how to do this. Of course, theirs is gonna be the best. And it is. And if you're lucky enough where you live around the Amish, you know, a lot of times, so here in Ohio, I don't think it's legal yet to buy raw milk. Like you have to purchase part of the cow in order to get raw milk. right?

Meara (08:32.73)
What do you mean? No, you can buy raw milk. you there's tons of milk shares here. There's one two hours away that I've been wanting to go to, but they have to have on the label for not for consumption.

Maggie (08:33.496)
The like a milkshare.

Maggie (08:40.3)
Yes.

Maggie (08:43.974)
I see. I thought it was that you were purchasing part of the cow and then you were able to get milk from it because you owned part of that cow. Isn't that how they were?

Meara (08:53.114)
That could be it too, because I I'm not for sure how that works to be exact. I just saw that this place was a herd share company, but you can just go online and buy like a gallon of milk.

Maggie (09:05.25)
Hmm. Nice.

Meara (09:06.618)
But it said they have to put that label on there, not for consumption. Like that oil that Omar used to bu that used to buy that kind of scared me. But you know, a

Maggie (09:10.04)
Not for consumption.

Maggie (09:15.488)
Yeah, but this you would consume. And raw milk is so good for you. Obviously you want to get a good clean source, but yeah, it's very good for you. And what else is good for you, Mira? Fat is good for you, right?

Meara (09:18.884)
Yes. Yes.

Yeah, you wanna know where it's coming from and make sure that they're they're clean and they keep their stuff clean.

It's very good for you. Very good for you.

Maggie (09:34.22)
So fat is

Maggie (09:38.615)
I mean it it gives us energy. it gives us the material that we need for cell membranes. it's vital for brain health. what else? It helps with your absorption of vitamins A.

D E and K right?

Meara (10:05.67)
Yeah. Yeah. And

Maggie (10:08.088)
Well you you do some research on it, but I'm pretty certain that those are and those are vital vitamins that we need for for ultimate health, you know?

Meara (10:23.464)
I thought you were saying something else. Yes. It is a lot. It is a lot. While you were saying that I kept thinking I wanted to go back real quick and touch on you were talking about how to know what what you know what

Maggie (10:25.506)
No, I'm just I'm just overwhelmed. I just

Meara (10:38.842)
what source they're eating from so that you know what you're getting when you buy from the store and that could be very overwhelming as well. And we just want people to start small, do one thing. So even if that means cutting down and buying the cheaper brand that just has the two ingredients at least as two ingredients and not added other stuff that shouldn't be in there in the butter. as you get better at identifying what sources to or what to use, then you can figure out what sources those animals are eating from and stuff like that.

Maggie (10:47.566)
Too spar.

Maggie (11:06.54)
And when it yeah, and when it works in your budget. Like I I don't always mil make my own butter. when I do, I do use a food processor. I don't use a butter churn. but I I buy the grass fed butter that I use for, you know, daily things, putting on bread and giving bites to, you know, whoever wants it.

Meara (11:09.284)
Yeah. Yeah.

Meara (11:20.373)
Ha ha ha.

Maggie (11:35.084)
And then I do buy the Kroger butter for when I'm doing baking and stuff, 'cause that's that's just a lot of butter and a lot of money. So you know, I do buy the Kroger brand also.

Meara (11:46.51)
Yeah. and for me it all around it starts with protein. As I'm gonna go there again as we age and get into our forties and start hitting that perimenopause or if we've been in it for a while, it's all about the protein. Eggs, beef, chicken, fish. That that for me that's become more important as I've gotten older because strengths

Maggie (12:05.408)
It's it's all about the fat suit because we need it for our brains.

Meara (12:10.436)
Because strength matters, muscle matters, and being able to stay active matters. And then with what you were just saying is I use butter, ghee, or tallow to cook those things in. So I will cook my fish in butter. I will cook my chicken in butter. I will cook my beef in in butter or fat or ghee or whatever it is that I'm using when I'm making those. I just don't use as much as I used to.

Maggie (12:12.62)
Does. Who does?

Maggie (12:34.166)
And and there's some oils. There's some oils too. avocado oil and coconut oil we'll use for cooking. and then olive oil. I I like to dip my bread in and that sort of thing. And those are those are high in fats but good fats.

Meara (12:49.028)
Olive oil is a really good for yeah, dipping and stuff. And we use avoc strictly avocado oil and sometimes we'll use coconut oil, like if I'm making popcorn, like you were just asking me about. Do you do your own popcorn? Yeah, when I feel like it, I'll use coconut oil to pop my popcorn in. Yeah.

Maggie (13:04.054)
No.

Maggie (13:08.098)
We have to yeah, so we we we make our own we pop our own popcorn. 'cause we don't have a microwave anymore, you know? Can't do microwave popcorn, which is horrible for you. And it's so fun. It's so fun to pop your own. And that we do the the grass sped butter. I put a ton of it in there and and we have, you know, kids take turns, you know, turning the pot and let it

Meara (13:19.183)
Yay.

Meara (13:24.249)
It is.

It is fun to pop your own.

Maggie (13:37.794)
You know, as it's popping and stuff and and then I think, huh? Yeah. It's a pot that you put on the stove. It's a pot that you put on the stove, but it has a turner on it. And it's got this thing in there that's moving all of the popcorn around.

Meara (13:41.112)
You have an actual popcorn maker? You have a popcorn maker? we just use our big old cooking pot. Shake it. Yeah.

Meara (13:54.048)
okay.

Well that seems easier than me standing there and taking it off the heat and shaking it. When it starts popping I can't put it all the way back down on the heat.

Maggie (14:01.997)
Yeah. It is. It is. It's great. and then I put a ton of our Baja Gold mineral salt on it too. And then it becomes and especially too if you make your own, you can get, you know good varieties from or good popcorn from heirloom varieties that has nutrition in it. And then you're adding the butter and then adding the mineral salt.

Meara (14:12.676)
Yum. Love it.

Meara (14:24.804)
Mm-hmm.

Yeah.

Maggie (14:30.741)
And here you've got and my kids will eat it all day long. And I'm just looking at them like, yeah, like look at all the nutrition you're getting in that stomach. It's awesome. And it's so simple.

Meara (14:31.448)
Yeah. Perfect snack. Continuous. Yeah.

Meara (14:40.069)
Yeah.

Meara (14:44.718)
Everybody has different ways of doing things and it's just so unique to me. So when I look at traditional kitchens around the world, that the one thing that stands out to me is not being a perfectionist or, you know, nowadays romanticizing some version of the past of how it used to be. It's just people doing the most of what they had and knowing where their food came from and knowing how to prepare it and and how to feed their families.

Maggie (15:13.665)
Yeah. And it's it's fun to get into. It's it's overwhelming and can be scary at first. And again, like when you're going to like eat tallow. And one more thing I want to say about tallow real quick. People didn't just use tallow to cook food and for skincare, but they also used it for for like leather, for you know, keeping leather in good condition and making candles.

Meara (15:19.654)
That does.

Meara (15:39.643)
Hmm.

Maggie (15:42.904)
Tallow also has some medicinal uses. We're not going to get into that today. and and also for preserving. So tallow does all kinds of things. but yeah, so you know, just get into it. Start small, experiment. Don't rely on it. A big thing that I do is I'm I I'll go, okay, we're done with this.

Meara (15:53.384)
wow.

Meara (16:02.277)
Mm-hmm.

Maggie (16:09.609)
And we're moving straight into this, and I have no idea what I'm doing. I just know that it's the best way to do it. and then it's it's very overwhelming for myself, and then it becomes very overwhelming for my family because they're like, you know, mom's going crazy and we're winning this, but we can't have it. Yeah.

Meara (16:11.157)
Ha ha ha ha.

Meara (16:29.304)
Yeah, 'cause she's on to the next thing. But the more you get into it also it just becomes a staple in your house. And then after a while you'll start noticing, I have tallow, I can use this. I don't have to run to the store for that or you'll just start noticing more and more things.

Maggie (16:42.559)
And and it does seem like a lot of work, but once you get the skill of doing it and once you get the habit of doing it and knowing, you know, what time to apply to certain things, it becomes second nature.

Meara (16:55.738)
Second nature.

Yeah. Yeah, it does.

Maggie (17:00.715)
And your kitchen becomes like a store because you'll end up like hanging pots 'cause you'll have all these different things that, you know, you accumulate over time. And I've got all my wooden spoons hanging now and, you know, different

Meara (17:09.85)
Mm-hmm.

Meara (17:14.311)
Ha

Maggie (17:15.703)
Funnels and canning things and all kinds of stuff and it becomes decorations and you've got a little primitive kitchen and it's awesome.

Meara (17:23.814)
And then it makes you want to get in there and do even more.

Maggie (17:28.939)
It does. It's like in your face. It's like, I need to do this, I need to do that.

Meara (17:29.99)
Cut out.

Meara (17:33.78)
you heard me. Delayed. Yes, it does. Well, before we go, we want to leave you with this. You're cutting out. I think we're lagging, but I'm just gonna continue. So before we leave, we want to leave you all with this. The next time you're at the grocery store, turn over a box or a bottle or a can and read the ingredients. Do you know what they are? Do you recognize them? That's it. Just start paying attention. You might be surprised what you notice.

Next week we're talking about nourishment. We'll be talking about bone broths, traditional stocks, mineral rich foods, living salts, and how previous generations turned scraps, bones, and turned scraps, bones, and overlooked ingredients into nourishment. I can never speak at the end. We love to have you as part of Women Folk Revival Community. So follow the podcast wherever you're listening. Leave us a review if you've been enjoying these conversations. And don't forget to like, follow, and share this episode with someone who loves traditional skills, slow living, and the

that helped families thrive for generations. Until next time.

Maggie (18:37.517)
Hey, I just wanna say real quick, Mira. yeah, I'm sorry, I'm changing it up. Talk to your doctors. fat is good for you, but if you have underlying health conditions, maybe it's not so good for you right now. So talk to your doctors before you jump in and just start eating loads of fat. but yes, until then, stay rooted. Stay rooted and stay wild.

Meara (18:59.494)
Loads of fat.

Meara (19:04.93)
Stay wild.