We eat year-round. Guess what? So do your feathered friends. The birds. Yep.
It’s tempting to put those bird feeders away in storage come November and forget about the birds until spring.
But that’s the worst situation for them! Just when the birds need you most, you put the bird feeders away.
Their food options have all but dried up and they are starving. The berries gone. Your garden sparse. Little to eat. They need fat. We all like fat? Right?
Please no. Don’t do this to them. Let’s make a simple suet recipe that will get them plumper and bellies fuller in no time at all.
In the past, I confess, we just bought suet. But my 8-year-old loves the way birds flock to suet and go haywire trying to gobble it down. Why not make our own? It’s fun, cheap and easy to do.
Here’s how.
What is suet and why make suet cakes for the birds?
Suet is the hard fatty tissue around the loins and kidneys of beef, sheep, etc., used in cooking or processed to yield tallow. Tallow is the fatty tissue of animals. You weren’t eating breakfast…were you?
Birds want and need fat for nutrition.
Homemade and fresh suet cakes are easy to make and are no doubt tastier than the ones purchased at a store.
Moreover, it’s a fun activity to do with the kids or grandkids. The “recipe” comes together within minutes and you can make as much as you please by doubling or tripling it.
Satisfy the cravings of the beaks when the bleak days and weeks of winter are still yet to come. And don’t forget that birds like fresh water, too.
What types of birds like suet?
Suet cakes are a great treat for insect-eating birds such as nuthatches, woodpeckers, wrens, chickadees, jays, starlings and titmice in winter.
Some creepers, kinglets, cardinals, and some warblers have been known to enjoy suet occasionally as well.
Lots of delicious protein to fend off the winter blues. And winter is the ideal time to serve up suet because the extra fat does them a ton of good!
Moreover, suet tends to get pretty icky and sticky in summer due to heat, so it’s not the best for summer feedings. It goes rancid so quickly.
That’s when we stick to bird seed! And don’t forget that birds need and require water year-round as well. Not to mention a nice, refreshing bath.
Ingredients needed to make a simple suet recipe
Ingredients
(makes one 4x4x2 inch cake)
The best way to get suet is to head to the meat counter at a farmer’s market or locally owned grocery store and ask if they have any suet to sell.
If not, lard works just as well in a pinch and will satisfy your bird friends hunger. No one can say they’re not flexible!
I ended up using lard from ALDI because it’s the easiest product to get my hands on and was under $3 for 3 pounds.
And please….no low-fat peanut butter. The fatty brands are a good source of protein for the birds. Crunchy peanut butter is always a great option.
Step-by-step directions of how to make a simple suet recipe
1.) To get started, melt the suet or lard with the peanut butter over low heat in a larger pot so there’s room for the dry ingredients to be added. You want to prevent smoking or scorching the suet or lard. That would be bad because you’d have to start over.
2.) When the suet/lard + peanut butter mixture becomes 100% liquid, add the dry ingredients including the oatmeal, cornmeal and bird meal. Stir until well combined.
3.) Scoop your suet mixture into the bottoms of your milk cartons, yogurt container, ice trays or other random plastic containers you have around.
4.) Let the suet cakes cool in the fridge for a few hours before you put them outside.
5.) Store extra cakes in the freezer before you use so they don’t become rancid. De-frost for an hour or so and pop them into your suet feeders. They come out easier in a solid form. But if not, you can always run a butter knife around the perimeter.
Done! A simple suet recipe perfected in minutes! Happy birds.
A note on containers for storing suet
Don’t use your best plastic containers for storing your suet blocks before you use them. After all, it could be a month or more and you don’t want to tie up all those containers.
That’s why the bottom of a 1/2 gallon milk container cut off is perfect! We also had a few quart size milk jugs that were equally thrilling for this project.
Ice cube trays are awesome for tiny, tasty snacks, too. You can pop a few of them into your suet feeders for a little afternoon snack.
After I poured my suet mixture I froze them outside to solidify them. When you have finished the melting of the lard/peanut butter combo and have added the dry ingredients, the mixture is “soupy” at best. It needs to harden before you can plopped them into your feeders.
This hardening process can occur in your freezer or outside if it’s cold enough. Since temps where I live are in the 20-30 degrees F. now, it was ideal for me to freeze mine overnight outside.
No room in the freezer! Too much celery!
Last thoughts on this simple suet recipe…
Don’t you love recipes that are forgiving~ that is if you add a little much of this or not enough of that, all is well.
That’s what making easy suet is all about. If you don’t have any cornmeal and need to add extra oatmeal and bird seed, that’s totally fine!
Flexibility is key. And the birds won’t mind~ trust me!
My mom always saved her bacon grease for the birds in the winter. I now do the same with two changes. I add the uneaten seeds from my parrot’s cage (he’s a bit picky about his feed) to the bacon grease. And I add a little bit of cayenne pepper to keep the squirrels away (the birds don’t mind it).
Thanks for the cayenne pepper tip! While I love our underachieving squirrels, they never eat all of our acorns, so I don’t want them to compete with birds using this particular feeder. However, the good news is that the birds & squirrels do share our birdbaths! 🙂 As for the bacon, do you just save it every time you fry some, storing it in the refrigerator until you get a certain amount? And, do you use a particular Suet Feeder? Thanks again.
Thank you
Love this giveaway!!
Great idea! thanks!
Thanks for posting this, my wild bird friends are going to be very happy this winter!
What a great idea!
For Wild Birds this is Very, Very Suet.
Blush, this is the first year we’ve left our hummingbird feeder out because we had a darling hummer that didn’t fly South. And, it’s been below freezing too! Thus, I’ve done nothing for the other birds this winter, besides having two birdbaths full of water which they enjoy. Heck, I’ve usually put out bird seed by now and didn’t even think about it until I saw your post. However, I’d rather try this suet recipe as it looks entertaining. What kind of Suet Feeder do you advise? Guess I’ll take a peek on Amazon and hope they offer advice too. Thanks for sharing your flexible and forgiving recipe!
Wonderful idea. Cardinals have been vicious at times. Slowly learning the names of the birds on our little four acre farm.
This looks like a fun activity to do with the kids!
We don’t attract birds as the dogs chase and kill them. But they come regardless. What an easy recipe and a money saver!
Thank you for the Bird Suet recipe! It will be used and is definitely appreciated!
Thank you for the recipe. This looks like a fun project to do with the kids.
i like this, thanks
For Wild Birds this is Very, Very Suet.
This is a great alternative to old store bought where you are really unsure of the ingredients
Great recipe and easy!
great activity for the kiddos
Our birds will be happy to see this added to the rotation. Thank you!
I love feeding my birds, I have several bird feeders and I’m going to try making yours, thanks
Paula
Great giveaway, I’d love to have this!
Thank you! I made suet birdseed ornaments for Christmas gifts this year. One of the recipes wasn’t too good so I am anxious to try your recipe out!
yES WOULD BE FUN PROJECT TO DO WITH THE GRANDKIDS. iF YOU RAISE YOUR OWN MEAT OR HAVE A HUNTER IN THE FAMILY, COULD SAVE A LITTLE ON THE SUET.
nice quick suet recipe I would substitute my bacon grease for the lard
Thank you, I have all of those ingredients and I am going home to make one today!
Thanks for the recipe.
We have some love birds this year. So I’m out to buy the lard. I think they will love this.
Thanks for sharing, I bet the neighborhood birds here would love this!
This is a great idea & sounds fun! I actually have some suet feeders that my Dad made me several years ago. We have a grove of pine trees right across our driveway, it is a perfect spot to attract birds. But our daughter is allergic to peanuts/tree nuts, we use Sun Butter(sunflower seed butter) as an alternative. Would that work just as well?
Great recipe, and insightful info.
I like seeing the hummingbirds in my yard.
Suet is wonderful to attract cavity birds to your yard – woodpeckers, nut hatches, blue jays. Cardinals also eat the suet that drops on the ground.
Great giveaway and info. Thanks!!!
Love to feed the birds. Thanks for for the recipe Happy New Year
Good post for bird lovers.
Great ideas! Thanks for sharing!🥰
Love this DIY recipe for the birds! Thank You!
We have always bought the suet at the store. I had no idea you could make your own. Definitely trying this.
Great advice! Going to have to do this and feed the birds right in the winter!
This is great. Thank you.
As handy as this recipe is I think I will stick to buying suet. I don’t have any local stores except WalMart. Do they sell big cans of lard? It has been so long since I bought lard.
I would love to make this for the birds here they would love it.
Great stuff
I love feeding my little bird friends.
My local Rural King Store sells suet blocks for 69 cents.
Great tips for how to prepare the suet
The birds sure love this!
I always wanted to set up a bird feeder but don’t want other critters also heading towards my house.
Would love to make this for the birds. I have a feeder that they eat from everyday.
🐦 🌻🥜🥣👍
This will make a great project to do with the kids thank you
Feeding birds is a great pastime.
Love the simple recipe!
That’s it, making my own from here on
I love feeding and watching the birds in my yard I will try this .
I would love to be able to grow flowers and other plants as the ones in the pictures.
Thanks for the great article. Like all the article you write, it was very detailed and included wonderful photos. I will be making DIY bird suet this week and have happy birds and entertained felines (viewing from my screened in porch).
I am going to give this a try. I leave all of my sunflowers until the following spring and we get a lot of birds during the colder months. I am sure they would be very happy to have suet also.
I loved feeding the birds.
This will be so much fun to make with the grandkids. Thank you for the instructions.
love this recipe ty for sharing !!
These will be fun to make with my nieces. I usually just fill up my feeders and the messy birds knock the seeds out everywhere. This might help slow the crazed feeding frenzy.
I like all of the birds in my backyard but especially songbirds. This looks like a great idea. I have never used a birdfeeder, but soon will be making one! Thank you!
Very Nifty. so convenient
Birds and squirrels love it!
Thanks for the Sweeps!
Great ideas – Thank you
I feed all year round!!! These sound great and easy to make! I can’t wait to try it out!
My neighbors have got us into bird feeding. This would be a recipe I could use. Thanks
I really want bluebirds and pileated woodpeckers to come to my feeders!
I love this! I love feeding birds all year round. They bring me joy!
The grandkids will love this project!
Thanks for the recipe!
Wow the most amazing stuff.
Definitely something to add in addition to the feeder, for the birds that don’t use the feeder.
I love feeding birds and watching them. love the recipe!
I have had some very mixed results trying to use store bought suet in the past. this might be worth trying.
I’ve never even heard of suet before. Thanks for writing this.
Such a fun thing to do. My memes always loved to feed and watch the birds.
Great recipe. We feed birds every day in our yard.
Love the great idea
What a nice simple and healthy recipe. I like this better than the store bought type.
Thanks!
Thank you for this recipe! We love to feed the birds 🙂
This definitely was pin worthy!! I feel sad, because I have done the opposite of feeding them the right way! I am so happy that I have now learned the right inexpensive way to feed the Cardinals, Robins, & more. I know my grandkids would love to help the birdies! Maybe we’ll get to see more of them by our house. Thank you for sharing!!
I generally make suet too. It is so easy and also inexpensive. I use the same cage type as you do and it stays cold enough for it. Only problem is keeping it away from racoons!
I love feeding the birds in my backyard. This is a lot of effort, though. It’s so much easier to just fill up the bird feeder.
Im lucky to have all kinds of birds out in the country – I’ve never made my own but this looks so easy that me and the grandkids are going to! Thanks
Love this! I have made suet cakes before but not with peanut butter, this is a wonderful recipe for them.
I feed the birds daily,suet, wild bird seeds and tentilse
What a lovely gift you are giving someone. Thank you!
I love to see the birds feeding and feel better knowing a few will not be hungry.
I always make my own suet
nice idea, i need to make my own. i feed bird seed now, but with the suet i was scared the squirrels would get it before the birds do.
Gardens are a growing business.
Great recipe for birds especially in the cold weather
This is so easy and good for the birds – can’t wait to put some out for ours. We feed year round and make sure they have access to water also!
Nature should always get our vote first!
I love watching the birds eating. I’m trying this soon with the help from my grandkids.
We have all kinds of bird feeders in our back yard. I’ll have to try this next!
This is a great activity so that the birds get food in the winter.
Thank you for the opportunity to participate in your Weather Caster giveaway
I love this idea! Thank you so much for the recipes!
Thanks for this idea
Fantastic we have bunny rabbits and deer about our place but nothing for birds. Certainly worth a try.
I love to make items for the birds in my yard to eat from so making with with suet would be something new for me and the kids. Love to give it a try our birds would love it here.
thanks love this
Definitely something we will try. The cayenne pepper tip is a great idea, since we have a LOT of squirrels!