Make Your Own Suet Recipe
Make your own suet recipe to feed the birds. There is a slew of items that you can serve suet in to keep your birds happy year-round.
Birdwatching is a delightful pastime that connects us with nature in a unique way. One of the best ways to attract a diverse array of birds to your backyard is by offering them suet—a high-energy food made from fat and other ingredients. While you can easily purchase suet cakes from stores, creating your own birdseed suet at home not only saves money but also allows you to customize the ingredients to suit the preferences of your feathered visitors.
In this guide, we’ll explore the simple steps to making your own birdseed suet, ensuring your backyard becomes a haven for a variety of beautiful birds.
What Birds Eat Suet
Downy, hairy, red-bellied, and pileated woodpeckers. Chickadees, northern flickers, nuthatches, and starlings are also avid suet eaters.
You will also attract wrens, warblers, thrushes, brown creepers, brown thrashers, and blue jay.
You can also attract orioles, pine siskins, titmice, and the ever-popular bluebird.
Titmouse on Suet
When To Feed Suet
All year, I guess you could. I would hold off for late spring and during the summer
Suet is most certainly a winter bird staple. Winter may be the best time to start out serving suet because of the cold (Suet is animal fat which keeps a bird warmer) and there are fewer food sources for the birds to choose from. Much different during warmer months.
But, birds will eat suet year-round. In warmer months – you decide. I think it may be healthier for your birds to eat the fresh berries and food available to them. Only use birdseed, berries, and nut mixes during the warm weather months. In winter, they don’t have all those options.
Make Your Own Suet Recipe Basic Starter
Ingredients:
- 1 cup of lard or rendered suet
- 1 cup of peanut butter (unsalted) (no sugar))
- 2 cups of birdseed mix (including a variety of seeds such as sunflower, millet, and nyjer)
- 1 cup of cornmeal or oatmeal
- Optional: dried fruits, nuts, or mealworms for added nutrition
Additional Post: 3 ways to dry fruit for the birds
Instructions:
Step 1: Prepare the Suet Base
- Begin by melting 1 cup of lard or suet in a large saucepan over low heat.
- Once melted, stir in 1 cup of peanut butter until the mixture is smooth and well combined.
Step 2: Add the Birdseed and Grain
- Gradually add 2 cups of birdseed mix to the melted fat and peanut butter mixture, stirring continuously.
- Incorporate the cornmeal or oatmeal into the mixture, ensuring it is evenly distributed. This will help bind the suet together and provide additional nutrients for the birds.
Step 3: Customize
- At this stage, you can add optional ingredients such as dried fruits, nuts, or mealworms to enhance the nutritional content of the suet and attract a wider variety of bird species.
Step 4: Mold the Suet
- While the mixture is still warm and pliable, transfer it into molds or containers. You can use specialized suet molds, muffin tins, or even empty yogurt containers lined with parchment paper.
- You can also press the mixture into balls and put them in mesh bags.
- Press the mixture firmly into the molds to ensure it holds its shape once cooled.
Step 5: Allow to Cool and Set
- Place the filled molds in the refrigerator for several hours, or until the suet has solidified completely.
- Once set, remove the suet cakes from the molds and store them in a cool, dry place until ready to use.
Step 6: Hang and Enjoy
- Hang the suet cakes in your backyard using specialized suet feeders or simply attach them to tree branches using twine or wire.
- Sit back and enjoy the sight of various bird species flocking to your garden to feast on your homemade birdseed suet.
Conclusion: Crafting your own birdseed suet is a rewarding and simple way to attract a diverse array of bird species to your backyard. By using high-quality ingredients and customizing the recipe to suit the preferences of your feathered visitors, you can create a nutritious and irresistible treat that will keep them coming back for more. So, gather your ingredients, unleash your creativity, and watch as your backyard becomes a bustling hub of avian activity.
You can serve suet in recycled eggshells or make your own suet bricks too. Find that post HERE.
Until next time friends. Take care.
The post was last updated in March 2024. Updated pictures and changed the layout.
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