Is Wagyu Beef Tallow Spray Better Than Other Cooking Spray?

Beef tallow is a contentious buzzword in 2025. Steak & Shake is doing their best to promote their use of beef tallow instead of seed oils as a rallying cry so we all forget how slow and horrible their drive-thru service is. So, when I got an email with “Wagyu Beef Tallow” in the subject line, I was a little hesitant to engage. But after I looked into what South Chicago Packing was all about, I completely changed my tune. They’re big proponents of nose-to-tail sustainability—the fancy term for “waste not, want not.” Basically, if you’re going to kill an animal, it’s only appropriate to use as much of that animal as possible.

South Chicago Packing sent over a can of their Wagyu Beef Tallow Spray, described as the perfect traditional cooking spray. Let’s put tradition to the test.

How did you review cooking spray?

I decided to put this beef tallow spray up against vegetable oil and butter in a couple blind taste tests. South Chicago Packing primarily recommends this for “BBQ-ing, grilling, searing, [and] sautéing.” The three foods I tested? Fried eggs, grilled cheese, and brownies. Yes, South Chicago Packing’s website swears by using their Wagyu Beef Tallow in place of oil in boxed brownie mix. Equal parts intrigued and terrified, I did exactly that.

Wagyu Beef Tallow Spray

South Chicago Packing Wagyu Beef Tallow Spray

South Chicago Packing

Pros: This product is, as hoped, a good replacement for cooking spray. The grilled cheese made with this spray had a lighter, crispier texture than the buttered sandwich, and definitely a more satisfying crunch. I have no doubt that this would add a rich savoriness to something like seared steak.

Cons: I have mixed results on this spray’s ability to add any flavor to your foods. The fried eggs tasted identical to the eggs made with PAM and the grilled cheese didn’t taste any different from the buttered batch. The only item this spray added any flavor to was, unfortunately, the brownies. Have you ever wanted your brownies to taste like beef? If so, please come to my house and pick up the remaining 8/9ths of the tray I made for science.

Credit: Liv Averett / South Chicago Packing

Rating:

6.5/10

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