Rendered fat is the fat produced by rendering: animal fat (from beef, pork, lamb, or poultry) slowly heated until it melts free of connective tissue and impurities, then strained into a smooth, shelf-stable cooking fat. It is not the same thing as clarified butter (ghee), which removes milk solids and water from butter rather than separating fat from meat, and it isn't one single fat: tallow is specifically rendered beef or mutton fat, lard is rendered pork fat, and schmaltz is rendered poultry fat, each with its own flavor and smoke point. Rendered fats generally have a higher smoke point than butter or the original fatty cut, suiting high-heat sautéing, frying, roasting, and basting, and lard in particular is prized for flaky pastry.