Traditionally, pemmican was prepared from the lean meat of large game such as bison, elk, deer, or moose. The meat was cut in thin slices and dried, either over a slow fire or in the hot sun until it was hard and brittle. (About 5 pounds (2,300 g) of meat are required to make 1 pound (450 g) of dried meat suitable for pemmican.) Then it was pounded into very small pieces, almost powder-like in its consistency, using stones. The pounded meat was mixed with melted fat in an approximate 1:1 ratio by volume. Typically the melted fat would be suet that has been rendered into tallow. In some cases, dried fruits, such as blueberries, chokecherries, cranberries, or saskatoon berries, were pounded into powder and then added to the meat/fat mixture. The resulting mixture was then packed into rawhide bags for storage. Since there is no "official" recipe for pemmican, the shelf life can vary depending on ingredients and storage conditions. At room temperature, pemmican can generally last from one to five years,but there are anecdotal stories of pemmican stored in cool cellars being safely consumed after a decade or more.