Whether butter, margarine or lard – there are various types of fats that can be used to excellently refine and fry foods. But not all fat is the same – there are some differences in taste, calorie value and frying behavior. Here you can find out exactly what the individual fats do and which fat is suitable for which dish.
Margarine
Margarine is not only quite popular for frying, but is also appreciated on sausage or cheese sandwiches and in baking. As a healthy and lower-calorie alternative to butter, margarine is above all much easier to spread. However, to achieve this, the liquid vegetable oils are gradually hardened in a rather elaborate process. In this way, the unsaturated fatty acids become saturated ones.
In organic margarines, coconut fat, for example, is also often used for hardening. In general, margarine – whether organic or not – consists of approximately 80%-90% fat. The main ingredient is a different oil depending on the type of margarine. Particularly commonly used is
- Sunflower oil
- rapeseed oil
- Sesame oil
- olive oil.
Emulsifiers are often found in the list of ingredients as binding agents, but salt and acidifiers are also part of margarine and are responsible for the typical taste and yellow color.
How does margarine behave when frying?
Besides oil, margarine is also quite often used for frying. However, at high heat, margarine forms toxic acrylamide. Therefore, fried potatoes should preferably be combined with margarine only at a low temperature.
Half-fat margarine and light margarines contain only 39%-41% fat. Yogurt or buttermilk is often used here as a flavor carrier. However, since the water content in margarines of this kind is also quite high, they should not be used for frying. They tend to splatter heavily and leave an unsightly texture in the pan and on the food being fried.
Butter
As a flavor carrier, butter is the winner among fats. Whether for thickening sauces, on buttered bread or as buttercream on a Frankfurter Kranz – butter is unbeatable.
After centrifuging, the cream is separated from the milk – this cream is left to mature until butter flakes form. These are then removed from the buttermilk and shaped into pieces and, depending on the type of butter, additionally salted.
Quite often one hears that butter is rather unhealthy because it consists of animal fats and thus drives up cholesterol levels. However, 20 g of butter contain just 48 mg of cholesterol, whereas an egg, by contrast, can already come in at 314 mg. If you want to live more healthily, you should stick to pasture butter, for example. It contains many unsaturated fatty acids.
Butter does not turn brown
To keep butter from getting too brown in the pan, simply add a little cooking oil.
Lard
Clarified butter is a true all-rounder. It can be used excellently for frying, baking and deep-frying. Its smoke point is 205 degrees; the clarified butter does not splatter or burn.
How is clarified butter made?
Once the butter has been made as described above, it is melted again and centrifuged. In this process, the butter is separated from the milk protein, water and lactose. What remains is the butterfat. Unrefrigerated, the clarified butter will now keep for about 9 months; in the refrigerator it can even be used for up to 15 months.
Besides clarified butter, however, we are also familiar with goose and pork lard. Goose lard has the typical goose flavor and is extremely popular as a spread or for frying. Pork lard is more pearly white and spreads especially well at room temperature. Whether for sautéing vegetables, spread on bread or for searing meat – lard is a true delight for gourmets. Only neither goose nor pork lard is suitable for deep-frying: it would splatter too much.
Read also: Recipe for butter cookies – Christmas cookies
Photo by Sabine, meinhaushalt.at
