Alternative to vegetable shortening

Vegetable shortening is used in baking as a fixative and moistening agent. It helps to hold batters together, grease baking pans and prevent sticking. Growing up, we always had a big can of Crisco sitting on the pantry shelf.

It got used for everything from greasing pans to making the flakiest pie crust ever. Now that trans fats are drawing some justifiable heat from health experts, we’re not so keen on using vegetable shortening anymore. But what’s our alternative?

For many recipes, what you substitute depends on what your making. The creamy white consistency of vegetable shortening is a staple in many homes. From making flaky biscuits and pie crusts to frying chicken and fish, the uses for vegetable shortening are impressive. However, vegetable shortening contains ingredients that you need to limit when following a heart-healthy diet.

In the US Crisco is the best known and there is also an organic solid vegetable shortening made by Earth Balance. In Australia the best known brand is Copha. Basically, you’re looking for a type of cooking fat that is saturated or solid at room temperature.

If it’s for baking then even more s. For every single cup of shortening , you can use a cup of lard after removing two tablespoons from it (cup shortening = cup lard - tablespoons).

Even fresh cream can be used as an alternative to shortening , but it is most suitable for making foods with a milky flavor (like milk cookies). You have to use it in the same amount as the shortening. Palm shortening is a semi solid fat that comes from palm oil which is sourced from palm trees.

It is a popular ingredient worldwide used to bake pastries like brea cakes and cookies. Basically, it improves the texture of all your baked goodies making it the most popular choice for shortening. Some cookie recipes call for both to get the flakiness of a good cookie and the softening for the softening so it won't be to crispy. Shortening gives baked goods the soft effect that butter would not. And coconut oil does not have the same effect as shortening that I am aware of.

Does anyone know what the equivalent would be over here in Australia for those? Butter is commonly used in the same quantity as palm shortening. Margarine is made of vegetable oil that can be a good non-dairy substitute for palm shortening if you want your dish to have a buttery flavor.

Generally speaking, here in the USA, “shortening” has come almost exclusively to mean hydrogenated vegetable oil. Specifically, Crisco’s ingredients are soybean oil, full hydrogenated palm oil, palm oil, mono and diglycerides, TBHQ and citric acid. Someone told me to use something like light vegetable oil.

Is that like vegetable shortening ? Can this be used as a substitute for vegetable shortening ? However, I do need an alternative to Coconut oil as I need to make an allergen free birthday cake for her in weeks and need to make my own icing, have. Learn why crisco is so damaging to your body and see the perfect healthy alternative !

When people refer to shortening, they often are referring to the hydrogenated vegetable oil in a product like ‘Crisco’. These are hydrogenated fats which are artificially made solid at room temperature by a chemical process. How to Substitute Butter for Vegetable Shortening. While oil and shortening are full fat, butter has a slight amount of water.

These ingredients may seem interchangeable, but the end result may be slightly different. Butter adds a creamier flavor to any recipe an in a pinch, can easily be used in place of shortening. Is there an alternative to shortening ? Update: (for a baked pastry shell) Answer Save.

Remember, when making substitutions be sure to measure accurately for best.