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FATS and OILS

Fats and oils are nutritionally useful and some form economical sources of energy and give a satiety
value to the dish. They also contribute characteristic palatability, qualities of flavour and texture and
popularly used as the medium of cooking.
The scientific term “Lipid” comprises a group of substances which include natural fats and oils. Both
those lipids consist of fatty acids and glycerol.
The only difference between fats and oils is that oils are liquid at room temperature (only exceptions are
coconut and palm oil), whereas fats are solid as they contain saturated fatty acids. Saturation means the
density of fat, in other words it is the molecular structure of the fat where the carbon atoms are bonded
with hydrogen and oxygen.
The saturation is increased artificially by adding hydrogen into fat by a process known as saturation or
hydrogenation of fat/oil. As example oil can be converted into margarine by passing hydrogen into it to
make it saturated. This is done to stabilize the fats and oils and therefore the shell life of the product
increases as it does not oxidize easily.
Those fats which are transformed artificially from oil to fats are known as trans-fats and they are not
healthy as they are the prime cause of cardiac disorder.
Fats and oils do not dissolve in water, but they can be emulsified with water to produce salad dressings
and sauces. Fats along with carbohydrates and proteins make up the major components of food.

USAGE OF FATS and OILS IN COOKING and BAKING

Fats and oils are the prime ingredients for cooking and baking around the world. Fats and oils
give richness, variety of texture, and smoothness to the fat otherwise it may be too dry to eat.
The melting and smoking points of fats and oils are very important to the chefs, as they decide
the usage of the particular lipid in dish, one can not use butter for deep frying as it has a very
low smoking point, so it will burn to black till it reaches the temperature of frying.
Fats and oils are used for various purposes like:
• Spreads – butter and margarines are used for spreads and their function is to add the
flavour, nutritional value and satiety value of breads.
• Shortening – these are fats which shorten the gluten strand by surrounding them and
make them more easily broken (short). When added to bread it gives a bit of
tenderness, richness and sheen to the crumb.
• Tempering – spices are added to hot oil/fat and then added to dal, curries, rice etc. to
give better flavour, very common in Indian cuisine.
• Salad dressings – fat is one of the main ingredients of salad dressings: like animal fat
dressings like bacon fat, vinegar and seasonings, or other common dressings like
vinaigrette, mayonnaise etc.
• Flavoured oil/infused oils – nowadays flavoured oils play a very important role in food
production, it can be used as salad dressings, garnishes or simply as accompaniments
e.g. Chili oil, basil oil, peppers oil etc.
• Frying medium – fats and oils are hugely used as cooking medium, i.e. pan roasting,
deep frying, and sautéing. Fats with high smoking point is better for frying, the highest
frying temperature needed for frying anything is 1990C/3900F.
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• Creaming and aerating effect – When making rich cakes, fat and sugar are beaten or
creamed together. This process incorporates small air bubbles into the mixture and so
lightens the product.

RENDERING OF FAT
Rendering is a process where the fat is melted on heat to separate the skin and non-fatty membrane.
This is done over a low heat, and sometimes some water is added to it and bring to a boil, then the
flame is reduced and let most of the water evaporates leaving behind the clear fat which can be strained
and stored away. Other method is to keep the fat on low heat, all the fat will melt out leaving some crisp
skin behind, which is known as “crackling” and this can be used for salads and garnishes.
CLARIFYING BUTTER
Clarifying butter is a process where the water and the milk solids are removed so that butter
becomes more stable and can be used for cooking without changing its properties. This process
is very similar to that of rendering of fat.
PROPERTIES OF FAT
1. Solubility – Fats and oils are insoluble in water. However, in the presence of a suitable
substance known as an emulsifying agent, it is possible to form a stable mixture of fat
and water. This mixture is termed an emulsion. The emulsion may be a fat-in-water
emulsion, e.g. milk, or a water-in-fat emulsion, e.g. butter.
2. Effect of heat – As fats are heated there are three temperatures at which noticeable
changes take place.

Melting Point - Fats melt when heated. The temperature at which melting starts is
called the Slip point. Most fats melt at a temperature between 30°C and 40°C.

Smoke Point - When a fat or oil is heated to a certain temperature it starts to

decompose, producing a blue haze or smoke and a characteristic acrid smell. Most
fats and oils start to smoke at a temperature around 200°C. In general, vegetable
oils have a higher smoke-point than animal fats. when using a fat or oil for deep
frying, the frying temperature should be kept below the smoke-point. Smoke-point
is a useful measure when assessing the suitability of a fat or oil for frying purposes.
Repeated heating of a fat or oil or the presence of burnt food particles will reduce
the smoke-point.

Flash Point - When a fat is heated to a high enough temperature, the vapours given
off will spontaneously ignite. This temperature is known as the flash-point. For corn
oil the flash-point is 360°C. A fat fire should never be put out with water; this will
only spread the fire. The heat should be turned off and the oxygen supply cut off by
covering the container of burning fat with a lid or blanket.
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ANIMAL FATS USED IN COOKING

1. LARD Lard is pig fat in both its rendered and unrendered forms. Lard was commonly
used in many cuisines as a cooking fat or shortening, or as a spread similar to
butter. Nowadays the uses of lard are restricted due to health concern.
2. SUET Suet is raw beef or mutton fat, especially the hard fat found around the loins
and kidneys. Suet has a melting point of between 45° and 50°C. (113° and
122°F.). Its low melting point means that it is solid at room temperature but
easily melts at moderate temperatures, such as in steaming. It used to be
used for short crust pies
3. TALLOW Tallow is a rendered form of beef or mutton fat, processed from suet. It is
solid at room temperature. Unlike suet, tallow can be stored for extended
periods without the need for refrigeration to prevent decomposition,
provided it is kept in an airtight container to prevent oxidation.
4. BUTTER Butter is a dairy product made by churning fresh or fermented cream or
milk. It is generally used as a spread and a condiment, as well as in cooking
applications such as baking, sauce making, and frying. Butter consists of
butterfat, water and milk proteins.
Most frequently made from cows' milk, butter can also be manufactured
from the milk of other mammals, including sheep, goats, buffalo, and yaks.
Salt, flavorings and preservatives are sometimes added to butter. Rendering
butter produces clarified butter or ghee, which is almost entirely butterfat.
Butter is an emulsion which remains a solid when refrigerated, but softens
to a spreadable consistency at room temperature, and melts to a thin liquid
consistency at 32–35 °C (90–95 °F).
It generally has a pale yellow color, but varies from deep yellow to nearly
white. Its color is dependent on the animal's feed and is commonly
manipulated with food colorings in the commercial manufacturing process,
most commonly annatto or carotene.
5. GHEE Ghee is made by simmering unsalted butter in a large pot until all water has
boiled off and protein has settled to the bottom. The cooked and clarified
butter is then spooned off to avoid disturbing the milk solids on the bottom
of the pan. Unlike butter, ghee can be stored for extended periods without
refrigeration, provided it is kept in an airtight container to prevent oxidation
and remains moisture-free. Texture, colour, or taste of ghee depends on the
source of the milk from which the butter was made and the extent of
boiling.
It is the primary cooking medium of India and in many Arab countries.
Flavourings are often added like in India it can be bay leaves, cumin, cloves,
turmeric etc, in Arab herbs like thyme, oregano etc. can be added.
6. POULTRY Schmaltz or schmalz is rendered chicken or goose fat used for frying or as a
FAT spread on bread, especially in German, Polish, and Jewish cuisine.
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TYPES OF VEGETABLE OIL USED IN COOKING

1. CORN OIL Obtained from corn or maize, it has a high smoking point of 232oC,
thus very useful for deep frying.
2. COTTONSEED Extracted from the seed of cotton plant, having a high smoking point
OIL like corn oil.
3. SUNFLOWER OIL Ii can be of two types refine and unrefined, refining increases the
smoking point and make it more suitable for deep frying. Smoking
point of this oil is 232oC
4. GROUNDNUT Also known as peanut oil, it has a smoke point of 225oC, so good for
OIL deep frying
5. PALM OIL Most widely produced oil worldwide. It is made from the seed of the
palm fruit. Presence of Beta carotene gives a red hue, which is faded
when heated. It is one of the most stable oil, which is semi solid in
room temperature, so used for making margarines.
6. RAPESEED/ Rapeseed tree is a member of brassica family, it is used mainly as
CANOLA OIL food for cattle’s, and the seed is used for making oil. It contains good
amount of omega-6 and 3 so it is considered as healthiest of oils. It is
also known as Canola [can-o-la – Canadian oil low acid content].
7. MUSTARD OIL Very common in India, especially in east India [West Bengal]. This oil
is deep yellow in colour and has a very pungent smell. It should allow
smoking for at least 2 – 3 minutes to allow the pungent flavour to
escape. Hugely used to pickle vegetables.
8. OLIVE OIL It is made from olives and mainly used for Mediterranean countries,
it has a low smoking point of 165oC so not suitable for deep frying. It
has huge uses as salad dressings
9. NUT – BASED OIL Made from various nuts, like walnut, hazelnut, almond etc. those oils
are suitable for salad dressing or soup garnishes for their very strong
flavour, but not suitable for cooking due to its very low smoking
point. Those oils may become bitter with the application of heat.
10. VEGETABLE OIL Some vegetables like avocado, pumpkin are often used to make oils
to make margarines. Avocado oil is very expensive and used for
salad dressing.

MARGARINE

Margarine as a generic term can indicate any of a wide range of butter substitutes. In many
parts of the world, the market share of margarine and spreads has overtaken that of butter.
Margarine is an ingredient in the preparation of many other foods and in recipes.
Margarine is an emulsion of water in fat. The fat is a blend of refined vegetable oils, a portion
of which has been hardened by hydrogenation to produce the desired plasticity in the final
product. Fish oils and animal fats may also be incorporated in the blend. The hydrogenation is
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carried out by heating the oil in large sealed vessels under pressure. Hydrogen is bubbled into
the oil and finely divided nickel, which is subsequently removed by filtration, is required as a
catalyst. The oil blend is mixed with the water phase, which is skimmed milk, soured under
controlled conditions to give the desired flavour to the product. Artificial colouring, salt and
vitamins A and D are then added. In Britain these vitamins must be added by law. This law in
necessary because margarine often replaces butter in the diet and butter is an important
source of vitamins A and D. The emulsion is formed in a machine called a votator, in which
mixing and cooling occur together, and a fat of the desired consistency is produced.

• PUFF MARGARINE – Pastry margarine performs better than butter in making puff pastry
because of its high melting point. It does not melt quickly, thus allowing time for the puff pastry
dough to rise sufficiently high while not making it heavy and soggy. Then as the temperature
increases, the pastry margarine will then melt and infuse into the risen pastry, giving it its
scrumptious flavor. It is low in moisture content also
• CREAM MARGARINE – has a lower melting point than other variety of margarine, but solid in
room temperature.
• CAKE MARGARINE - moderate melting point with medium moisture content, suitable for
cake batters.

***** Hydrogenation in food industry

Hydrogenation is widely applied to the processing of vegetable oils and fats. Complete hydrogenation
converts unsaturated fatty acids to saturated ones. In practice the process is not usually carried to
completion. Since the original oils usually contain more than one double bond per molecule (that is,
they are polyunsaturated), the result is usually described as partially hydrogenated vegetable oil; that is
some, but usually not all, of the double bonds in each molecule have been reduced. This is done by
restricting the amount of hydrogen (or reducing agent) allowed to react with the fat.Hydrogenation
results in the conversion of liquid vegetable oils to solid or semi-solid fats, such as those present in
margarine. Changing the degree of saturation of the fat changes some important physical properties
such as the melting point, which is why liquid oils become semi-solid. Semi-solid fats are preferred for
baking because the way the fat mixes with flour produces a more desirable texture in the baked
product. Since partially hydrogenated vegetable oils are cheaper than animal source fats, they are
available in a wide range of consistencies, and have other desirable characteristics (e.g., increased
oxidative stability (longer shelf life)), they are the predominant fats used in most commercial baked
goods. Fat blends formulated for this purpose are called shortenings.