Friday, May 17, 2013

What is a 'Shortening'? How 2 replace it ?


What is a 'Shortening'? How 2 replace it ?
It is any fat that is solid at room temperature and used to make crumbly pastry. In pastries such as cake, which should not be elastic, shortening is used. Although butter is solid at room temperature and is frequently used in making pastry, the term "shortening" seldom refers to butter but is more closely related to margarine. Shortening is made by a process called hydrogenation, which involves add extra hydrogen atoms to the vegetable fats and turns them into solids, rather than liquids. Also Shortening is a solid fat that is derived either from plant or animal sources. Shortening derived from animals comes from lard, while those derived from plants undergo a process known as hydrogenation.
Originally, shortening was synonymous with lard, and with the invention of margarine by French chemist Hippolyte Mège-Mouriès in 1869, margarine also came to be included in the term. Since the invention of hydrogenated vegetable oil in the early 20th century, "shortening" has come almost exclusively to mean hydrogenated vegetable oil. Shortening can be melted or softened and creamed into a mixture. In baking, shortening is used with pastries, pie crusts and biscuits to make them flaky. It is also used in frying or deep-frying as a liquid.
A short dough is one that is crumbly or mealy. The opposite of a short dough is a "long" dough, especially a flaky pie crust. Vegetable shortening (or butter, or other solid fats) can produce both types of dough; the difference is in technique. 
Vegetable shortening is virtually flavorless, and is used to make baked goods light and flaky. 
Shortening is used in a number of different jobs, and the substitutes depend on the job. The primary use of shortening is to "shorten" pie dough, biscuits, and other pastries, which makes them flaky. For that you can substitute butter or lard, or even vegetable oil. 
http://allrecipes.com/HowTo/Common-Ingredient-Substitutions/Detail.aspx
You can substitute . . . . .
A 1 cup of butter or 1 cup of margarine minus 1/2 teaspoon of salt for 1 cup of shortening. When using butter remember that it browns easier than shortening. 
B Margarine 1 cup : 1 cup shortening plus 1/2 teaspoon salt
OR
1 cup butter OR 7/8 cup vegetable oil plus 1/2 teaspoon salt 
OR
7/8 cup lard plus 1/2 teaspoon salt.
C Butter (salted)
1 cup : 1 cup margarine 
OR
1 cup shortening plus 1/2 teaspoon salt
OR
7/8 cup vegetable oil plus 1/2 teaspoon salt 
OR
7/8 cup lard plus 1/2 teaspoon salt.
D Butter (unsalted)
1 cup : 1 cup shortening
OR 
7/8 cup vegetable oil OR 7/8 cup lard.
E When substituting shortening with cooking oil, you should use
1 cup of oil for every 1 cup of shortening needed.
F When using butter or margarine as a substitute, you should use
1 â cups of butter or margarine or 2 tbsp more than a cup for every 1 cup of shortening needed for the recipe. When using butter or margarine as a substitute for shortening, use less salt in your recipe.
G Shortening just used to grease your pan during frying, you can substitute it with cooking spray.
H You can substitute 1 cup of shortening with ½ cup of applesauce or prune puree. 
I Have u ever tried to replace one third of the shortening with a mashed up avacado. just mash it up and measure till you have a third of the amount of shortening called for. 
J Useful tip.. You can substitute mayonnaise for part of the shortening in your baking recipes. It adds moistness and makes for a tender texture. Be careful though. Try using half mayo and half shortening at first.

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