Ingredientbeginnerdraft
Fat in general
Also searched as: butter, oil, margarine, lard
In short: Fat makes baked goods tender because it coats the flour, keeps them moist and carries flavour. Which fat you use decides the texture.
Picture it
Like a raincoat around the flour: water has a harder time getting in, so the network stays weak.
What Fat in general does
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What happens
Solid fat such as cold butter stays in little pieces and gives layers. Soft butter can be creamed with sugar and holds air. Oil makes cakes especially moist, but cannot hold air.
What the ingredient does
coats flour, makes it shortGluten development
creamed: holds airFoams and whipping in air
melts and makes cookies spreadCookies spread
Rules of thumb
- Cold butter for shortcrust and puff pastry, soft for sponge cakes, oil for moist cakes.
Related entries
Sources
- Harold McGee: On Food and Cooking (2004), Kapitel Kuchen, Gebäck, Zucker
- The Bake School: Why chill cookie dough