Butter vs. Shortening: What's the Difference? (2024)

FAQs

Butter vs. Shortening: What's the Difference? ›

Butter contains 80% butterfat and about 20% (naturally occurring) water. Shortening is 100% hydrogenated vegetable oil and contains no water.

Baked goods made with shortening are typically softer and more tender than those made with butter. They also tend to be slightly taller, as it has a higher melting point and doesn't spread as much.

Which One Should I Use in Cookies? Basically, cookies made with butter spread more and are flatter and crisper if baked long enough. However, they are more flavorful than cookies made with shortening. Cookies made with shortening bake up taller and are more tender, but aren't as flavorful.

From biscuits to pie crusts, butter is an easy swap for shortening. In fact, you can use the exact same amount.

Lard vs Shortening

The difference between lard and vegetable shortening is that lard is made of pure animal fat and shortening is made of vegetable oil. When vegetable shortening was invented in 1911, it was very appealing because it was affordable and shelf stable.

In general, you can substitute Crisco shortening for butter or margarine in equal amounts (1 cup Crisco shortening = 1 cup butter or margarine). Not only does Crisco shortening have 50% less saturated fat than butter and 0g trans fat per serving, it gives you higher, lighter-textured baked goods.

The texture of the cookies might be a little different—chewier or crispier, depending on which way you're substituting. The substitution will affect the flavor, since shortening does not have the same richness as butter. Rather, shortening allows the other ingredients to shine and take center stage.

Crisco® all-vegetable shortening will make your cakes moist, pie crusts flaky, and cookies soft and fluffy, with 0g of trans fat per serving*.

The Food Marketing Institute's FoodKeeper recommends storing unopened solid shortening, such as Crisco shortening, at room temperature for 8 months. After opening, store at room temperature for 3 months for best quality.

Is butter or shortening better for pie crust? ›

Despite the great taste of butter, some bakers don't like to use it for pie crusts because it's difficult to handle. “Butter is harder to work with than shortening because it melts at a lower temperature,” Huntsberger said. It can be hard to get a flaky pie crust with butter if the butter isn't handled very carefully.

Overall, shortening in baking provides goods with an element of formation and texture that oil can't. The high fat content in shortening contributes to the moistness of goods providing them with a softer, fluffier texture.

Applesauce: You can replace shortening with applesauce in sweet baking recipes to add more density to your creations. One cup of shortening equals about half a cup of applesauce.

How Did Shortening Get its Name? Shortening got its name because its purpose is to cause a shortening of the gluten fibers in dough. Wheat gluten forms elastic fibers and produces a dough that stretches, which is preferable for foods like pizza dough that need to be stretched and shaped.

Why shortening instead of butter or oil? Butter can sometimes worsen sticking problems, especially in cakes that are high in sugar. Oil absorbs too much of the flour and can pool in the bottom of the pan.

Shortening is pure fat whereas butter is only about 80% fat by weight. Butter may bring additional flavor to your recipe (even by greasing the pan) but it also adds some water which may not be wanted. One final difference is that butter burns/browns more easily than shortening.

This is so simple a child can do it, just take regular shortening and softened butter and do a 3 to 1 mix 3 shortening and 1 butter. Mix them and there you have it. Like for example, 1 ¼ cup shortening and ½ cup butter.