FATS Leonardo da Vinci Partnership: “Kitchen and Restaurant Guide for Starters”

FATS: Animal and Vegetable Fats are an important source of energy for our bodies as long as we get the right amount of it, and it should be the right kind of fat too. At room temperature, the fats rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids have a soft consistency or are liquids while saturated fats have a hard texture. If you eat too much saturated fat, it can lead to heart and stomach disorders.

Butter Butter, which a dairy product, is used in a variety ways. When frying food, butter adds color, flavour as well as protects the food from burning. Butter can also be used for baking, glazing and other cooking purposes. Butter consists of about 80 percent milk fat.

Lard In some cultures, pig fat is sometimes made into a pasty substance that is nearly 100% fat. Lard can be used in baking but also as a spread similar to butter. Just like butter, lard can even be used for frying.

Margarine Margarine is basically a mixture of hardened vegetable oils and sometimes dried skimmed milk. Since margarine is used as a substitute to butter, producers give margarine a similar appearance. The nutritional value to butter is comparable, and coupled with the fact that margarine is cheaper than butter, restaurants tend use margarine more often.

COOKING OILS Cooking oil is made from different organic food commodities, for example fruits, grains and seeds. We use oil for frying, deep frying and baking, etc. It must be liquid at 15 degrees otherwise, we no oil. Oil made from 100% unsaturated fat.

Olive Oil When pressing olives, it produces oil. To produce one liter of oil, 6 kg of olives are needed. It is a healthy oil rich in monosaturates and vitamin-E. Olive oil is used for dressings because it has a strong taste. It is also used in low temperature cooking, like simmering, since higher temperatures diminish the flavour of the oil.

Rapeseed Oil Rapeseed (Canola) oil is an edible oil which is pressed from rapeseed and is produced by cold pressing and hot pressing. When it is cold- pressed, the oil has a neutral taste and is therefore suitable for baking and frying. Like olive oil, rapeseed oil contains mostly monounsaturated fats. Due to its similar qualities with olive oil and its cheaper cost, restaurants use it as a substitute instead of olive oil.

Corn Oil Corn produces oil rich in polyunsaturated fats. The abundancy of corn makes the oil cheaper. The high flash point of corn oil allows it to be used for frying, especially deep frying. Sunflower Oil Sunflower oil come from pressing the seeds of the flower. Like corn oil, sunflower oil contains mostly polyunsaturated fats so it is a healthy alternative in cooking. Sunflower oil contains vitamin-E. Additionally, it has a high flash point so it can be used for frying.

Vegetable Oil Vegetable oil refers to the process of mixing oils from different plants like rapeseed, sunflowers and /or corn. Vegetable oil is a cheaper source for cooking fat low in saturated fatty acids. Different mixtures can be used to obtain certain qualities necessary in cooking.

SALT Salt is a kind of mineral composed of sodium chloride. Salt is a seasoning that is in the form of a powder and is the most widely used seasoning in food preparation. Salt is the oldest perservative as well so it has other uses.

PEPPER Pepper is a strong spice that comes from the pepper plants. There are different kinds of pepper like black pepper, white pepper and green pepper. They all come from different plants. Pepper is very commonly used to enhance the taste of food.

SOY Soy is a sauce that is made from soybeans that are very common in Asia. Soy is well suited for noodles and rice.

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