Explain the differences among butter, margarine, shortening, and vegetable oil. Compare their nutrient contributions


Butter is made from the cream of milk. It is semi-hard and contains about 80% milk fat, no more than 16% water, and 4% milk solids.
Margarine has a very similar composition to butter, but is made from soybean, corn, safflower, canola, or other vegetable oils. Margarine is the result of hydrogenation of any of these vegetable oils. The calories of butter equal the calories of margarine, but are from a different fat source.
Shortening is comprised of plant oils that have been hydrogenated to enhance solidity and pliability. Soybean oil is the major source of hydrogenated shortening. Shortening is also superglycerinated, which includes the addition of mono- and diglycerides to improve plasticity. This makes shortening ideal for baking.
Vegetable oils are from soybeans, rapeseed (canola), sunflower seed, corn, cottonseed, and safflower seed and tropical oils are from avocado, coconut, palm kernel, palm, and olives.
Vegetable oils differ in taste, color and texture. Vegetable oils require extraction from plants, refinement, bleaching, and deodorizing for manufacturing.

Nutritional Science

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