Why do we use fats in baking? Simple! They tenderize our baked treats, giving them a soft and moist texture. They do this by coating the flour and starches in the mixture. Fats come in all different shapes, like butter, oil, lard, and egg yolks. Let’s break this down and understand the role of fat in baking.

On the kitchen counter, youll find a bottle of yellow oil, a stick of butter, and a cup of white shortening ready for baking. A small jug and wooden spatula complete the lineup against a light stone backdrop.

What do fats do in baking?

  • Tenderize – by coating the gluten and preventing the molecules from getting too tough
  • Leaven/Rise – by aeration and trapping air, which when baked expand as a gas
  • Preserve – keeping our baked treats fresher longer and stopping them from going stale too quickly
  • Add flavor – all fats contribute a rich flavor
  • Thicken – fats thicken things like buttercream through aeration

How to Aerate Butter

When you aerate something, you are whipping it until tiny air bubbles get trapped in the mixture. This will result in a lighter and more tender texture while also helping the baked treat rise taller.

Butter must be room temperature in order to aerate. If the butter molecules are too cold or too warm then they will not be at the right flexibility to trap air.

As you beat butter and sugar together on high speed, the sugar crystals cut into the butter, leaving holes which quickly get filled up with air. You must beat on high until your mixture is lighter in color and has doubled in size.

On the kitchen counter, theres a bottle of oil, a glass jar with some more oil, and a stick of butter chillin on a wooden board—all your baking essentials. Youve also got two scoops of solid white fat in measuring cups with wooden handles, all set against those trendy white hex tiles.

Butter vs. Oil

  • Butter is a dairy fat that is solid when cool and softens and melts over a range of temperatures, often around 90–95°F.
  • Plant oils differ in their fat composition and melting behavior. Many are liquid at room temperature, while coconut and palm oils can be solid.

Butter is great for recipes that need to be aerated. Oil is good for an extra moist and tender treat or when you don’t want to wait for butter to soften. You can always use both in a recipe and enjoy the best of both worlds.

On a light countertop, youve got all the baking fats lined up: a bottle of oil, a glass pitcher with some yellow stuff, an unwrapped stick of butter on a wooden tray, and two wooden scoops packed with something white—probably shortening or lard.

What oils can you use when baking?

  • Coconut Oil
  • Olive Oil
  • Peanut Oil
  • Sunflower Oil
  • Canola Oil
  • Grape Seed Oil
  • Palm Oil
  • Flaxseed Oil
  • Almond Oil
  • Avocado Oil
  • Walnut Oil

Why bake with oil?

Oil is 100% fat with no water content. It is a liquid so it easily coats all the flour and starch molecules making the baked treat more tender and moist. Since there is no water in oil, it will not toughen your gluten bonds. Oil cannot be aerated like butter, so you cannot use it in a recipe that requires aeration to leaven/rise the batter.

On a marble countertop, you’ll see a mix of cooking oils and fats. There’s a bottle and jug with liquid oils, plus butter sitting on a wooden board and some coconut oil in a cup for all your baking needs. To top it off, there are wooden-handled scoops hanging out nearby.

Can you bake with coconut butter?

Coconut butter is ground coconut flesh; coconut oil is the extracted fat. They are different ingredients and should not be treated as interchangeable. Use the ingredient and preparation method specified in a tested recipe.

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Check out this baking must-have: a cutting board with all the essentials! Theres a bottle of oil, a glass jug brimming with goodness, a stick of butter, and a measuring cup packed with lard—all set on chic marble. And up top? Fats in Baking — and why they matter.