0 The New Complete Book of Food
Storing This Food
Store butter in the refrigerator, tightly wrapped to protect it from air and prevent it from
picking up the odors of other food. Even refrigerated butter will eventually turn rancid as its
fat molecules combine with oxygen to produce hydroperoxides that, in turn, break down into
chemicals with an unpleasant flavor and aroma. This reaction is slowed (but not stopped)
by cold. Because salt retards the combination of fats with oxygen, salted butter stays fresh
longer than plain butter. (Lard, which is pork fat, must also be refrigerated. Lard has a higher
proportion of unsaturated fats than the butter. Since unsaturated fats combine with oxygen
more easily than saturated fats, lard becomes rancid more quickly than butter.)Preparing This Food
To measure a half-cup of butter. Pour four ounces of water into an eight-ounce measuring
cup, then add butter until the water rises to the eight-ounce mark. Scoop out the butter, use
as directed in recipe.What Happens When You Cook This Food
Fats are very useful in cooking. They keep foods from sticking to the pot or pan; add fla-
vor; and, as they warm, transfer heat from the pan to the food. In doughs and batters, fats
separate the flour’s starch granules from each other. The more closely the fat mixes with the
starch, the smoother the bread or cake will be.
Heat speeds the oxidation and decomposition of fats. When fats are heated, they can
catch fire spontaneously without boiling first at what is called the smoke point. Butter will
burn at 250°F.How Other Kinds of Processing Affect This Food
Freezing. Freezing slows the oxidation of fats more effectively than plain refrigeration;
frozen butter keeps for up to nine months.
Whipping. When butter is whipped, air is forced in among the fat molecules to produce a
foam. As a result, the whipped butter has fewer calories per serving, though not per ounce.Medical Uses and/or Benefits
* * *Adverse Effects Associated with This Food
Increased risk of heart disease. Like other foods from animals, butter contains cholesterol
and saturated fats. Eating butter increases the amount of cholesterol circulating in your