Yihao Classroom
Yihou Oils specializes in the production of puff pastry shortening, specialty oils, and baking oils, among other artificial butters. Below, Yihou's editor will introduce how to better use oils and dairy products?
Oils and Dairy Products
Chemically, esters formed from chain carboxylic acids and glycerol are called oils and fats. Those that are liquid at room temperature are called oils, which are mainly composed of unsaturated fatty acids; those that are solid at room temperature are called fats, which contain a large amount of saturated fatty acids. Most oils are obtained from plant seeds, and most fats are obtained from animals. The main physiological function of oils and fats is to store and provide thermal energy. In metabolism, they can provide about twice the thermal energy of carbohydrates and proteins.
Liquid Oils:
Salad oil used for daily stir-frying, melted butter, and melted margarine are all liquid oils.
Yihou liquid oil, when used in sponge cakes and chiffon cakes (which rely on baking powder or whipped egg whites to create bubbles), can make the cakes more delicate and delicious. Liquid oil should be added after the egg whites are whipped and the batter is mixed. If too much oil is used, it will not blend with the egg whites and batter, and will settle at the bottom, causing the cake to layer, and excessive oil will destroy the existing foam.
When making bread and pizza dough (which rely on yeast fermentation to produce bubbles), softened Yihou butter or salad oil must be added after the dough is kneaded, otherwise it will hinder the flour's absorption of water and the formation of gluten.
When making cream puffs and soda crackers, melted Yihou butter or Yihou margarine can be used, or salad oil can be substituted.
Lard:
Cut the pork fat into pieces and stir-fry in an empty pan to produce a pot of transparent lard (if the temperature is too high or stir-fried for too long, the oil will turn brown), leaving some dry residue. After cooling, the lard is a white solid and can be stored in the freezer. Of course, it is almost impossible to buy pork fat or large pieces of fatty meat in supermarkets now. You need to order it specially from the meat stalls in the vegetable market (the price is up to them; I bought it for 5 yuan a kilogram, and I could get about 7 liang of oil).
Lard has a very low melting point and is very soft at room temperature, so it has the best puff pastry effect. Most Chinese pastries use lard, such as bean paste pastries and peach pastries, which have unique textures and flavors.
Yihou Butter:
Yihou butter is butter. Some recipes write it as cream.
Butter is extracted from milk or fresh cream (all the nutrients in milk that are soluble in oil but not in water are contained in butter and extracted). Some of the butter sold on the market contains added salt.
Melted or softened butter in recipes is equivalent to liquid oil.
Softened Yihou butter is also very delicious when spread directly on bread or steamed buns; you can sprinkle some sugar on top.
After whipping solid butter with sugar, the color lightens, the volume increases, and a large number of tiny bubbles are incorporated. Butter cakes and cookies rely on whipped butter to create a fluffy texture.
When making pie crusts and egg tart crusts, the solid butter, cut into small pieces, is mixed with the flour instead of being evenly mixed and kneaded into a ball. After baking, the butter melts, making the crust crispy and easily fractured.
When making mille-feuille, butter is used directly as the wrapping oil. The dough and butter are layered alternately, and after baking, the butter melts, separating the dough into many flaky layers.
Yihou Margarine:
Margarine is an artificial butter. Oil extracted from plant seeds (similar to salad oil) is hydrogenated to reduce unsaturation, becoming a solid fat. Then, flavoring is added to create an artificial butter that looks and tastes like butter. Margarine is cheaper than butter. Some margarine also contains added salt. In theory, margarine can completely replace butter, but in practice, because margarine is not as fragrant and mellow as natural butter, and its melting point is slightly lower, it is generally only used as a wrapping oil for puff pastry.
Yihou Puff Pastry Shortening:
(酥油 refers to a unique Tibetan food, also used in unique Tibetan butter sculptures, made from yak, cow, and sheep milk, unrelated to baking) Puff pastry shortening is shortening. Any oil used for puff pastry wrapping can be called puff pastry shortening. Puff pastry shortening should contain as little water as possible, so it is also called anhydrous puff pastry shortening. It can be animal fat, vegetable fat, hydrogenated vegetable fat, or a mixture of the three. In short, it is industrially processed to remove water and add flavoring.
Fresh Cream:
Fresh cream, light cream, or simply fresh milk, light milk, is cream. It is also fat extracted from milk. After being whipped into a paste, it can be used for piping on cakes, added to coffee, ice cream, fruits, desserts, or even eaten directly. However, what is now found on the market is mostly
plant-based cream. Just as margarine is artificial butter, plant-based cream is artificial fresh milk. It is made by hydrogenating vegetable oil and adding flavorings that produce a milky aroma to replace fresh milk. The purchased plant-based cream is liquid. After freezing into blocks, it can be cut into the required size, packaged, and frozen for storage. When using, take out a block of frozen cream, melt it into a liquid, and then whip it with an egg beater in ice water until the volume expands, can form peaks, and does not collapse. Then you can start piping.
Condensed Milk:
Sweetened condensed milk is made by evaporating water from milk to concentrate it, then adding sugar for better preservation. Diluted sweetened condensed milk is essentially milk with added sugar. However, in baking, sweetened condensed milk is rarely used as an ingredient due to its high sugar content; it cannot replace butter or milk. Original and various flavored condensed milks can be directly applied to baked or steamed desserts.
Milk Powder:
Adding milk powder when making bread can enhance the flavor. The milk powder and water in a bread recipe can be replaced with milk.
Milk:
In baking, milk provides both water and a milky flavor. It can be replaced with a mixture of milk powder and water without affecting the result. Whole milk, low-fat milk, and skim milk can all be used.
Cheese:
Cheese is a dairy product made by concentrating and fermenting milk, preserving most of its nutrients. It's a broad term encompassing hundreds or even thousands of varieties (similar to how we categorize alcohol: yellow wine, white wine, red wine, beer, fruit wine, rice wine, sake lees, sweet rice wine, dry red, dry white, draft beer, etc.). In baking, the most commonly used cheeses are mozzarella, ideal for pizza due to its stretching properties, and cream cheese, used in cheesecakes.
Cheese, Anchor butter, and fresh milk are generally available in large supermarkets or those attached to shopping malls, usually found in the refrigerated section. Imported dairy products, in particular, offer a wide variety of choices but are usually more expensive.
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Shandong Yihao Food Co., Ltd
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Address: Daqiao Economic Development Zone, Tianqiao District, Jinan City (Yihao Food Industrial Park)