The pumpable, fluid shortening mimics the properties of a solid fat, containing 23 percent solids, which compares to standard, all-purpose shortening with solids of 25 percent to 28 percent.

A tropical touch

Palm oil is a solid fat, and blending palm oil with other liquid oils, such as soybean or canola, creates semisolid or solid shortenings.

The U.S. bakery market requires many different fats in order to make its diverse product range. Palm oil is a highly versatile raw material easily converted into many different forms using fractionation. Fractions blended in different proportions produce a wide variety of ingredients, each with different functional properties that can be tailored to meet client specifications.

Palm oil and fractions are naturally highly stable and impart a long shelf life. Palm oil's natural antioxidant content — tocotrienols — protects against off flavors.

The main saturated fat in palm oil is palmitic acid, which naturally crystallizes into a very small, stable form called beta prime. This small crystal “is ideal for imparting a smooth texture to baked products and is effective in entrapping and stabilizing small air bubbles,” says Gerald McNeill, Ph.D., vice president, R&D and marketing, Loders Croklaan, Channahon, Ill. Proper aeration is essential to the texture of most baking products. Cookies, with a rough mouthfeel, contain a relatively small amount of air while cakes, which are smoother in texture, are highly aerated.

“Donuts, for example, benefit from frying in a solid fat, such as palm oil,” McNeill adds. “The oil sets quickly on cooling for a firm donut with good structure that will not weep oil into the packaging. It also lends itself well to icing or sugar coatings. And different blends of palm oil fractions even can impart different textures to donuts, imparting a more dry or more moist characteristic, depending upon the product specifications.”

While common public opinion labels palm oil a saturated fat, it actually consists of a balance of saturated and unsaturated fat, about 50 percent of each. According to McNeill, “Dietary research published in the last 10 years has not been able to show a clear link between saturates and heart disease. It appears saturated fats in general may be neither good nor bad, having only a small effect on risk of heart disease.”

Soy-based solutions

High-stearic soybean oil can be used as an alternative to partially hydrogenated oils, which are used to formulate a wide range of shortening products. The American Heart Association has indicated stearic acid may not affect or may even lower blood cholesterol.

As soybean oil currently serves as a source of omega-3 fatty acids, when it is used as the liquid portion of a blended shortening, the levels of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids in the resultant shortening provide a healthful benefit. Researchers are currently developing soybeans even richer in omega-3s.

Interesterification is a process that rearranges fatty acids on the triglyceride molecule. The resulting fat's properties, such as its melting point, can be improved for structural stability. Zero-trans and reduced-trans oils and fats can be produced via interesterification.

Interesterified soybean oil has been shown to work well in cookie and Danish applications. The combinations of solids from stearic acid and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) from soybean oil produce cookies and Danish with some degree of structure and a degree of tenderness. The balance of saturates and PUFAs helps define the textural equilibrium, says Tom Tiffany, senior technical sales manager, Food Oils Division, ADM, Decatur, Ill.

Whether a baking operation wishes to manufacture product with special claims or just special flavor and texture, maintaining product equilibrium involves an important choice in shortening selection.