Is margarine made from lard? How to identify margarine

Margarine is a substitute for natural butter. It has a very bright light yellow appearance, a very uniform and delicate texture, and a good flavor. Margarine does not contain high cholesterol and calories like animal butter, but it contains a lot of trans fatty acids. Open the following content to learn more about it!

Contents of this article

1. Is margarine made from lard?

2. How to identify margarine

3. What are the hazards of margarine?

Is margarine made from lard?

Margarine is made of vegetable oil, some animal oil, water, and artificial flavors. It is a butter substitute that imitates natural butter obtained from milk. The taste of margarine is the same as that of natural butter, but its taste is worse, without the natural milk flavor, and the hydrogenation of vegetable oil will produce trans fatty acids.

Margarine is not made entirely of lard, but is made from vegetable oil, some animal oil, water, and artificial flavors. The animal oil may be lard or butter. Margarine is a substitute for natural butter, and it is made to imitate the taste of natural butter.

Although margarine contains lard, the content is not much. The main ingredient of margarine is vegetable oil, which includes soybean oil, rapeseed oil, cottonseed oil, coconut oil, etc., and vegetable oil is hydrogenated to obtain vegetable hydrogenated oil. However, hydrogenated vegetable oil will produce trans fatty acids.

Characteristics of margarine

Margarine is a substitute for natural butter. It has a very bright light yellow appearance, a very uniform and delicate texture, and a good flavor, but it tastes worse than natural butter. The trans fatty acids in margarine are harmful to health and should not be consumed in large quantities.

How to identify margarine

When using sensory methods to identify the color of margarine, you can first take a sample and observe its exterior under natural light, then cut it with a knife and carefully observe the color of the cut surface. Good quality margarine - uniform light yellow with a glossy finish. Substandard margarine - white or over-colored, with uneven color distribution and a glossy finish. Low quality margarine - dark gray with mold spots on the surface.

When conducting sensory identification of the texture of margarine, you can take a sample and observe it directly, then cut it into several slices with a knife and observe it carefully. Good quality margarine - clean surface, neat cut surface, fine and uniform texture, no water droplets, no air chambers, no impurities, no mold spots, and no salt crystals in salted margarine. Substandard margarine has an uneven texture, with a small amount of air-filled holes or gaps, water droplets seeping out of the cut surface, and salted margarine has salt crystals on the cut surface. Inferior margarine - uneven texture, sticky, soft and greasy, sticky to the knife when cut or appears fragile, loose and inextensible, with large water droplets and larger pores on the cut surface.

When using sensory organs to identify the smell of margarine, take a sample, open the package at room temperature of 20℃, and smell it directly. If necessary, heat the sample to 40℃ and smell it again. Good quality margarine - has a buttery aroma and no bad smell. Inferior margarine - has a bland buttery aroma and a slight peculiar smell. Low quality margarine - has a musty smell, rancid smell, and other bad smells.

At room temperature of 20℃, take a little margarine and put it on the tip of your tongue after rinsing your mouth to taste it. Good quality margarine - has the characteristic taste of margarine, no peculiar smell; slightly salty with salt, slightly sweet with sugar. Inferior quality margarine - margarine tastes bland with a slight peculiar smell. Low quality margarine - has unpleasant tastes such as bitter, sour, spicy, soapy, etc.

What are the dangers of margarine

1. Margarine can increase blood viscosity, increase the amount of low-density lipids, and reduce the amount of high-density lipids, thereby promoting arteriosclerosis.

2. Margarine can affect human memory because trans fatty acids resist a type of cholesterol that can promote human memory.

3. Margarine almost does not exist in the human body and is extremely difficult to be digested and absorbed by the human body. It easily accumulates in the abdomen, thus leading to obesity.

4. Margarine can reduce the secretion of male hormones and have a negative impact on sperm activity, thereby interrupting the physiological activity of sperm in the human body.

5. Margarine hinders the absorption of fatty acids in children and adolescents who are in the growth and development period, and can also cause poor growth and development of the central nervous system.

Margarine does not contain high cholesterol and calories like animal butter, but it contains a lot of trans fatty acids, which can increase the content of low-density lipids and reduce the density of high-density lipids, thus increasing the risk of coronary heart disease and breast cancer. Although margarine has many hazards, it is popular among merchants and customers because it is refreshing, sweet and not greasy and not easy to deteriorate.

Trans fatty acids can seriously affect the human body's memory ability because they resist a type of cholesterol that can promote human memory. Trans fatty acids are almost non-existent in the human body and are not easily digested and absorbed by the body, so they are easily accumulated in the abdomen, leading to obesity. Therefore, friends who want to lose weight should not eat butter, so as not to affect your weight loss effect.

Trans fatty acids can also reduce the secretion of male hormones and have a negative impact on sperm activity, thus interrupting the physiological activity of sperm in the human body. Trans fatty acids can also hinder the absorption of fatty acids by children and adolescents who are in the growth and development period. Excessive consumption can also cause poor growth and development of the central nervous system. Therefore, margarine products are not high-quality foods, and it is recommended that you avoid such foods. Even if you want to eat them, you should eat them without affecting your health.