OT question: avoiding shortening for cornbread?

On 2006-08-20 10:19:04 -0500, "Winnie" said:


Karen wrote:
Actually, transfat is modern. Nothing used by past generations had
trans fat. It happens when you process a fat by heat. There is a teeny
natural amount in milk only.

I thought trans fat is produced by hydrogenation. That's why
non-hydrogenated margarine
have no trans fat.

Winnie

Yes, and by heat. That's why it is bad to reuse oil. Any oil will
become loaded with transfat when reheated.

On 2006-08-20 10:32:16 -0500, "Monique Y. Mudama" said:

On 2006-08-20, Karen penned:

When you use vegetable oil to deep fry, it actually get sucked into
the food, permeating it, using lard the outside cooks and what
clings to it is all you get. Lard is actually less fatty to fry in.

If you ever want an eye opening experience, Read The Good Fat
Cookbook by Fran McCullough.

Hum ... is there a way to address this for oil fondue?

I'm not familiar with oil fondue. Tell me more about it.

Karen wrote:
On 2006-08-20 01:11:21 -0500, "EvelynVogtGamble(Divamanque)"
said:



jmcquown wrote:
wrote:

EvelynVogtGamble(Divamanque) wrote:

Monique Y. Mudama wrote:


I've noticed the more authentic (ie, not in a "cooking healthy/
light/ lowfat/ etc" book) cornbread recipes always call for
shortening to coat the pan.

Would it be a disaster to use spray Pam or something instead?

Not if you're baking it! (Actually, i thing the REAL
"original" cornbread - also called "hush puppies" -
contained no shortening at all, but was was deep fried, like
doughnuts.)

Ooo. I love hush puppies. That's one of the things I miss on the
heart-healthy diet. Around here, though, hush puppies are different
than cornbread, more highly seasoned and have onion in the batter and
kind of bite-sized. Best when served with fried catfish. :-)

Fried cornbread is just, well, fried cornbread. Just a thicker
batter, and you fry it in hot oil. Like you're cooking a pancake, but
more oil.

Sherry


Fried cornbread is like cornmeal pancakes. Nothing wrong with them, mind
you Hush puppies definitely have minced onion. Never heard of hush
puppies cooked in butter. Shortening and/or lard, yep.

Oh yes, definitely lard, for preference - but deep-fried, anyway. I
haven't had any for a very long time, so I don't remember how they were
seasoned, but if you guys say they contain onion, I'll take your word
for it. They certainly had more flavor that what I've had as
"cornbread" since - perhaps the difference lies in the seasoning.

When you use vegetable oil to deep fry, it actually get sucked into the
food, permeating it, using lard the outside cooks and what clings to it
is all you get. Lard is actually less fatty to fry in.

If you ever want an eye opening experience, Read The Good Fat Cookbook
by Fran McCullough.

That's interesting info. Although I don't eat it myself, I still fry
breaded okra, breaded squash, catfish, etc. for DH occasionally. I have
always known that breaded things cook better with lard. I just never
used it becuase I honestly felt like I was serving up poison or
something. I should read that book.

Sherry

On 2006-08-20, Karen penned:
Yes, and by heat. That's why it is bad to reuse oil. Any oil will
become loaded with transfat when reheated.

But not the first time? I don't understand.

--
monique, who spoils Oscar unmercifully

pictures: http://www.bounceswoosh.org/rpca

On 2006-08-20, Karen penned:
On 2006-08-20 10:32:16 -0500, "Monique Y. Mudama"
said:

Hum ... is there a way to address this for oil fondue?

I'm not familiar with oil fondue. Tell me more about it.

I just mean, when you fill the fondue pot with oil and cook stuff in
it piece by piece. We do it with beef, breaded cheese, and breaded
mushrooms. The vegetable oil definitely permeates the food.

--
monique, who spoils Oscar unmercifully

pictures: http://www.bounceswoosh.org/rpca

EvelynVogtGamble(Divamanque) wrote:
Pat wrote:

"Monique Y. Mudama" wrote


I wasn't sure, so I bought some shortening. It claims to be about
half the fat of butter, so maybe shortening isn't as bad as I
thought.


Actually, it's worse than you thought. Trans-fatty acids wreak havoc
on the liver.

Good thing all the past generations of our ancestors didn't
know that!

Isn't it funny how things are progressively worse for us? Yeah, butter is
bad. Wait, margarine is worse. No wait, butter, margarine, bacon fat...
wait... it's all bad. Guess what? You're gonna die anyway. No way out of
it. Might as well enjoy eating while you can!

Jill

On 2006-08-20 11:52:51 -0500, "Monique Y. Mudama" said:

On 2006-08-20, Karen penned:
Yes, and by heat. That's why it is bad to reuse oil. Any oil will
become loaded with transfat when reheated.

But not the first time? I don't understand.

I'll have to look it up, but the first time the oil is fine but after
being heated once, if you use it again, it will begin to undergo
whatever the chemical process is that causes fats to become transfats.

On 2006-08-20 11:53:56 -0500, "Monique Y. Mudama" said:

On 2006-08-20, Karen penned:
On 2006-08-20 10:32:16 -0500, "Monique Y. Mudama"
said:

Hum ... is there a way to address this for oil fondue?

I'm not familiar with oil fondue. Tell me more about it.

I just mean, when you fill the fondue pot with oil and cook stuff in
it piece by piece. We do it with beef, breaded cheese, and breaded
mushrooms. The vegetable oil definitely permeates the food.

Well, I don't know. I suppose it depends on how long the oil is heated
and to what temperatures.

On 2006-08-20 10:51:01 -0500, said:


Karen wrote:
On 2006-08-20 01:11:21 -0500, "EvelynVogtGamble(Divamanque)"
said:



jmcquown wrote:
wrote:

EvelynVogtGamble(Divamanque) wrote:

Monique Y. Mudama wrote:


I've noticed the more authentic (ie, not in a "cooking healthy/
light/ lowfat/ etc" book) cornbread recipes always call for
shortening to coat the pan.

Would it be a disaster to use spray Pam or something instead?

Not if you're baking it! (Actually, i thing the REAL
"original" cornbread - also called "hush puppies" -
contained no shortening at all, but was was deep fried, like
doughnuts.)

Ooo. I love hush puppies. That's one of the things I miss on the
heart-healthy diet. Around here, though, hush puppies are different
than cornbread, more highly seasoned and have onion in the batter and
kind of bite-sized. Best when served with fried catfish. :-)

Fried cornbread is just, well, fried cornbread. Just a thicker
batter, and you fry it in hot oil. Like you're cooking a pancake, but
more oil.

Sherry


Fried cornbread is like cornmeal pancakes. Nothing wrong with them, mind
you Hush puppies definitely have minced onion. Never heard of hush
puppies cooked in butter. Shortening and/or lard, yep.

Oh yes, definitely lard, for preference - but deep-fried, anyway. I
haven't had any for a very long time, so I don't remember how they were
seasoned, but if you guys say they contain onion, I'll take your word
for it. They certainly had more flavor that what I've had as
"cornbread" since - perhaps the difference lies in the seasoning.

When you use vegetable oil to deep fry, it actually get sucked into the
food, permeating it, using lard the outside cooks and what clings to it
is all you get. Lard is actually less fatty to fry in.

If you ever want an eye opening experience, Read The Good Fat Cookbook
by Fran McCullough.

That's interesting info. Although I don't eat it myself, I still fry
breaded okra, breaded squash, catfish, etc. for DH occasionally. I have
always known that breaded things cook better with lard. I just never
used it becuase I honestly felt like I was serving up poison or
something. I should read that book.

Sherry

It's absolutely fascinating and you can get it real low priced off of
Amazon. I got one for a bunch of different people and gave it to them.
Honestly, lard is better for those things. That's why things cooked in
lard stay fluffy or crunchy in the middle and don't get greasy soggy.

On 2006-08-20, jmcquown penned:
Isn't it funny how things are progressively worse for us? Yeah,
butter is bad. Wait, margarine is worse. No wait, butter,
margarine, bacon fat... wait... it's all bad. Guess what? You're
gonna die anyway. No way out of it. Might as well enjoy eating
while you can!

I'm pretty sure moderation has always been fashionable.

--
monique, who spoils Oscar unmercifully

pictures: http://www.bounceswoosh.org/rpca