What's Wrong With Margarine?

Jade

Jade

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I'm wondering why margarine has gotten way less popular in the recent years or even decades. I know it's not as luxurious or refined as the taste and texture of butter, but I still find it very tasty and unique and surely there are bound to be one or two recipes out there that would best be cooked with margarine over butter.

Do any of you have an idea why margarine has gotten so unpopular? Do you still like using it anyway? If so, how?
 
I never eat or use margarine. There is absolutely nothing natural in it - margarine is a synthetic substance made from the cheapest, lowest grade oils which are extracted using hexane, a compound which is more commonly found in solvents. Prior to being pumped full of artificial flavourings and colourings, it is emulsified, steam cleaned and then bleached.

Did you know that margarine is grey before the dye is added...? :yuck:

Yuk.
 
The main reason for the loss in popularity of margarine is the bad media it has received because of the processes used to make it. Some of this ill attention is valid but a lot of it is paranoia. Margarine used to contain a lot of questionable chemicals to make it look, taste, and emulate the consistency of butter. That was in the 1970s. More recently consumers have been more vigilant in what they are putting into their bodies and margarine has adapted to become a better alternative to butter in some cases.

Butter and Margarine are almost pure fats and should not contain protein or carbohydrates. Butter will generally contain more cholesterol and more saturated fats. Bad margarine will contain trans-fats or be hydrogenated to solidify it. You really don't want a lot of any of these items in your diet. Hydrogenated and Trans Fats should be a concern as they are not natural to this planet and therefore not natural to our bodies. Cholesterol and saturated fats just need to be eaten with discretion.

Be more concerned about the quantity of butter or margarine you eat than the type. Look on the margarine packages to see what is in it and you will find that some brands are far less unhealthy than others. The one and only place I would exclusively recommend butter over margarine is in a frying pan as the heat is more damaging to the healthy oils from which better margarine was derived than it is the fats in the butter.
 
I stopped using it a number of years ago, it just doesn't have anything good about it. Also, there are so many healthy alternatives that there is no need to use it anymore.
 
I just try to eat as close to the source as possible. The close to nature the better in my opinion. I also don't eat a lot of butter in my diet so this isn't really a need for me. If I ate a lot of butter then I would probably switch to margarine if trying to cut down.
 
I don't like margarine. I prefer to eat the real thing. At one time it was consider a healthy alternative for butter. It did get a lot of press several years ago, but I had already decided to go the natural route. I rarely use butter. I don't even have any in the refrigerator.
 
firelily99 said:
I stopped using it a number of years ago, it just doesn't have anything good about it. Also, there are so many healthy alternatives that there is no need to use it anymore.
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I'm curious as to what healthy alternatives there are. Could you elaborate please?

I use Pure (which is a brand of dairy free) 'margarine'.
 
Jade said:
I'm wondering why margarine has gotten way less popular in the recent years or even decades. I know it's not as luxurious or refined as the taste and texture of butter, but I still find it very tasty and unique and surely there are bound to be one or two recipes out there that would best be cooked with margarine over butter.

Do any of you have an idea why margarine has gotten so unpopular? Do you still like using it anyway? If so, how?
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I use to eat it when I didn't have the extra money for butter, but the tans fatty acid is to high in margarine for one. I'm vegan now so I don't do butter or margarine, but I think butter is actually better for you than margarine. http://myculturedpalate.com/2012/12/10/is-margarine-harmful-6-secrets-they-dont-tell-you/
 
SatNavSaysStraightOn said:
I'm curious as to what healthy alternatives there are. Could you elaborate please?

I use Pure (which is a brand of dairy free) 'margarine'.
Click to expand...
I've never heard of Pure. I use earth balance sometimes. That's really the only vegan butter that's you can find mostly everywhere in my local area. I use avocado when I'm baking. I replace the butter with avocados and it works well. I have to look into this Pure, because I don't really like Earth balance.
 
kamarsun1 said:
I've never heard of Pure. I use earth balance sometimes. That's really the only vegan butter that's you can find mostly everywhere in my local area. I use avocado when I'm baking. I replace the butter with avocados and it works well. I have to look into this Pure, because I don't really like Earth balance.
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Bear in mind I am in the UK so you may not be able to get it. You may have more luck getting hold of Vitalite which is another one that is dairy free but I hadn't until recently appreciated that it was. It had been around since I was a kid!
www.dairycrest.co.uk/our-brands/butter-spreads/vitalite.aspx
 
I can't say I'm an incredibly sophisticated or skilled baker, but my understanding is that margarine has a much higher water content than butter which can change the results if baking. I've made cookies with both and find that the ones with margarine seem softer than cookies made with butter. I guess my thought is that baked goods are a treat, so they may as well be the best tasting treat possible - which in my mind means made with good quality butter.

As far as the low calorie or healthy butter substitutes go, I think I'd rather eat my veggies or toast plain. :)
 
Margerines got a bad name because of the trans fats in it. Trans fats do not leave the body. They accumulate over time and were very bad for you. However over the last couple of years, because of the bad publicity, most if not all Margerine manufacturers have now stopped using trans fats.

I use both butter and margarine in cooking, especially cakes. It all depends on what kind of cakes I am making. Generally , I am trying to eat healthier because Mr WD has high blood pressure and high cholesterol, so anything I can do to lower that is welcome. I tend to use a spread called pro-activ which is supposed to lower cholesterol. Im a kinda scrape it on and scrape it off kind of person anyway. Google trans fats and see for yourself.
 
I use both butter and margarine. Moderate portions of each as I do not think either of them is good for you.
 
I was never a fan but since I started baking more recently I have used it. Now I am in a spot of bother reading everything I have seen here. I have never been a cook who uses butter in my day to day cooking. I find I do just fine without it. We have a local chef that seems to love butter on everything and he used to get quite a knocking from some viewers for promoting what some might consider unhealthy eating habits. I have heard he since has healthier options to present to his audience.
 
Putting the fact that it's just plain bad for you from a health perspective, I honestly think it doesn't even taste that good. Margarine is literally the last thing I'd put on my bread (even though I tend to not eat bread, either). Well, maybe blue cheese would be the last. :D Seriously though, butter is far superior, a simple Google search should be sufficient to convince you of that.
 
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