What's Wrong With Margarine?

[classic33]

From the Mayo Clinic, where else.
"Which spread is better for my heart — butter or margarine?

Margarine usually tops butter when it comes to heart health.

Margarine is made from vegetable oils, so it contains unsaturated "good" fats — polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats. These types of fats help reduce low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or "bad," cholesterol when substituted for saturated fat.

Butter, on the other hand, is made from animal fat, so it contains more saturated fat.

But not all margarines are created equal — some margarines contain trans fat. In general, the more solid the margarine, the more trans fat it contains. So stick margarines usually have more trans fat than tub margarines do."

Going camping, I take a block of Stork

 

[Bakemehappy]

I do not use margarine at all although I must admit that I like the nutty taste it renders on my food. They say that it is made from a chemical that could be compared to plastic I am not affirming that this rumor is true but I am just being cautious not to take in something processed from synthetic materials. Anyone aware of this?

 

[smartmom]

I have heard that it is not as healthy as they made of think. In fact we were made to believe that it was healthier than butter but in fact eating butter is better because of the way margaring in processed. I would think that eating too much of anything is bad but the more food is at its natural state without being altered is better.

 

[Corzhens]

I think with the changes in lifestyle, margarine is being forgotten. In the olden times, butter was very expensive compared to margarine. But when butter got cheaper, people shifted to butter because it has a better aroma than margarine. With being healthy, I guess margarine is still tops. We still use margarine when we cook special dishes like Menudo which is a Spanish dish that we inherited from our grandparents. We fry the pork in margarine during the sauteing to make it more tasty.

 

[OhioTom76]

I was confused about this as well, because non-vegans would be complaining about how regular butter is so much healthier than stuff like margarine, and yet I would hear vegans arguing that we should be using vegan butter alternatives which essentially are margarines. I generally stick to plain old butter, simply because I don't use a lot of it, and I prefer the taste of it. Many of the butter-like spreads my family buys such as Country Crock or Land O Lakes spreadable butter with canola oil, all seem to be loaded with water. I've tried to use them when frying things like eggs, when I was out of real butter, and when they melt in the pan they form a pool of mostly liquid which has to evaporate off first before I'm left with a smaller amount of actual fat. I feel cheated with what seems to be just water diluted butter. I've tried some of the vegan butters, and was really pleased with their taste but I'm still unclear how truly healthy they are. A vegan might consider something better simply because it's not animal based and may be OK with some additional processing, for example.

 

[SpongeyB]

I much rather have peanut butter than margarine as it is available all around. Many people make their own and I find it more healthy for use. I used to use margarine when baking cakes but not anymore. It is just not healthy, the way its made.

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

vegan butter alternatives

there are actual vegan butter options that are not margarine but hard butter like substitutes that are solid at room temperature. I have made some myself and they do taste similar to butter, much closer than any margarine alternative I have come across. I suspect they are referring to these.
http://earthbalancenatural.com/product/vegan-buttery-sticks/ this one is meant to be one of the best. I haven't found anywhere selling it where I live yet, so have made my own. I think I may have posted the recipe up here, but it is essentially a mix of different solid oils and some 'flavouring' in the form of a yeast/bacteria culture.

http://www.veganbaking.net/recipes/fats/vegan-butters/vegan-butter this was a really good article on vegan butter, but this is my preferred vegan butter option if I make it myself, http://www.veganbaking.net/recipes/fats/vegan-butters/cultured-european-style-vegan-butter But they are not cheap to make and I only do it when I know that the end result needs a cultured vegan butter for the flavour and it is for a special occasion.