How Different Fats Affect Bread Dough | The Effects of Fat Explained

Fats used in breadmaking have different effects on the crust, crumb, flavour, and keeping quality of the final loaf of bread. There are two main kinds of fat - vegetable and animal. Vegetable fats include various oils like olive, groundnut, corn, sunflower, rapeseed, grapeseed, soy, walnut, etc. Several animal fats can be used in cooking and baking like pork, beef, chicken, duck, goose.
Every fat has its own flavour or lack thereof and some act differently than others when added to bread dough. Store bought lard (pork fat) can be totally tasteless and odourless. It will make the bread soft and pleasant to eat, but it will not add any notable flavour. If you want to use lard, then it’s best to render down some smoked bacon lardons to make your own. Then you will get the flavour benefit too.
Other animal fats can be the same as lard when it comes to flavour. You need to find the right one or make your own if you want it to taste like anything.
Oils on the other hand can have a great impact on flavour right out the bottle as they all have their unique taste. Of course, there are some that have very faint flavour or no flavour at all.
Perhaps the most common fat used in breadmaking is butter. It comes from an animal source, but it is not made from the fat of the animal rather the milk that it produces. Butter has a distinct flavour which can only be described as buttery. I’m sure you know what I mean. It is a solid fat with a melting point at just below body temperature. That is what gives it that smooth mouthfeel when eaten. The same applies to animal fats.
📖 Read more ➡️ www.chainbaker.com/fat-effects/
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
🥨 To learn more about bread making click here ⤵️
Principles of Baking bit.ly/principles-of-baking
The Steps of Baking bit.ly/steps-of-baking
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
🔪 Find all the things I use here ⤵️
🇺🇸 www.amazon.com/shop/ChainBaker
🇬🇧 www.amazon.co.uk/shop/ChainBaker
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
🌾 If you would like to support my work click here ⤵️
www.ko-fi.com/chainbaker
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
🍞 Share your bread pictures here ⤵️
www.flickr.com/groups/chainba...
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapters
0:00 Intro
0:58 Butter
1:57 Lard
2:46 How fat affects bread dough
8:00 The four loaves compared
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
#Bread #Baking #ChainBaker
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Disclosure
I participate in the Amazon Influencer Program which will earn commissions from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.

[@ChainBaker]

NOTE: I'm using cold pressed organic rapeseed oil. I don't believe any oil is heathy if consumed excessively. But this one is certainly a lot better than the ultra processed bottom shelf stuff. And the flavour is nice. If used in moderation it will not kill you. Just like anything else. 📖 Read more in the link below the video ⤴ 🌾 If you would like to support my work click here ⤵ www.ko-fi.com/chainbaker 🔪 Find all the things I use here ⤵ 🇺🇸 www.amazon.com/shop/ChainBaker 🇬🇧 www.amazon.co.uk/shop/ChainBaker 🍞 Share your bread pictures here ⤵ www.flickr.com/groups/chainbaker/

[@dawnmichelle4403]

I'm glad you clarified the name of the oil. I wasn't sure if you were saying rapeseed or grapeseed. I suppose either one would be a healthful choice 😊

[@Hotrob_J]

@@kacperjankowski9042 In Canada at least, we usually rebrand it as "Canola Oil"

[@Hotrob_J]

@@dawnmichelle4403 I was using grapeseed for a while and I liked it better than olive for my bread, but my store was out last week so I got a bottle of avacado oil, and it gave the bread a nice flavour and texture.

[@berniefynn6623]

The only healthy oil is olive oil. The rest are manufactured for lubrication.

[@microcolonel]

Hard fats like tallow, lard, and butter are objectively healthier. Most liquid oils are garbage, maybe coconut is okay in moderation.

[@johnmcclain3887]

I just started making bread again, after almost fifty years hiatus and found using a scale and grams made a world of difference. I have used three of the oils or fats, and noted a difference, but didn't have opportunity to compare, straight across, and really appreciate this. I lost my wife a couple years ago, and am alone now, and try to get the most out of my bread, as it goes stale before I finish a loaf. This helped the choosing for me. Thanks again, well done.

[@ChainBaker]

Definitely! You can convert pretty much any recipe. Of course, it will take more fermentation time, but that is ok too :)

[@corumuk67]

To avoid stale bread, you could always slice and freeze anything you won't use within the first 24 hours.

[@milkandhoney84]

Bread freezes beautifully. We have 3 kids and I bake often, so leftover bread, pies, cookies and cakes get frozen. They reheat well in the oven and make great garlic bread, french toast and bread crumbs if stale.

[@ougougaou]

U can keep your bread in a box in the freezer after u make it so that is always fresh ,i cut it in slices and store it in freezer,them i just put it in the toaster when i want to eat it

[@chopsddy3]

Real education is a key that opens the door to the possibility of predictable results. These videos of the basic , axiomatic building blocks of leavened bread baking are the best I’ve ever encountered. Thank you so much. Live long and prosper. 🕊🖖😁👍🕊

[@ProximaCentauri88]

Just 77k subscribers? This is the best baking channel I found so far. The videos are neat and informative. Way to go sir!

[@ChainBaker]

🙏

[@artycrafty9209]

Absolutely fascinating! and a real learning curve thank you. I had never thought about the effects that the different fats/oils would have apart from flavour, I tend to be an olive oil user for bread and sometimes part lard (shop bought ashamed to say but that could change now!) for pastry.

[@constantintrudel3756]

Wow, love the attention to detail and all the info on the process.

[@Texsoroban]

excellent video as usual Charlie, looking forward to the next one.

[@humanbeing3946]

Yes, I have learnt a handful of new knowledge of bread making through your channel. Thanks!

[@schrodingerscat1863]

My favourite is 50/50 olive oil and butter, gives a nice even crumb but with a buttery taste. I like these comparison videos, gives a really good insight into how different ingredients change the outcome.

[@adamcoe]

Your folding and shaping technique is absolutely elite

[@mattshadow81]

I've started to instantly click at notifications from CB. Love this channel. Have been waiting for it mate!

[@ChainBaker]

Legend! :))

[@markeoniarty]

I started baking this year without knowledge in baking, I just want to bake a whole wheat pan bread, and this videos serves as my guide and build my fundamentals in baking, you are very helpful, thank you so much Sir!!

[@TheWalkerKJ]

I normally use Cookeen margarine in my bread making and it gives the bread a very soft texture, but I'm so happy you did this video because this week gone I tried olive oil for the 1st time and everything you mentioned in video I experienced. Bread tasted excellent with the addition of it. Another great video btw!!

[@amuzh]

Thank you for putting the time and effort to do this 🙏

[@stizelswik3694]

I learned so much here! Thank you for teaching us! I appreciate you!

[@jody2873]

I LOVE THESE FOOD CHEMISTRY VIDEOS! Thanks so much for doing these and EXPLAINING WHY! 👍

[@MendeMaria-ej8bf]

Please don't stop sharing your valuable insights. Thank you. ❤

[@andybonneau9209]

I just found your channel. Outstanding! I keep my bacon fat and have used it for frying but not for bread. I use butter almost exclusively, but my next one is getting the bacon fat. Thanks for the great work.

[@maggsbufton1969]

❤I am so delighted to have found your channel! I’ve learned so much more about bread baking from you ! Thank you 😊 I am stoked to make bread again!

[@ChainBaker]

Welcome aboard 😊

[@DanoneczkQs]

Today I've baked challah, for the first time using 6 braids which turned out amazing, and as a fat for the first time I've used ... canola oil. To keep it short, butter tastes better in sweetened dough 🤣 I have to admit it is very distinctive in taste.

[@ChainBaker]

My brain breaks at anything more than 4 braids 🤣

[@ruthejimenez]

Beautiful shooting of the video. Love the aesthetics. Great information. Thank you for sharing your knowledge.

[@rwutopia]

So glad to have stumbled upon your channel! Already watched several of your videos and all have been very educational. I mostly use vegetable oil for my bread baking but have been trying to figure out whether it's OK to add early on with the water rather than try to knead in later (which video answered for me). Thank you! I'm always trying to improve my bread baking and will be incorporating your tips in my next bake!

[@musingfoodie1041]

I use olive oil in most of my baking, thanks for such instructive video. Very useful information!

[@peterroots9779]

Another great video! Thank you! Ive been rendering my own bacon fat for years, although i avoid including meat when i render (i also remove the skin if using belly bacon). The bacon fat works especially well in my pizza dough, which i add after gluten formation - butter results in burnt crust, bacon fat give a better colour and crunch than olive oil

[@alannakennedy5273]

Love the detail in your videos...learning much. Thank you

[@crazypoki]

This video is absolutely outstanding. Thank you, I learned so much.

[@Strevale]

Thank you for taking the time to make the video. A control loaf without fat would have been nice.

[@JDobermann]

Hey man, so interesting, thanks for the video!

[@alex.vlascu]

Thanks for the video! Great work!

[@dantesmith3664]

thank you sir. this is good information that inspires me

[@pamelaarmitage3915]

You've got a great style of teaching - you make me want to get into the kitchen and start making bread! I really appreciate your approach to understanding the 'whys' behind the recipe, giving me a strong foundation to stand upon. I'll definitely be watching this site regularl.

[@ChainBaker]

Cheers! 😊

[@Quibus777]

Awesome! thanks for the detailed vid.

[@spacial2]

Brilliant video. Thank you so much.

[@DarbyDumont]

I really like the concept of your channel. It’s handy for all levels of baking. You can find your own favorite recipe, but you are showing the fundamental differences between the ingredients themselves and the results they produce. I never considered using bacon fat to make bread, but now it’s all I can think about.

[@roger55es]

Brilliant information it's a great pleasure to see these super treats

[@asimhusain8087]

Thanx for the tips chain baker I think these tips were great 👍 for baking & 😀 cooking

[@oldgreen16884]

It is a pleasure to watch your programs.

[@annchovy6]

Butter, lard, or olive oil for me most times. I don’t like canola oil at all due to how processed it is and I find it smells and tastes fishy. I am trying to cut down on use of seed oils where possible, so bread is an easy one. I haven’t made bread with beef fat, but I have some I rendered a few days ago, so I might give it a shot. I love duck or goose fat for breads like focaccia. Lard is awesome in bread. If you use leaf lard it tends to be a little more firm than lard rendered from other parts. No point to the shelf stable stuff. It may as well be replaced with shortening.

[@redgingerhead6006]

Amazing! THANK YOU SOOOOO MUCH! I'm from Germany.

[@hannahsvoxx]

I'm rendering tallow today. Can't wait to try baking bread with it!

[@lilpiggy89]

Awesome video, I mainly use butter in the bread I make. I have beef tallow that I will try sometime this week and see how that works out. As always thank you for the great content and have a wonderful day!

[@helensarkisian7491]

The first video I’ve seen from you. Subscribed.

[@ChainBaker]

Welcome aboard! :))

[@tnk4me4]

These are really interesting. I enjoy using coconut oil as my bread making fat. It makes the dough sweeter and darker.

[@ulrichspencer]

I'd be really interested to see how seed pastes and nut butters impact bread dough, e.g., tahini, peanut butter, etc. And, similar to your video on how salt affects bread dough, I'd love to see how MSG affects bread dough.

[@myjewelry4u]

Thanks, I learned so much!

[@ademademoglu4871]

very beatiful video

[@SimaShangde]

Thanks for sharing the results. Quite a while ago I did a similar experiment, but with cookies. The results were: vegetable oil produces the hardest cookies, lard produces the fluffiest cookies, butter produces something in the middle (I used a regular unsalted butter and did't compensate water content).

[@americanrebel413]

I think butter is my favorite also! Thank you.

[@evansaldana7399]

Yay, been waiting for this one.

[@scoooterp801]

Great video I have been using avacado oil in my baking probably overkill since not much flavor. Thanks again for sharing your knowledge always enjoy your videos.

[@pkuchnicki]

Instead of cold butter, I use clarified butter which is much easier to work with (at room temperature) and is pretty much 100% fat versus butter which is around 80% fat.

[@nathanboeger978]

I do the same with Ghee, it's cheap if you can find a local Indian market.

[@thelazychefuk4410]

@@nathanboeger978 Ghee is just clarification plus one really. You just need to clarify the butter for longer to make ghee. Cheaper than buying it. Check out my channel if you like, I have a recipe there.

[@uffa00001]

@@nathanboeger978 "Clarified butter" is the English word for "Ghee".

[@pepsithebunny2404]

amazing! i love these experiments.

[@nattanichachen2616]

Thank you Charlie.

[@dw6528]

Thank you! You address the best question! :-]

[@daiworkman2084]

I use plain yogurt for our regular bread and it is very good, nice flavour and texture.

[@gsus3918]

Science level of documentation happening here. Great work!

[@gordianknot5625]

Once again an informative video. I like to use half olive oil and half butter to get the best of both worlds.

[@Hehfg]

I have no clue why this was recommended to me, but let me say youtube algorithm did a good job on this one. There was something super satisfying to how you handled the dough and bread, and it was very educational.

[@ChainBaker]

Cheers, Henning :) there's a lot more where that came from!

[@TrudyConway]

Subscribed because of this video so thanks for posting it. I just started making bread and it's a satisfying, horrendous, joyful nightmare. I love it and hate it at the same time. I'm going to try using butter next time. I wanted to use lard because that's what my mother used for everything & she always said it (and butter) was healthier than vegetable oils. I'm going to go bake some bread with butter. Fingers crossed.

[@hugojimenez8809]

Thanks Good information.

[@arthurakopyan8218]

Oh my glob, I don't know why I never thought of using my bacon/duck lard to infuse the Chedder Biscuits I make. Thanks for the idea!

[@rogehnimunoz4327]

Very nice vids! Thank you.

[@towellight9400]

Great video. Just found your channel and love the comparisons and showing what these things do. I only ever cook bread with water, flour, yeast, and salt. Sometimes I'll use just water and flour (whole wheat roti, sometimes I do 50% flour 50% peanut butter powder if I want less carbs in the roti.)

[@annhaines7442]

I have only used Olive Oil in bread making . Once I tried Peanut Butter because it is an fat, hated the taste. I might add most of my bread is sourdough. I am going to try your other fats in my bread. I started adding the olive oil to get a slightly softer crust. Thank you for your video, and for helping me with my bread journey

[@The_Fresh_Mr_Breed]

This is quality content

[@chiomaoraz1234]

Thank you,I appreciate you sir

[@hannahsvoxx]

I'd always wondered why my heavily enriched (with butter and milk) multigrain lasted 3x as long as my basic white bread. Now I know! I learned so much, thank you :)

[@KarloEMelendezPena]

Really interesting experiment! Local bakeries in Puerto Rico sell "Pan Sobao”, which is made with lard, though it's not flavored. It tastes sweet, and has a very soft texture with a very tight crumb and soft crust. We also have "Pan de Agua”, which contrary to it's name it's not super high hydration. But it's baked in cold oven, which is super interesting. That one has a much more open crumb, and a crispy crust.

[@user-eb3ii4zn3n]

How can I didn't know this channel???? your explanation is super neat and clear. Really got the answer for all of my questions🙏🙏

[@ChainBaker]

Thank you! :))

[@curiosity2314]

I can count on my hand how many time I have had Bacon in my life but it sounds like an interesting ingredient to bread. Always interesting to see well done side by sides like you have presented here.

[@etkrol204]

Another good one, thanks! :)

[@JeffMartinez648]

Gotta try the bacon lard, looks delicious!

[@1110jesse]

I have to say, I've learned quite a lot. Not just this video, but I have watched a few other of your videos since yesterday, when I found your youtube channel by coincidence. I'm a professional chef, tho working at a small cafeteria nowadays. We do baking quite a lot.. daily breadrolls and buns, and then pies and cakes and other things too. So this is not just for my own curiosity, but I think watching more if your videos will help me professionally too. Thank you for your work!

[@ChainBaker]

Awesome! :) I only started baking 10 years into my cheffing career. Now I love baking far more than cooking. Can't wait to get out of the business 😁

[@smithchasea]

So t main reason fat is added is to make the bread softer. I have been wondering this for a long time. Thanks!!

[@tobyfouks5109]

Thank you for this wonderful lesson. I'm switching from canola oil [rapeseed oil] to butter after watching this. You are such a terrific teacher -- I love the science supporting everything you say. [Jan 9 2024 Salt Spring Island BC]

[@railfan439]

Unsalted, Clarified Butter. Thanks for the lessons. Jon

[@karenmichaud641]

Great video it makes me want to try different fats in my loafs. Right now I usually use olive oil or butter. Bacon fat sounds yummy.

[@purpleduck3494]

Very nice video.

[@gregoriaarteaga4460]

Love the butter and lard 🙏❤️👍👍👍👍👍💐

[@hollish196]

Butter or olive oil are my choices, depending on what I am working toward. Great comparison!

[@ahemschmeyer]

Bacon fat pizza dough sounds amazing. Ty for the idea

[@AshleyMarieMommy]

*I love this ❤thank you! Subscribed Liked and Saved videos for after I get ingredients.*

[@ChainBaker]

🤩

[@vaughnparkes]

I am learning! I found you by accident after watching another KZbinr's baking video.

[@tonylonczyk5980]

Over the years I’ve tried pretty well all the oils and fats you would care to mention but by far my favourite is Palm Oil (certified sustainable). It has very little flavour, so you can taste the ferment better and it produces an exceptionally smooth, silky bread and good crust. 4% by weight works really well for me.

[@sarajillianshepherd3858]

I am using olive oil now after a spell from bread making and I'm excited to get back to it. A few years back I used to use coconut oil. I was adding these oils during the kneading process. So adding them early will be a nice experiment to see if I can see the difference. I wanted to say thank you, as I'm learning something new with every video I watch. 😊😁

[@xrailfans]

Wow.. your video is answer my question! I have a silent question in mind while i mixed my dough yesterday and boom! Today i got the answer, what a coincidence 😆

[@lisae5286]

I use olive oil. But I do like lighter bread once in a while and will try the butter or fat. Thanks for your help.

[@alicantuncer4800]

Great video.

[@madmh6421]

Butter, but I do like bacon fat in cooking. Never thought about using it in bread, but will my next bake! Thank-you!

[@Karras353]

I have a recipe for a version of English muffins that calls for melted butter, though only 35g for 600g of flour. I’ve not tried other ways of incorporating the butter into this specific one for comparison, though the end result is pleasing as it is.

[@DyesubDave]

I just recently got into bread/bun making and I've found that I like a mixture of butter and olive oil. Slightly higher on the butter percentage. It seems to add a bit of the benefits of both IMO. I still have lots to learn but my loaves of bread are better than any of the store bought loaves and cheaper! ;oP

[@mosin9105]

Great video!

[@ChainBaker]

Cheers!

[@KingOfTheUnderdogs]

This video made me want to learn baking

[@macakucizmama831]

Your knowledge about the topic is unbelievable 🙌👍

[@ChainBaker]

🙏

[@nebenacountweilichwissenwo4100]

The amount of information in your videos is stunning. It's realy interesting how fat shortens the gluten chains. But i find your videos to be pretty quite, if you were to make them a little louder that be great. Sorry for misspelling and have a nice day/night/whatever else. :)

[@sembat7852]

I would recommend infused oild. I often use with onionsvinfused margarine. It has a really nice fried onion flavour.

[@gimiak]

I really enjoy experiments like this. Your videos give me a lot of knowledge about the backing process and how important are all of the steps and ingredients. So far I've tried only butter and olive oil, but not in the typical bread. I'll try all of them in the upcomming weeks. Thumbs up for the next video. PS: I've also got a question. Which kind of bread do you usually for yourself / your family? You gave a lot of recipes but so far my #1 bread recipe is the Rustic one. Usually, I make two of them, one pure as in your recipe and the second one with black seeds, pumpkin seeds, cumin, flaxseeds, and sesame. 3 - 4 days and both breads are gone, and here we go again. ;)

[@ChainBaker]

These are the kinds of breads I like the most - kzbin.info/aero/PLJ97q0PY0sXIwFcsJzV0LYG_SxC-6B5by I should really have more recipes on those :D I especially love 100% rye. That is my all time favourite :)

[@justsomedude4783]

Hi, I just wanted to say thank you for these videos, I'm trying to replicate a bread recipe from a favorite bakery of mine which is unfortunately across the country. All your videos about these specifice variables have helped me zone in on what I need to do to get it right.

[@ChainBaker]

Awesome! :) I'm actually planning to make a series of videos in which I try and reverse engineer some popular supermarket breads and recreate them at home.

[@beorcstormorsdatter1097]

I really enjoyed this video. It is thoughtfully presented for ease of learning and very interesting. Thank you. P.S. I now want to render lard and eat it! 😁

[@mariaqtiturrino4641]

YOU ARE A GENIUS 💝

[@ChainBaker]

Far from it! 😅 But thanks 😁