plasticity

• fats have 'plasticity' - were able to spread and manipulate them
• its possible to manipulate them because fats contain a mixture of different triglycerides. these different triglycerides all melt at different temperatures - so fats gradually soften over a range of temperatures rather than melting at just one
• the more plasticity a fat has, the easier it is to spread
• the more unsaturated fatty acids a fat or oil has, the more plasticity the fat or oil will have
• plasticity is useful for a range of different reasons including:

  • decorating cakes with buttercream
  • rubbing fat into flour to make shortened dough
  • spreading butter on sandwiches and toast
  • putting cream cheese on crackers
• some vegetable fat spreads are marketed as being 'easy to spread' because they contain a mixture of triglycerides with low melting points, meaning you can spread them as soon as you take them out the fridge