Lipid shortenings: a review

A critical introduction to lipid shortening systems is provided. The review covers types, formulations, functionality, and processing conditions required for the production of lipid shortening systems. Furthermore, lipid shortenings and their production are placed within the context of recent advances in the areas of crystallization, structural elucidation, and mechanical modeling of fat crystal networks in general. The various unit operations involved in the production of lipid shortenings are examined in light of the evolution of structure (both at the crystalline and microstructural levels) and derived physical functionality. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.