What is the role of oil in gluten free baking? (Can I substitute applesauce for oil in gluten free recipes?)
I recently read this question: Why can applesauce be used in place of oil?
And the accepted answer says: "In baking, the role of oil is to coat the flour, preventing it from combining with the water (or other wet ingredients) and developing gluten."
However, all of my gluten free bread recipes call for some amount of oil. If there's no gluten in the recipe, what is the point of oil? Does it inhibit the gum I'm using instead?
Relatedly, can I substitute applesauce for oil in gluten free recipes without unexpected side effects?
Best Answer
Most gluten-free recipes tend toward the dry and crumbly, because the binding and elasticity of gluten is missing. Oil contributes a certain amount of binding and moisture of a sort to the finished product. As far as I'm concerned, using all oil as a compensation is unwise, as it can greatly increase the fat content of the recipe. Xanthan gum or locust bean gum (my preference) can supply some of the missing elasticity and binding without increasing the fat content, so you may benefit by experimenting with proportions of gums and oils to get the texture you want.
I would not advise using apple sauce as a substitute for oil, as the moisture will mostly evaporate during baking, so the apple sauce will not provide moisture or binding.
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Quick Answer about "What is the role of oil in gluten free baking? (Can I substitute applesauce for oil in gluten free recipes?)"
And the accepted answer says: "In baking, the role of oil is to coat the flour, preventing it from combining with the water (or other wet ingredients) and developing gluten."Can I substitute applesauce for oil in gluten free baking?
Substituting Oil with ApplesauceWhile Musselman's suggests a 1:1 substitution, I prefer a 50/50 swap. I do this in my buckwheat pancakes and my blueberry zucchini bread as well. Since applesauce is naturally sweet, I often reduce the sugar as well.Can you substitute applesauce for oil in baking?
- When substituting applesauce for oil in baking, the ratio is typically 1:1. So if the recipe calls for 1/4 cup of oil, use 1/4 cup of applesauce. This works perfectly with muffins and quick breads.What happens when you substitute applesauce for oil?
You can save 900 calories and 110g of fat for every half cup of oil you replace with applesauce. These savings are for the whole baked good. Divide the calories or grams saved by the number of servings to get updated nutritional counts.Can I use applesauce instead of oil in cake mix?
If you want to substitute apple sauce for oil in cake mix or other baking recipes, try replacing half of the oil called for with applesauce, per the University of Maine. So, if your recipe requires 1 cup of oil, you can substitute it with 1/2 cup of applesauce and 1/2 cup of oil.Gluten-Free Carrot Cake (Moist \u0026 Fluffy)
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Polina Kovaleva, Polina Kovaleva, Karolina Grabowska, Jacob Moseholt