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Fats and Oils
Fats and Oils
Fats and oils are important ingredients, and are are made by plants and animals. They play a vital role in our body’s essential biochemical processes which keep us alive and well as well as storing energy and insulating us.
At room temperature oils are liquid and fats are solid, despite them having the same basic chemical structures. The structures are made from long chain molecules (esters) made up of two sections, a glycerol part joined to a fatty acid part.
Fat and oil molecules may be saturated or unsaturated. Is there a difference? Unsaturated fats contain carbon-carbon double bonds, and saturated fats do not.
More Information
BNF presentation:Â Fat and its functional properties in food products
BNF worksheet:Â Functions of fats
BNF experiment worksheet:Â Comparing foods for energy
BNF experiment worksheet:Â Comparison of melting points of fats
BNF experiment worksheet:Â Testing food for fat
BNF experiment worksheet:Â The water content of fats and spreads