The Very Best Butter Substitutes for Spreading, Cooking, and Baking (2024)

Butter is probably the most frequently used dairy productin classic cooking and baking recipes, but it isn't great for everyone's health, whether due to a dairy allergy or the need or desire to cut saturated fat.People with a milk allergy will need to eliminate butter since the proteinin milkcalled casein can be allergenic and is present in butter in small quantities. For those with a lactose intolerance, butter may cause a negative reaction as it contains lactose. Those trying tolose weight or promote heart health may choose to cut butter from their diet—butter is high in fat and calories, and saturated fat may raise cholesterol levels.

No matter the reason for cutting butter out of your diet, finding a substitute that cooks just as well and tastes similar can be challenging if you don't know what to look for. Fortunately, many of the best dairy-free butter alternatives—for spreading, cooking, and baking—can be found at health food stores and large grocery chains.

It's important to understand which part of the butter is problematic when choosing your substitution. If you're lactose intolerant, choosing a dairy-free butter might suit your needs. However, if you're looking to cut saturated fats from your diet, coconut oil would be a better choice than eitherbutter or margarine.

Coconut Oil: Best All-Around Substitute

If you want to keep just one ingredient to substitute for butter it should be coconut oil.Coconut oilis great for use in just about everything, from baking to stove-top cooking to spreading on toast. It's healthy, rich, and tastes delicious. It cuts down on saturated fats and won't change the flavor of food too much. It is also a healthier alternative to canola oil.

Best Butter Substitutes for Baking

Besides making everything delicious, butter has specific functions in baking. Some recipes, like butter cookies, rely on the butter for flavor, but in many recipes, butter is used to add moisture and texture, and to help create flaky layers. Butter is also a leavening agent, making the final product light and fluffy. Baked goods would be dry, flat, and flavorless if butter isn't used.

When it comes to baking, as long as the butter isn't being used primarily for its flavor (like in puff pastry), you can usually swap it out with a similar fat-to-water ratio. Keep in mind that most of these have a higher water content, so cutting back a little on the other liquids or adding a bit more flour will balance that out. One popular substitution is applesauce—because of its sweetness, you will want to add less sugar than the recipe calls for. Mashed banana will also work in place of butter, as does avocado. Both add nutrients but the avocado may impart a green tint to the finished product—it's best to hide this in a chocolate recipe. Greek yogurt will give your baked good a creamy texture and a little tang, while nut butter adds a nuttiness but can make the baked good denser.

Baking without butter is a fun way to make your baking habit a little healthier.

Dairy-Free Vegan Butter Sticks

Whether for sauteing, adding to a sauce, or allowing to melt on top of a cooked piece of meat or fish, a pad of butter is a crucial ingredient in many recipes. But there are non-diary substitutions—besides margarine. While margarine is primarily made from soybean oil, many brands combine soybean and other oils that may contain trace amounts of dairy. (Be sure to read labels carefully when substituting butter for margarine.)

It's better to go with an alternative stick-butter substitute. Brands to look for areEarth Balance Vegan Buttery SticksandMelt Organic Vegan Butter Sticks, both plant-based and made to taste like butter. Made with vegetable oil,Blue Bonnet Lactose-Free sticks are dairy-free and gluten-free.

Dairy-Free Buttery Spreads

There's nothing like a warm piece of toast spread with soft butter—but can you get the same results with a non-dairy spread? Luckily, several brands have figured out how to create that smooth texture and buttery taste without the dairy.

Earth Balancemakes six buttery spreads, including original, organic whipped, olive oil, soy-free, omega-3, and organic coconut. All can be used for spreading, sauteing, frying, and baking.Smart Balancealso sells several varieties, from original, organic, flaxseed oil, omega-3, EVOO (extra virgin olive oil), and low sodium as well as light versions.

Dairy-Free Shortening

Shortening is an even fattier form of butter. Where butter is made with about 85 percent fat and 15 percent water, shortening is 100 percent fat. For those who can't tolerate lactose, there are a fewdairy-free versions of this ultra-rich spread which is best saved for use in baking and not as a spread. Crisco All-Vegetable Shortening, Spectrum's Organic All-Vegetable Shortening, and Nutiva Organic Vegan Shortening are all dairy-free options.