You're standing in the baking aisle, staring at a blue can of Crisco and a brick of Armour Star. They look identical. White, semi-solid, and somewhat mysterious. If you’ve ever wondered is vegetable shortening lard, the short answer is no. Absolutely not. But honestly, the history behind why we think they’re the same is a wild ride involving massive marketing wars and a total shift in how Americans eat.
Lard is rendered pig fat. It's an animal product, plain and simple. Shortening, on the other hand, is a laboratory invention born from the surplus of cottonseed oil in the early 1900s. While they both function as "short" fats—meaning they interfere with gluten development to make things flaky—they are chemically and ethically worlds apart.
The Chemistry of Why They Aren't the Same Thing
The confusion exists because they behave similarly in a pie crust. But look closer. Vegetable shortening is made through a process called hydrogenation. This is where manufacturers take liquid vegetable oils—like soybean, palm, or cottonseed—and blast them with hydrogen until they turn solid at room temperature. It’s a feat of engineering.
Lard doesn't need a lab. It’s harvested from the fatty tissue of pigs. The best kind, leaf lard, comes from around the kidneys. It’s prized by pastry chefs because it has a neutral flavor and a high melting point.
When you use shortening, you're using a 100% fat product that is incredibly stable. Lard is also nearly 100% fat, but it contains different fatty acid chains. This affects how the fat crystals form. Lard crystals are larger. When those large crystals melt in the oven, they leave behind bigger gaps, which is exactly what creates those legendary, "shatter-on-the-floor" flakes in a biscuit. Shortening has smaller crystals. It makes things tender, but it doesn't always provide that same structural "lift."
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A Brief History of the Great Fat War
Back in 1911, Procter & Gamble launched Crisco. At the time, lard was king. To get people to switch, they had to convince a whole generation of housewives that animal fat was "unclean" and that a lab-grown vegetable product was "pure."
It worked.
They gave away cookbooks. They ran ads showing sparkling clean factories. By the mid-20th century, lard was seen as "poor people food" or "unhealthy," while shortening was the modern, scientific choice. Interestingly, we now know that the original shortening was loaded with trans fats—something the FDA eventually banned because of heart health risks. Modern shortening has been reformulated to be trans-fat-free, but it still carries that legacy of being a "processed" alternative to the natural fat of lard.
Flavor and Scent Profiles
If you open a can of shortening, what do you smell? Nothing. It’s designed to be a blank slate. This makes it perfect for things like frosting or delicate vanilla cakes where you don't want any "piggy" aftertaste.
Lard is different. Cheap, shelf-stable lard from the supermarket can sometimes have a faint meaty smell. However, high-quality leaf lard is almost as neutral as shortening. If you're making a savory pot pie, lard is a no-brainer. For a birthday cake? You might want to stick to shortening or butter.
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Health Realities: Shortening vs. Lard
People used to think shortening was the "healthy" version. That’s mostly been debunked. Lard actually has about 20% less saturated fat than butter and is higher in heart-healthy monounsaturated fats—the same stuff found in olive oil.
Shortening is a bit of a mixed bag. Since the 2018 trans fat ban, manufacturers use a process called interesterification to keep the fat solid. It’s better than the old stuff, but it's still a highly refined industrial oil. If you’re looking for "clean" eating, lard (especially from pasture-raised pigs) is technically the more "whole food" option.
When to Use Which?
Use Lard if:
- You want the absolute flakiest pie crust humanly possible.
- You are frying chicken (the smoke point is high).
- You are making traditional flour tortillas (shortening just doesn't give them the same chew).
- You care about using unrefined, traditional ingredients.
Use Vegetable Shortening if:
- You are vegan or vegetarian.
- You need a shelf-stable fat that won't go rancid at room temperature for a long time.
- You are making white buttercream frosting and need it to stay bright white.
- You want a soft, cake-like texture in your cookies.
The Texture Factor in Baking
Shortening has a higher melting point than both butter and lard. This is huge for cookies. If you use shortening, your cookies won't spread as much in the oven. They’ll stay thick and soft. If you use lard, they might spread a bit more because lard melts slightly faster.
I’ve seen bakers do a 50/50 split. Half butter for flavor, half shortening for structure. Or, if they're hardcore, they'll use lard for the crust and butter for the filling. It’s all about heat management.
Understanding the "Short" in Shortening
The name "shortening" actually comes from what the fat does to the flour. Flour contains proteins that, when mixed with water, turn into long, stretchy strands of gluten. Fat coats these proteins. It literally "shortens" the gluten strands so they can't get tough.
This is why "shortbread" is crumbly and not bready. Both lard and vegetable shortening are masters at this, but because shortening is 100% fat (unlike butter, which is 15-20% water), they provide the maximum shortening effect.
Smoke Points and Frying
If you're deep frying, the choice matters. Vegetable shortening can handle heat up to about 360°F. Lard can go slightly higher, around 370°F to 400°F depending on its purity. If you go past the smoke point, the fat breaks down, tastes acrid, and releases nasty compounds. For most home frying, both are fine, but lard gives fried potatoes a crust that shortening simply cannot replicate.
Practical Steps for Choosing Your Fat
If you’ve spent your whole life thinking is vegetable shortening lard, you’ve likely been missing out on the unique properties of both.
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- Check the label. If you see "hydrogenated" or "interesterified" vegetable oils, it's shortening. If you see "rendered pork fat," it's lard.
- Experiment with Pie Crust. Next time you bake, try one crust with shortening and one with lard. Notice the difference in the "break." Shortening is tender; lard is flaky.
- Storage Matters. Shortening is fine in the pantry for months. Lard, even the shelf-stable kind, is often better kept in the fridge to prevent that "soapy" rancid smell that develops over time.
- Think About Your Audience. If you’re baking for a potluck, shortening is the "safe" bet because it avoids dietary restrictions related to pork.
The world of fats is complicated, but the distinction here is clear. One is a product of the field and the animal; the other is a product of the refinery and the lab. Both have a place in the kitchen, but they are far from being the same thing.