I’m trying to figure out which is the best option for an accessible plant based butter.
The main ones I find are Earth Balance, Miyoko’s, and Parkay Light. There are other brands but these are the some of the most common.
Parkay Light has the fewest calories but it’s also a mix of various oils, including palm oil. Earth Balance seems the most popular in general.
Almost all of them contain ingredients that are processed. Until there is one that is made of exclusively whole plants and unprocessed ingredients, they aren’t worth it. It’s unfortunate. One day there will be a good one
My fiance and I were shopping for vegan butters and getting very frustrated with the high price point. We kept looking at butters marketed specifically as vegan or plant based and they were like $4-5 for tiny little amounts.
Then I grabbed a pack of $1.50 margarine and looked at the back…
Guys it’s the same shit. Just go get margarine. They reinvented the wheel at 400% markup because they think you’re gullible. Vegan butter has existed forever and it was sold to people too poor for dairy butter for at least 150 years.
Just check the ingredient list. Most margarine is already vegan. Some isn’t. But it’s a quarter of the cost and I assure you it’s not much different than that $8 for two sticks of Miyokos.
I just got Miyoko’s for the first time and it seems very buttery (I eat dairy but am off of it per a doctor’s suggestion right now, so I know what butter tastes like). I tried it because my cousin—who has a degree in nutrition, works for a well known functional medicine doctor, and eats a pretty restrictive diet due to chrohn’s and hashimoto’s—was using their mozzarella last weekend.
The ingredient list of the 3 you mention makes the decision for me. Miyoko’s is processed but the ingredient list is much more recognizable. I try to keep my processed foods as “close to home” as possible.
Miyoko: Organic Coconut oil, Organic Cultured Cashew Milk (Filtered Water, Organic Cashews, Cultures), Filtered Water, Organic Sunflower Oil, Organic Sunflower Lecithin, Sea Salt
Parkay Light: Water, Soybean Oil, Palm Oil, Palm Kernel Oil, Salt, Less Than 2% Of: Emulsifiers (monoglycerides, Soy Lecithin), Corn Oil, Xanthan Gum, Preservatives (potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate, Calcium Disodium Edta), Natural And Artificial Flavors, Phosphoric Acid, Beta Carotene (color), Vitamin A Palmitate.
Earth Balance: Natural Oil Blend (Palm Fruit, Canola, Soybean, Flax and Olive Oils), Filtered Water, Contains Less than 2% of Pure Salt, Natural Flavor (Plant Derived from Corn, No MSG, No Alcohol, No Gluten), Pea Protein, Sunflower Lecithin, Lactic Acid (Non-Dairy), and Naturally Extracted Annatto for Color.
As long as the plant butter does not contain trans fats (most do not anymore) or palm oil, then its likely fine.
It truly depends why you are selecting the oil. If you’re opting to lower your LDL-C by reducing saturated fat intake, then coconut oil isn’t a great option.
If you aren’t fully vegan, you can always mix some real butter with 1/2 olive oil then let it cool and put in the fridge. It maintains its shape but drastically lowers saturated fat and salt content per tbsp serving.
If its a matter of fully vegan, then anything based with mostly canola oil or olive oil have the most favorable ratios of omega 3’s and 9’s to 6’s. Certainly better than corn or sunflower seed oil.
Please ignore the seed oil zealots in the comments.