Out of Canola oil, one case

Can you substitute butter for canola oil?

4 options, ranked, with the exact amount

Use thisBest of 4 options

Use Melted unsalted butter

1 cup for every cup of canola oil

Yes, in most baking and in pan cooking over moderate heat. Melt the butter and use the same volume: 1 cup of melted butter (2 sticks) for 1 cup of canola oil, or 1 stick for ½ cup. Butter is about 80 percent fat, with water and milk solids making up the rest, so cakes come out a little firmer and less moist, with butter flavor. Do not deep-fry or sear with it: the milk solids burn at around 350°F.

Verdict —: Tweak it
The tweak —: Melt it, cool it for about 5 minutes, and measure it after melting.
Best for —: brownies and boxed cake mix
Pantry —: Likely in your cupboard

One casethe full canola oil card

Every option, one card

Ranked

Canola oil substitutes compared
#	Substitute	Instead of 1 cup canola oil	Verdict
1	Melted unsalted butterbrownies and boxed cake mix	1 cupTweak it	Tweak it
2	Melted salted butterbaking when salted butter is what you have	1 cupTweak it	Tweak it
3	Ghee or clarified butterpan-frying and searing	1 cupTweak it	Tweak it
4	Vegetable oildeep frying and stir-frying	1 cupWorks	Works
Not a swap	Butter for deep frying	not a swapNot for this	Not for this

What changesWhat changes, option by option4 options

Melted unsalted butter

buttery and richer

Butter replaces the fat and adds flavor canola does not have. Its water and milk solids make a slightly tighter, cakier crumb, and it sets firm once cool.

Best for: brownies and boxed cake mix, muffins, banana bread and pancakes, sautéing vegetables and eggs over medium heat
Prep: Melt it, cool it for about 5 minutes, and measure it after melting.
Contains: dairy
Where it fails: Deep frying, stir-frying and hard searing, where the milk solids scorch. Mayonnaise and vinaigrette, where butter hardens as it cools. Cakes eaten cold from the fridge, which turn firm.

Melted salted butter

buttery, slightly salty

The same swap with salt already in it, roughly ¼ teaspoon per stick.

Best for: baking when salted butter is what you have, sautéing and pan sauces
Prep: Cut the recipe's salt by ¼ tsp for each ½ cup (1 stick) of butter.
Contains: dairy
Where it fails: Recipes with little or no added salt to take out, such as a boxed mix: the result is slightly saltier. The same heat limits apply as for unsalted butter.

Ghee or clarified butter

nutty, toasted butter flavor

Butter with the water and milk solids removed. It is nearly pure fat like oil, and it takes much higher heat than whole butter, to about 450°F.

Best for: pan-frying and searing, roasting vegetables, stir-frying when you want butter flavor
Prep: Melt it before measuring for baking.
Contains: dairy
Where it fails: It is solid at room temperature, so it does not work in cold dressings, and its nutty taste comes through in a plain vanilla cake.

Vegetable oil

neutral, like canola

If the recipe needs a neutral liquid oil and butter is wrong for it, any other neutral oil is the exact swap for canola.

Best for: deep frying and stir-frying, mayonnaise and salad dressings, cakes that should stay soft in the fridge
Suits: vegan
Where it fails: Nowhere canola works. It adds no butter flavor, if that was what you were after.

Butter for deep frying

burnt and bitter

Whole butter in a pot or fryer in place of canola oil.

Best for: nothing; use a refined oil
Contains: dairy
Where it fails: Deep frying runs at 350°F to 375°F. Butter's milk solids burn at about that temperature, its water makes the pot spatter, and the food tastes scorched. Use vegetable, peanut or another refined oil.

Tips for substituting canola oil

5 tips

Stick math: ¼ cup oil is 4 tbsp (½ stick) of butter, 1/3 cup is 5 1/3 tbsp, ½ cup is 1 stick, 1 cup is 2 sticks.
Cool melted butter for about 5 minutes before adding it to eggs or cold milk, or it can scramble the eggs or set into flecks.
On the stove, keep butter at medium heat or lower. For more heat, use half butter and half any neutral oil, or switch to ghee.
Butter browns bakes faster than oil. If the edges of a cake or brownies are coloring early, tent the pan loosely with foil.
For a cake that will be chilled, keep at least half the fat as oil so the crumb does not turn hard in the fridge.

Questions

5 questions

Can I use butter in place of canola oil in a box of brownie or cake mix?

Yes. Use the same amount of melted butter as the oil on the box: 1/3 cup oil is 5 1/3 tablespoons of butter, and ½ cup is 1 stick. Brownies come out richer and a little cakier. Cake is slightly firmer and tastes of butter.

Do I need more butter than oil because butter contains water?

The standard published swap is cup for cup, measured melted, and it works in nearly every recipe. Because butter is about 80 percent fat, matching the fat exactly takes 1 ¼ times the amount, which is 10 tablespoons per ½ cup of oil. That is optional.

Can I fry with butter in place of canola oil?

For shallow cooking over medium heat, such as eggs, pancakes or sautéed vegetables, yes. For deep frying, stir-frying or searing, no: whole butter burns at around 350°F. Ghee or clarified butter handles those temperatures.

Can I use softened butter without melting it?

Not for an oil recipe. Recipes written for oil stir a liquid fat into the batter, and lumps of soft butter will not blend in. Melt it first. Creaming softened butter with sugar is a different method that changes the texture of the bake.

Can I use butter in place of canola oil in salad dressing or mayonnaise?

No. Butter turns solid as it cools, so the dressing hardens and mayonnaise will not hold. Use another liquid oil, such as vegetable, sunflower or olive oil.