In order to prevent oil separation during storage, it is necessary to add a stabiliser. A palm stearin is widely used. Salad dressings - maintains good colour and aroma and extends the shelf life once opened to 30 days. Palm oil is used as a minor ingredient in bread. Vanaspati was originally developed in the 1930s in India as an alternative to the traditional butter fat ghee.
Similar products are now customary throughout the Indian subcontinent and in most Arab countries.
Originally made from hydrogenated groundnut oil, vanaspati formulae are now based on a variety of indigenous and imported vegetable oils such as palm oil. It is used domestically, in restaurants, fast food outlets and in large scale preparation of fried potato products and other snack foods in large scale food manufacture. In the East, a comparable use is in the preparation of instant noodles. This practice started in Japan, using palm oil to replace animal fats, and is now common also in South Korea and China. Bakery shortenings - The results obtained from palm based fats are indistinguishable in volume and also in respect of texture and crumb structure.