Butcher Paper vs. Parchment Paper: Which One Is Best for You？

Thus, butcher paper and parchment paper are convenient materials. No matter if you are preparing meal in the kitchen, making a cake, going to grocery store buying food or merely storing leftover foods in the fridge you are bound to meet these two materials.

They have one thing in common, but their differences lie in the fact that they were designed for different things. Well, when do you cover your sandwiches with the butcher paper and when with the parchment paper?

Please follow us in the issue of what they are, their kinds, how they differ, and how they are used. So by the end of this article you will be able to make their use based on the benefits that come with it.

What Is Butcher Paper?

Butcher paper which is made of FDA approved food grade wood pulp. Its name officially derived from iteration of creative salesman who attempted to sell their papers to butchers for use in the butchering business; for use to wrap raw meat and pack their cut body parts. This special and thick paper can also become as protective layer to minimize the contamination of flavor.

This Kraft paper type must be hardening using a special type of treatment since it is used for food. They are intended for use where exposure to moisture, blood, oil and other types of meat moisture is anticipated without tearing.

Today, butcher paper is widely used in butcheries, wrapping materials and foods industries for packing and wrapping. It can also be utilized in art and crafts, gift wrapping and in school assignments and other project works. Furthermore, this paper may serve as a replacement for the bird cage liners and bins for bird worms.

6 Popular Categories of Butcher Paper

The butcher paper currently in the market comes in six types. While there are clearly defined distinctions, all are mainly used for cooking and all have food grade surface.

1. White Butcher Paper

This white paper may be compared to craft paper. The only thing that separates them is that butcher paper is washed with a bleach that is used to whiten the brown pulp to this kind of white. While white butcher paper is used in several processes of cooking, it is not the best for use since it is uncoated. Its recommendation use is for preparing sandwiches and other sub type bread products.

It is also valuable in enclosing meat products that are smoked because it allows the smoke in and, at the same time, does not retain water. Apart from its incorporation into food products and smoking of meat, people use white butcher or wax/wrap overlay as a protective layer or a cover on tables whenever they are doing arts and crafts related projects.

2. Brown Butcher Paper

Typically applied to craft paper, this kind of butcher paper may also be applied to meat packaging particularly smoked meat. The raw material for brown butcher paper is the same wood pulp that will go into making cook’s paper but without further refining. Just like regular butcher paper, brown butcher paper also does not include any additives as well.

3. Pink Butcher Paper

This type of butcher paper is also known as peach paper. It is used perhaps most commonly of all when you are a smoker or in the meat-smoking industry as it allows maximum contact of the meat with smoke without interference from unwanted additions. This paper has a feminine and sweet type of color of pink or peach; the perfect paper for raw meats. It is of brown color and thus it is very easy to cover or perhaps hide the juice or blood coming from it.

However, it is one of the best custom butcher papers on the market since it lowers the likelihood of leakage while even raw meat does not turn wet.

4. Pink-Treated Butcher Paper

The pink-treated butcher paper is nearly as thin as the regular pink paper or the peach butcher paper. Apart from that the wax coating of this premium paper is treated with sizing agent to enable it to assist in preserving fresh-cut meat to be stored.

Products wrapped and packed with pink-treated butcher paper appear to be bright red in color. This assists to ensure the that the meat remains to have a healthy looking appearance while at the same time being fresh.

5. Gardenia Butcher Paper

Gardenia butcher paper is still one of the top of the line kinds of butcher paper. It can give added measure of protection against water seepage. This is better than the use of plastics and the juice and oil may be packed together with the meat in this type of packaging without compromising on the state of the meat through sogginess.

6. Steak Butcher Paper

This type of butcher paper is called this way mainly because it is primarily intended for pork and beef products placed in butcher’s cases. The juices will be locked in by steak butcher paper, and you will have that perfect red, healthy-looking color of steak. White, black, peach and green are some of the colors you will get in this peach treated butcher paper.

What Is Parchment Paper?

More than all purpose flour, baking soda and butter and vinegar, parchment paper is a baker’s and cook’s best friend. It is a very thin paper that is moisture proof, made from cellulose, a vegetable fiber and a non-stick surface slippery and smooth coated. By virtue of this basic function that has made greaseproof paper to earn that title.

This chemical free and non-oily paper is for oven since it has the ability to endure heat and become non-sizzle even when it reaches up to 450 °F.

When you bake, roast or cook your dish, make sure you line your casserole so that when you’re ready to remove your food, you won’t be bothered by the task of lifting it out. This also makes it possible to use the paper in a way that there is no mess and there no likelihood of sticky bits remaining. They are as follows, to have an easy and stress free cleaning up process after cooking make sure to have parchment paper.

It’s messy and time-consuming to sort through the mess of baking, so instead, use the right tools at your disposal.

This paper is found in most grocery stores, if not all, and it is always placed in the aisle together with aluminum foil, other custom wax papers and paper.

Types of Parchment Paper

When you’re purchasing parchment paper, you have two choices: The bleached parchment paper that can be easily distinguished by the snowy white color or the unbleached, which has a slightly tea dusty pale tan shade. Can someone please tell me the difference between these two?

Bleached Parchment Paper

As for bleached parchment paper, it is paper that is undergoes the bleaching process. Chlorine used in manufacturing process gives its white color, so in the way, all are treated papers.

Unbleached Parchment Paper

On the other hand, unbleached parchment contains no additional processes and treatment in whitening the paper. It is 100% chlorine-free. Some choose this sort of parchment paper for precaution measures. I self-composting paper considered a problem that in case of bleaching the custom parchment papers with chlorine, it could lead to the formation of a chemical compound known as dioxin. High volumes of this chemical have health impacts include immune system suppression, cancer, hormonal imbalances, reproductive complications, development complications.

Therefore, unbleached parchment paper is your best bet if you are to use paper that has no specific smell that will contaminate the food and leach out chemicals into the food, at the same time ensuring that all the oil has been well soaked up.

The Difference and Use of Butcher Paper and Parchment Paper

Butcher paper and parchment paper are both popular in the culinary world, but they should not be used interchangeably because they are different in many aspects. Here’s a comparison:

Butcher Paper vs. Parchment Paper: Points to Consider While Choosing Paper Type

It’s important to pay particular attention to the kind of paper to use; selecting the most appropriate type is of essence. While both butcher block paper and parchment paper, are used for lining, baking, to prepare loaf pans, and to keep foods from sticking to the pan, they are not the same thing and each has its advantages.

Do not waste food, nourishment or serve mediocre outcomes. This rule means that you should not be a one – tool kind of person, so to speak. Here are some factors to consider when deciding between butcher paper and parchment paper:

1. Intended Use

The only way that you make a decision between the two papers is to base it on what and how you cook and what you want the end product to look like.

For instance, whether baking a cake, a batch of cookies, muffins and other baked products, parchment paper is quite simple and practical. This can be considered a core device if one is involved in baking. With a non-stick surface of the paper, it becomes easier to transfer your pastries from the required pans and molds without burning them. It also makes clean-up easier; this most people overlook when considering the best ways in which they can prepare for a party.

That means you should use butcher paper when you are grilling smoked meats, ribs, bacon, pulled pork or patties. This type of paper will enable the meat to be absorbed and smoke as much as possible and also allow it to retain the right level of moisture that way your beef pork, chicken or fish can allow the juices and nice flavors.

2. In this case we can have endurance and heatproof qualities.

The two papers, both have heat resistant properties therefore to avoid misunderstandings on how you are going to use the papers, you should have a clear idea of what you want to achieve. They are heat resistant and will only caramelize to brown when they are at their hottest.

Just remember that parchment paper isn’t very good with handling direct contact with flame. Therefore, when grilling, better to use butcher paper than other types of papers.

An added note with regards to durability: parchment paper is thinner and less dense and so it cannot handle as much weight as butcher paper. This makes it the best suited for use when handling chunky pieces of meat at the same time.

3. Cost and Availability

The two parchment papers are cheap, also. Between the two of them, however, parchment paper is cheaper. Both products can be easily found in the local supermarkets and easily ordered on the Internet resources. If you are a businessman, they are cheap to buy in large quantities.

If you shop in your stores you will find parchment paper from the aisles easily because it is well known than butcher paper. This also means parchment paper is more attainable quite easily.

4. Environmental Considerations

Butcher paper’s major raw content is wood pulp, while parchment paper is derived from cellulose fiber which both materials safe to the environment. Well, that’s fine but only if you don’t cover it up with the non-eco-friendly material such as wax paper.

Parchment paper is preferable between the two, for it can be used for several times before being discarded. Some of it might stick on the face so you have to remove all the remaining pieces to eliminate residue and it can be wiped off with a damp paper towel. Then let it dry, and it is ready for reuse again. Butcher paper can be may be used up to six times but this is on a condition that the paper has not been treated in anyway. Otherwise, the recyclability of the product is not so high.

5. Health and Safety

To keep food safe, get: Butcher paper without any dyes or wax or Parchment paper that hasn’t been bleached

These options have the FDA seal, thereby may be used in cooking and any other activity that is related to handling, preparation or storage of food. It should be understood that they are very sensitive to external impacts and, therefore, should be protected from contamination. When bought they should also be packed securely well fitted for their intended wrap.

6. Customization and Branding

It is also good to note that for any of these papers you intend to use, you can fully customize, and implement your brand logo and design. It’s just a question of identifying the right people to do the personalization and those people are professionals in dealing with such material. Ideally, it will be great if you work hand in hand with an organization that is into packaging and prints to offer all the services you need such as CustomPrintedPaper.

7. Packaging

Butcher paper is ideal for use in packaging that can carry weight as well as larger items such as meats and fish. That is why it does not tear very easily or crumble – because it is thicker and more fibrous. Other baked products which do not require elaborate packaging may be covered using parchment paper.

Conclusion

Well done that’s it – You’re now a master of kitchen paper! Next time, you’ll be a whiz no matter whether you’re boiling; baking; wrapping foods up or marinating meat for the smoker. Yes, parchment and butcher paper can be made to do the same things, but there are easily discernible and significant differences if you’ve used them.

Why do a poor job when you do not have to? All you need is to remember a few key principles:

Parchment paper is heat resistant and so is baking paper but baking paper can only take moderately high heat.

While baking if you want to let the moisture out from the meat, use parchment paper. The butcher paper is better if you want the steak to stay moist. To add to this, butcher paper is also more water-resistant than regular parchment paper.

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