Butter Vs Cooking Spray: Which To Use For Greasing Your Cake Pan

We've all been there, staring at a cake recipe in our kitchen, wondering what to use for the vague instruction that reads, "Grease the cake pan." There are various ways to prevent your cake from sticking, but butter and cooking spray rank among our top favorites. Of course, there are pros and cons to using either, but the best thing you can do is follow whatever the recipe — or perhaps similar recipes — states. If there's no clear guidance, you can't go wrong with using butter, which, unlike cooking spray, will help enhance your delicious baked goods.

Whichever form of fat you choose to grease your cake pan, be sure to coat all sides evenly and liberally. Really spread the grease around into any corners or pockets — especially if you're using a more intricate bundt or patterned pan — so that the batter doesn't get stuck in every nook and cranny. For a bundt pan, spray the inside at all angles, or use a pastry brush to paint the inside generously with softened butter. Regardless of whether you prefer butter or cooking spray, it's imperative that you don't skip this step in the baking process, thus avoiding the horrors of what happens if you forget to grease your cake pan.

If your cake batter recipe calls for butter, it will undoubtedly complement the flavor of the butter already in the cake. Baked goods like gooey brown butter cake or a boozy beauty like this Kentucky bourbon butter cake are only improved by their butter content. After all, compared to a spray oil, the taste of butter just can't be beaten. Although butter is made from cream, it still contains water, which can separate from the dairy when heated, so be warned. Nevertheless, this technique is generally reliable for ensuring your cake doesn't stick.

Using butter in tandem with parchment paper is a great way to achieve that buttery, caramelized dairy taste. It will also help ensure that the cake releases cleanly from the pan. If you're concerned about the excess water in butter affecting the removal process, you can always brush clarified butter onto the sides of the pan. Since the water is effectively cooked out of clarified butter, the final product is purely butterfat.

The easiest way to grease a cake pan with butter is to use room temperature butter. Cut about a tablespoon off and use your fingers to coat it evenly all over the cake pan. This method allows you to control how much butter is applied to the sides and bottom of the pan, as a thick layer is easier to achieve with softened butter compared to cold butter. Combine this with our favorite butter trick by briefly chilling the buttered pan so that it solidifies before adding any cake batter, which aids in the release process.

If your cake recipe suggests using oil rather than butter, cooking spray is a great option for greasing the pan. It's usually less expensive than butter, and is generally shelf-stable. There are plenty of cooking sprays available, from coconut and avocado oils to blends that contain canola and palm oils, like the classic (and reliable) PAM No-Stick Cooking Spray. Others even contain flour, such as Baker's Joy Baking Spray with Flour, which combines the greasing and flouring into one easy spray.

Some cakes, like bundt cakes, require delicate handling, so be aware of how to use Pam on a bundt cake without ruining it. Unfortunately, it's far too easy to be heavy-handed with a cooking spray, leading to potential over-greasing. For heavier or denser cakes, add parchment paper that hangs over the sides of the pan so the cake can be easily lifted by the edges of the paper. Greasing the parchment itself is optional, but it can't hurt, and cooking spray underneath helps the parchment stay in place in the pan. However, if you happen to be out of both butter and cooking spray, you may already have an alternative to grease a bundt pan with: shortening.