Tips & Techniques

Become a butter expert with our tips, techniques and frequently asked questions about butter.

Compound Butter

Creating flavored butters is a quick and easy way to add a burst of flavor to your food.

  • Let the butter come to room temperature and then combine all ingredients in a bowl.
  • Mix ingredients by hand until thoroughly combined. Then place the butter mixture on a piece of parchment paper.
  • Fold the parchment paper over the butter, roll the paper into a cylinder and twist the ends shut. Refrigerate the butter mixture until firm.

Compound butters can be kept refrigerated for several days. They can also be frozen for several months by being wrapped in plastic wrap and stored in plastic freezer bags.

Posted July 1st, 2009 in Cooking Tips

Whipped butter

Challenge Whipped Butter (available in both salted and unsalted forms) is regular butter with air whipped into it for ease of spreading. This increases the volume of the cold butter so that it cannot be substituted into recipes calling for stick butter.

Posted October 13th, 2008 in Cooking Tips

Thickening soups or sauces

Softened butter can be combined with an equal amount of flour and kneaded with a fork or by hand. The resulting mixture (Beurre Manié) may be added in small amounts as needed to a simmering liquid to give additional thickness without lumping.

Posted October 13th, 2008 in Cooking Tips

Substituting unsalted butter for salted

Add ¼ teaspoon of salt for every ½ cup (1 stick) of unsalted butter.

Posted October 13th, 2008 in Cooking Tips

Softening butter

There are several ways to soften butter for use as a spread or to use in a recipe:

  • Take the butter out of the refrigerator and leave at room temperature for about 30-60 minutes before you plan to use it.
  • Cut the butter into small pieces. If you are using the butter in a recipe, measure it out and cut in pieces to soften it quicker. You could also beat the butter with an electric mixer or place the butter between 2 sheets of waxed or parchment paper and pound with a mallet or rolling pin.
  • Microwave 1 stick of butter for about 30 seconds on High or 60-90 seconds on Low. Check the butter every 10 to 15 seconds, as it is easy to inadvertently melt the butter. If you melt the butter it will not be suitable for a number of baking applications — use it for other cooking and sautéing applications that call for melted butter.
  • Place butter on a plate and set the plate over a bowl of hot water.
Posted October 13th, 2008 in Cooking Tips