Some of my favorite memories of eating involve butter. On top of pancakes or frozen waffles, as a roux for the first time I made macaroni and cheese, or whipped into frosting for cupcakes. But there are so many types of butter out there these days that it can be hard to know what to use for what. I know to use unsalted for baking so I can control the salt levels, but still reach for salted butter for morning toast. But what's the difference between sweet butter and cultured butter? Is European butter just fancier, or will it actually improve everything I put it on, like liquid gold? And do I have to make my own clarified butter, or can I just buy ghee?
Thankfully, most of those questions are answered in Dorie Greenspan's new Short Stack book, Butter. The world-renowned baker and James Beard-award-winning cookbook author published her 13th book about her favorite ingredient for sweet and savory dishes (from a French chocolate tart to super-buttery potatoes), and we're sharing her explanation of the different types of butter and how to use them below. Use this knowledge to make buttered breadcrumbs for Sausage, Squash, and Cornbread Gratin, bake your first Apple Pandowdy, or make a buttery sauce for pasta. We know that butter makes everything better.
Salted & Sweet Butter
Butter comes either salted or sweet (also called unsalted). Although all salted butter contains some amount of salt (salt used to be added as a preservative, but today it’s added primarily for flavor), some salted butters are noticeably salty. The problem is the word "some." Since the amount of salt can vary from butter to butter, it’s best to use unsalted butter in the kitchen and add as much salt as you’d like to each dish. If you prefer salted butter, use it—just remember to adjust the salt in each dish.
Cultured Butter
With this kind of butter, the cream is treated with cultures (like yogurt), allowed to ferment and then churned. The result is a fuller flavor with noticeable acidity. It’s easier to find cultured American butters these days, but, as with salted butters, not all cultured butters are the same. My favorite, made by Vermont Creamery, has tang and produces a different (and wonderful) sensation on your tongue due to its very high butterfat content. I rarely use this butter in cooking, but I do like it in baking.
European Butter
The standards for the minimum amount of butterfat in butter are different in Europe and America. Abroad, the minimum is 82 percent; here, it’s 80 percent; everywhere, it’s lower for salted butter. So, whenever you use European butter, you’re likely to have a richer dish. When I cook and bake in Paris, I don’t make any adjustments in my recipes to make allowances for the difference in butterfat, so if you’d like to try a higher-fat European butter, go for it.
Room-Temperature Butter
Proper room-temperature butter is still slightly cool; it’s really more about texture than temperature. The butter should be soft but not squishy. The stick should hold its shape (a little pressure should leave an indentation), and it should be pliable—if you mash it with a spatula, you shouldn’t have to fight it.
Storing Butter
Keep butter in the refrigerator, well wrapped and away from foods with strong odors. It can be kept in the freezer for almost forever, but let’s call it a year; defrost it overnight in the fridge. Butter can be kept out at cool room temperature for a day, longer in a butter bell or crock. However, my own preference is to store butter in the refrigerator and then pull it out about 20 minutes before I need it.
Clarified Butter
Clarified butter is a magical thing: It’s butter without water (you simmer it away) that won’t burn when used over high heat. To clarify butter, place the butter in a saucepan, bring it to a simmer and let it bubble gently until it’s covered with foam. Don’t stop there! Keep simmering the butter until the foam sinks to the bottom and the bubbling just about stops. Line a fine-mesh sieve with cheesecloth or a coffee filter, pour the butter through it into a container, cool and cover. The butter will keep in the fridge for at least 2 months.
Reprinted with permission from Short Stack Editions Vol. 30: Butter, by Dorie Greenspan.