Making Butter!

[CRUZMISL]

is there any way to make it taste like European style butter such as Plugra.

Thanks,

Joe

[fatmat]

Don't know what you call European style, but it seems that really fresh cream gives a rich yellow butter, like Welsh butter, and stale cream yields a paler butter... does this help at all?

[snowangel]

You'll need cream with a higher butterfat -- that's the big difference. Most American butter is 80% butterfat, and Plugra is slightly higer.

Is Plugra cultured butter or sweet cream?

[Malawry]

Really, Snowangel? I mean, heavy whipping cream is usually 36% fat, but butter is 80% fat. You mean finding 38 or 40% cream results in a fattier butter? I am very curious about this. I wonder how you push up the fat in butter if that doesn't work--is it merely a matter of pushing out more buttermilk from the separated butter? Can you "evaporate" some of the water in the finished butter? Is homemade butter really 80% fat most of the time?

I think Plugra is sweet cream butter; it lacks the cheesiness I identify with cultured butters.

[snowangel]

Now that I think about it, Rochelle, it might be about pushing more buttermilk out of the butter once churned. I remember my grandmother weighting down her butter (which was wrapped in cheesecloth. Dunno. But, I do kow that I like a cultured butter better.

[Malawry]

I prefer cultured butters for eating on toast, but I like sweet cream butter best for most baking applications. This begs the question, how does one make cultured butter?

If nobody on eG knows, surely somebody has a butter-maker at their local farmer's market that they can ask. CRUZMISL, thanks for helping us explore the nuances of making butter.

[plk]

A really fascinating source on the history and making of butter: http://webexhibits.org/butter/

From their overview of the process and steps involved in making butter, it looks like ripening the butter through added enzymes and an aging process will flavor the butter. So, depending on the cultural butter variant you want (http://webexhibits.org/butter/countries.html), you have to alter your method quite a bit.

http://webexhibits.org/butter/process-steps.html

Edited January 6, 2006 by plk (log)

[miladyinsanity]

Cool link plk.

I assume I can churn Double Cream--45% butterfat--into butter too?

[andiesenji]

Cultured butter is developed with a lactic acid culture mixed with the cream which is then allowed to stand overnight or about 12 hours or longer, at room temperature, for the culture to develop.

You cannot use ultrapasteurized or ultrahomogenized cream - Manufacturers cream is pasteurized but not homogenized.

This site has an excellent and easy method explained and illustrated.

Usually in the washing phase, butter paddles are used, however you can use your hands but do wear gloves. Otherwise, use a broad wooden spoon, I use the bamboo rice paddles like this.

Edited January 6, 2006 by andiesenji (log)

[Jamie Valvo]

We make cultured butter at the restaurant but we use a pasturized cream to make it. A bit of house made cream fraiche helps start the lactic culture and gives the butter a nice character. As far as removing all the buttermilk, I would suggest an alternating series of hanging the butter in cheesecloth and "rechurning". We do normally three repetitions of this process, but it can be more or less depending on the liquid content left in the butter. A few grams of salt are added during the last churning. Once we are satisfied we roll it for service and hang it so it can continue to drain as needed. If you can get a steady supply of raw cream from a dairy it makes butter that is far superior to anything that can be made with pasturized products.

Happy Churning,

James Valvo

Chef de Cuisine

Tribute

[CRUZMISL]

Great answers and links. I read about the creme fraiche method and will try it soon.

There goes my New Years resolution

[andiesenji]

For those that want to try making their own butter, there is a very good method with practical instructions that were originally enclosed with the Dazey, hand-cranked churn

You can also use an electric churn that agitates the cream much slower than you can do with a regular mixer and the shape of the paddles is also important.

They have a significant collection of churns so click on one of the links to see some of the odd critters that were invented to turn cream into butter.

Incidentally, there are a lot of butter churns on ebay!

When ebay first started up, some of these old things brought astronomical prices but now people know they are far more durable and common than anyone guessed.

[qrn]

I'll add an additional question to the butter thing....

Back in the "olden" days" one of my favorite things was, (still is but it's not as good) grilled brats with linguini with brown butter. The butter now, does not brown properly..the plugra ,etc stuff is even worse. I have added buttermilk or cream and it still is not like it was... The best I have found is Tillamook unsalted. It is still not as good as the old butter.

Brown butter is a wonderful flavor, and I would like to use it .

Comments would be appreciated

Bud

[andiesenji]

I use the Kerrygold Irish butter. It has the most flavor in my opinion and it browns beautifully without giving off the watery stuff one gets with domestic butter.

It thickens sauces and adds a particular gloss that is my test of a good butter.

Cabot's has an "heirloom" butter but outside of a batch I ordered when Fat Guy posted about a special offer in late 2005, I haven't been able to order it shipped to California.

It was terrific.

Edited January 15, 2007 by andiesenji (log)

[Rhubarb]

I just made butter! I knew it was possible--many a time at work I'd be called away from the mixer and return to find some chunky whipped cream. But when you do it ON PURPOSE...cheap, slightly funky cream becomes fresh, awesome butter. With help from a little sel de guerande. And now I have buttermilk for my soda bread. Upon which, once baked, I will spread my awesome butter. Fruit becomes jam, cream becomes butter...life is good. Especially breakfast.

[hummingbirdkiss]

I just made butter!  I knew it was possible--many a time at work I'd be called away from the mixer and return to find some chunky whipped cream.  But when you do it ON PURPOSE...cheap, slightly funky cream becomes fresh, awesome butter.  With help from a little sel de guerande.  And now I have buttermilk for my soda bread.  Upon which, once baked, I will spread my awesome butter.  Fruit becomes jam, cream becomes butter...life is good.  Especially breakfast.

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I loved reading this!!! I felt the same way and thought I was nuts the first time I made butter at home! same for maynaise I was in awe of not only myself..but how nice it looked and how wonderful everything tasted!!! life is good!!! thanks so much for such a happy post!!

I am starved for breakfast now and want to go make butter for my toast!!!

[binkyboots]

Fruit becomes jam, cream becomes butter...life is good.  Especially breakfast.

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I love making butter! the buttermilk heads straight into scones or bread, the butter is salted, last time I even managed to dig a jar of last years peach and bramble jam out to go with it!

now that I live out in the country I keep hoping to find a nice, local source of yummy cream.

[Sony]

I don't own a stand mixer- how long do you think it takes cream to become butter with a good hand mixer? I'm inspired by your post....

[Toliver]

I can remember back when I was in the first grade our class made butter. All of the students in my class sat in a circle passing a jar containing the cream/milk inside. Each kid got to shake the jar for a little bit and then it was passed to the next kid who then shook the jar and so on. I can't even recall if the jar made it clear around the circle of kids before we had butter.

I remember we were each given a saltine cracker and the teacher put a schmear of the finished butter on it. I remember it tasting quite good given that, at home, my mom was an avid oleo/margarine user.

So I can say based upon my first grade experience, it doesn't take long to make butter.

[binkyboots]

I don't own a stand mixer- how long do you think it takes cream to become butter with a good hand mixer? I'm inspired by your post....

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I bet it woudn't take that long, though it could be messy.... I mean you get to stiffly whipped cream, then it goes grainy then suddenly splits and buttermilk flies everywhere (or it does when using a very well aged kenwood mixer without a splash gaurd!)

I have a feeling it could be made in an ice cream maker too, though it would be slower.

Edited March 2, 2007 by binkyboots (log)

[Rhubarb]

I don't see why it would take much longer--it was maybe 10 minutes in my Kitchen Aid, and that needed some scraping (the whisk doesn't reach the botoom/sides). I think the splashing would eb the bigger concern--maybe use a much bigger bowl than needed and don't wear anything nice...

[Jambalyle]

I can remember back when I was in the first grade our class made butter. All of the students in my class sat in a circle passing a jar containing the cream/milk inside. Each kid got to shake the jar for a little bit and then it was passed to the next kid who then shook the jar and so on. I can't even recall if the jar made it clear around the circle of kids before we had butter.

I remember we were each given a saltine cracker and the teacher put a schmear of the finished butter on it. I remember it tasting quite good given that, at home, my mom was an avid oleo/margarine user.

So I can say based upon my first grade experience, it doesn't take long to make butter.

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Were we in the same first grade? We did the exact same thing! It was yummy... and didn't take long at all. In fact the last kids to get the jar didn't have much luck getting anything in the jar to shake.

-Lyle

PS: It's a shame that schools probably can't do this anymore... given all the kids with dairy allergies (at least in my kid's classrooms).

[andiesenji]

Check out the instruction here: Homemade butter.

Good advice and they give instructions for using a food processor.

[HungryChris]

I guess we were a little behind in Connecticut, but we did the same thing with the heavy cream in the clean mayo jar in 3rd grade. I can still remember how great that butter tasted on a saltine! After reading about kids doing their chores that included churning butter, it was a great lesson.

I bet the school system would frown on kids passing around glass jars today.

As someone who loves buttermilk and makes it as well, I know that the world has different views as to just what it is. To me, buttermilk is made from skim milk and or butter whey that has been innoculated with live culture from an active source (like unpasturized buttermilk) and has been allowed to prosper at a warm temp for several hours. Much like good yogurt, good buttermilk is a thick and tangy product. In some cultures, the left over whey from making butter is called buttermilk straight away. Perhaps this is just the difference between buttermilk and cultured buttermilk.

HC

Edited March 4, 2007 by HungryChris (log)

[Special K]

Has anyone else made their own butter after reading Daniel Patterson's "The Way We Eat" column in the NYT magazine last Sunday? So cool, and so easy! (Whipping cream, mixer, plastic wrap over the bowl, whip on medium high for about ten minutes until there's separation and splatterage, strain, knead.) I saved most of the butter just as is, but salted some, and made a couple of compound butters with the rest. I used some of the buttermilk in a cake. I guess I always knew how to make butter, but it never occurred to me to try it until I read "Curd Mentality." Spouse and friends remain singularly unimpressed - "Why would you go to all that trouble?" I knew you all would understand.

(Please excuse if this topic exists elsewhere or I've posted this in the wrong forum - I looked but didn't find it).

K