There are some food trends I may never fully understand. Take Cronuts for example or molecular gastronomy. Layers of deep-fried croissant pastry or liquid nitrogen in my food, nope not for me, thanks.
But there is a trend that’s gaining more and more momentum as the years go by that’s totally in line with me and my beliefs and that’s the art of making real food from scratch. Nothing makes me happier than seeing people get excited about something that is essentially how things were just done back in the day before we stuffed things up and started mass producing everything in a bid to make our lives easier. Homemade bread, pasta, yoghurt and cheese are now things that people are trying their hands at once again. While kombucha, kefir and kimchi are all words many wouldn’t have even heard of 10 years ago but are now talked about with great passion and excitement by those who make their own. But you know the simplest and possibly the most beautiful thing to make from scratch? You guessed it, butter.
Butter in its simplest form is just the pure delicious creamy fat from cow’s milk, although there’s nothing stopping you from making it from cream from another animal if it’s available to you too! I know yak butter is the butter of choice in Tibet, although I’m not sure I could keep down a steaming hot mug of their famous yak butter tea… just quietly.
Now that we tolerate dairy in small amounts I’ve got into the habit of buying a little jar of non-homogenised cream on our weekend trip to the markets, and bringing it home to make my own butter. It couldn’t be any easier, so easy in fact that my daughter and her kindergarten class made some the old fashion way in a glass jar back when she was only 3. But why, you ask, would one go to the trouble of making something at home when it’s just so easy to just pop down to the shops and buy some. Fair call. Especially given that unlike many things we make from scratch in a bid to save us money, making butter at home doesn’t work out any cheaper than buying… but it’s all in the taste. Nothing compares to the creamy, pure unadulterated taste of freshly made butter. It’s that simple, and it’s beyond worth every moment it takes to make it from scratch.
If you’ve never made butter before, I’m sure you’ve at least come close. We’ve all been there, whipping the cream supposedly to soft peaks, we turn away for a second only to come back to over-whipped and separated cream. Rather than getting upset, I say just keep going and make butter instead. All you need is cream, any will do. But like with most things, the nicer the starting product the better the end product will be. You can go the traditional route by pouring the cream into a large glass jar, adding a little marble to help things along and be prepared to shake things all around for a good 15-20 minutes or so until the cream separates into fat (butter) and buttermilk. Or you can take the easy and much faster way and use a blender, which is what I do. From start to finish it only takes a matter of minutes. As you beat the cream it starts to thicken as we all know, it then gets grainy as the fat starts to separate out. Before you know it the mixture has separated into little yellow blobs of butter and a cloudy watery liquid (buttermilk) is left behind. You then need to strain the buttermilk off (this can be used in baking or drink it straight up), and rinse the butter until the water runs clear. This ensures you get rid of any traces of buttermilk which would quickly turn your butter rancid. You can then mix in a little sea salt or if you’re feeling a little bit fancy you can take things one step further and add flavourings to your butter, such as orange zest and cinnamon or rosemary and lemon zest. I only make small batches and keep it in the fridge, but if you don’t go through as much butter in your house as we do, you can always portion it into little pieces and freeze for later use.
I don’t tend to bake with this beautiful homemade butter, and instead reserve it for things like smearing onto freshly made pikelets straight from the pan, or mixed with a little finely chopped garlic, flat leaf parsley and lemon zest to spread thickly over hot toast.
homemade butter
I use beautiful local un-homoganised Sunnydale Dairy whipping cream, which I pick up from the farmers markets. It’s rich in A2 beta-casein protein which is gentler on your stomach. But any whipping cream can be used.
Makes 250g + 150ml buttermilk
500ml fresh whipping cream
pinch fine sea salt, if desired
Place cream into a small blender (I use the little blender attachment from my stick blender). Blend for approximately 1-1 1/2 minutes or until the fat has separated and you’ll see a cloudy liquid in the bottom of the bowl. You may need to stop once or twice to scrape down the sides and help move things around a little to make sure it’s blending evenly. Pour the contents of the blender into a sieve-lined bowl. Using your hands, gently squeeze and knead the butter to extract as much buttermilk as you can (reserve this for another use, it will keep in a glass jar in the fridge for up to 3 days or frozen for longer). Fill a bowl with fresh cold water and place the blob of butter into it. Knead and squeeze the butter some more in the water to remove all traces of buttermilk from it. Drain and repeat again, until the water stays clear. Drain well.
You can place the blob of butter into a cloth and squeeze it to remove any traces of water, or just do as I do and knead it in your hands a little more until you no longer see or feel little pockets of water. If you’d like to add a little salt, you can do so now, to taste. Or flavour with whatever else you like if you’re feeling fancy. Store in an airtight container in the fridge or portion into small blocks and freeze in zip-lock bags for later use.
34 Responses
This looks so decadent especially with added herbs, perfect for my dinner party next week or maybe I'll just have to keep it for myself, though it may be criminal not sharing such a delicious condiment! Can't wait to give it a try
Adele x
A lovely posting… amazing images as ever. x Michelle
We went to Bhutan on our honeymoon and I just couldn't bring myself to love yak milk or yak butter and most things there were cooked in yak fat :-(. But this butter, now that is something I could happily dig into. I used to make butter with my mum all the time but time got away from me. Your post has inspired me to churn some butter with my boys π Thanks Emma! x (oh and great recipe for Elle, can't wait to try it!)
Thanks Sneh, I was honoured to be asked π
p.s this is a great project for the school holidays!
Lovely idea!!!!
Maybe this is a silly question – but what about ghee -> is it better made from homemade butter?
To be honest, I've not made ghee from my homemade butter before. I'm a little precious about it you see π I bet it would taste amazing though!
This post brings back great memories of when I was a kid. My school organized a trip to a farm and we were all allowed to make butter from fresh milk in one of those old barrels that farmers used to use. My arms were sore the next but I've never had better butter my whole life!
Hi Emma
Another lovely idea. Please tell me, is that one of your gluten-free breads spread with the gorgeous better? If so, is it a recipe you have posted?
I am so fed-up with the awful gluten-free stuff from the supermarket. The last lot went in the bin.
Cheers
Erica
Hi Erica,
Yes this is my homemade gluten-free bread. The recipe is in my upcoming cookbook, due out next April. It's beautiful xx
Thanks Emma, can't wait to buy the book.
Second butter recipe i've read this week! I found a feta & coconut yoghurt recipe too! I've been a on a bread baking binge this week – next week, dairy! π
The Sunnydale Cream is lux isn't it. I've managed to inadvertently make butter from it more than once π There's no real point keeping the buttermilk though. It's not the type you want for baking. It is the cultured buttermilk that works in baking to give the lightness as the acid reacts with the baking ingredients. Buttermilk from normal butter won't give the same effect. If you cultured your cream with kefir and then made butter you could use the buttermilk in baking.
Culturing the cream with kefir sounds interesting! I still use the buttermilk from my butter, I'd rather not just chuck it out π You can also just drink it as they do in India.
The first time I made butter (in my KitchenAid) I left it churning a little too long and the buttermilk exploded out the side and all over our sofa (we have a tiny kitchen) – I would have been slightly scarred by the experience except the butter tasted so incredibly good I've gone back to make my own again and again. I love choosing the cream to make it with, flavouring the butter and making beautiful soda bread with the milk π
My brothers and I accidentally made butter a few times as kids–we loooooooved super foamy milk and would shake a partially full gallon jug for ages to get a massive amount of foam. Occasionally little semi-solid pieces would form in the milk and hey, we'd made butter! Your method looks much easier, perfect for the lazier and less foam-addicted adult I've become π
Love this post Emm and feel very inspired to whip up a batch today! I am very picky about the butter I buy so this may be the answer. How long does the butter last?
Hey KateP! To be honest we use this amount in about 7-10 days, so I'm not exactly sure how long it lasts past that. If you rinse the butter well to remove all traces of buttermilk, I don't see why it couldn't last a good few weeks in the fridge or if you don't think you'll get through it very quickly just freeze it in small portions for later use. xx
I've wanted to make homemade butter (and yogurt) for quite a while now. Thanks for bringing this up again! I hope to make a batch of butter this weekend.
And what comes to yak butter tea…well, it needs time to get used to that taste. It's quite…special.
I'm sure it is, as with most things I'm sure it's just an acquired taste π
Cronuts look SO GROSS to me. I don't get them either. Even the name makes me shudder. I remember making butter as a kid by shaking cream in a baby food jar. This is the more adult version of that. π
Aka, the lazy (adult) version! Hehe π
How did I miss this one, Emma?!
I've never made butter from scratch. Gotta try it.
Flavoured butter is just gorgeous. My dad used to make some and put a slice on top of steak. So lovely.
Have a great w/end! oxo
Oh, this is the best! I am bookmarking now for my summer holidays/retirement, I so want to do this and yours is the best step by step I've seen. Thanks so much xo
You're welcome Lizzy! xx
I was just thinking about which food trends I fall for, not ten minutes ago. I'm so with you regarding cronuts and molecular gastronomy. π And trends like these. Homemade butter reminds me of prairie living. Also, I'm so enamored with your site. It's so lovely. I'm excited to dig in.
The more I see people making butter from scratch the happier I get. It truly is one of life's simplest pleasures.. I make cultured butter from raw milk which I leave on the bench to 'sour' for 1-2 days. Looking forward to seeing your cookbook π
Thanks Melissa, cultured butter is next on my to-do list! xx
Eeeep! So excited, I made the butter & it is so delicious !! Can't believe how simple it was too π I'll be stocking the fridge with cream from now on, thanks xx
So good eh? Stoked you made it π
I too made butter in Kindy, in a jar. I wanted to make butter all the time after that! I've been thinking about it lately and reading your post has got me inspired again! In the groceries this week, I will definitely be buying cream! A couple of questions – Does the buttermilk keep in the fridge? Also, is there any other reason (aside from the fact that it is delicious) that you don't use the butter in baking?
Hey Helen, yes the buttermilk should keep in the fridge for 2-3 days. And the only reason I don't use my homemade butter for baking is because it seems too good to use in something where it's beautiful flavour is lost. There is no reason it can't be used in baking though. I just like to savour mine π
Great, thank you! I don't do much baking these days (as much as I LOVE it) so don't want to have to buy butter and make it! Can't wait to get started. Thanks again!
Hey, my butter went back to looking like whipped cream again, i do not know whatn
I did wrong. Should i keep whipping it, i ruined two batches trying tto make butter. I whipped until it became butter, poured off butterfat added ice water and the butter whpped in with the water.
Hrrm, never heard of that or experienced it myelf? Very strange. It's hard for me to know what's going wrong without being there but my guess is that you're not whipping it quite enough to begin with. It needs to be totally overwhipped until the fat separates completely from the buttermilk. xx