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French-style cultured butter

Makes 12 ounces of Butter

Ingredients

Directions

  1. In a bowl, mix the heavy cream, buttermilk and yogurt. Cover the bowl and leave the mixture at room temperature for 24-48 hours to ferment.
  2. After the cream mixture has cultured at room temperature, transfer it to the refrigerator and chill it for at least 2 to 3 hours, along with the whisk and bowl you’ll be using for the next step.
  3. Remove the cream mixture from the refrigerator and start to whisk it in your mixer or food processor. Begin at a slow speed due to the thickness of the mixture. Continue to whip the mixture until it turns into a thick whipped cream. Remember to clean the sides of the bowl with a spatula occasionally to ensure all of the mixture gets whipped.
  4. Once the whipped cream begins to separate and form lumps (this indicates the butter is forming), switch from a whisk to a paddle attachment or spatula, if possible. Do this on slow speed.
  5. Stop when the butter forms a large block and has released the buttermilk.
  6. Remove the butter from the bowl and place it in a colander. Over the colander, press the butter together to remove as much buttermilk as possible.
  7. Transfer the butter to a bowl of ice water and knead it like dough. This helps to wash out the remaining buttermilk. The water will become milky. Repeat this washing process two or three times until the water remains clear.
  8. OPTIONAL: if salting, add 1-2% by weight of salt to the butter and knead it in. Perform another ice water wash after salting.
  9. Pat your butter dry and shape it however you like.

The butter can be used right away, stored in the fridge, or frozen for later use.

Reference