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Author Topic: Butter making tips  (Read 3619 times)

farmers wife

  • Joined Jul 2009
  • SE Wales
Butter making tips
« on: November 28, 2017, 07:55:08 am »

Hello


Ive been making butter from my Jersey and working well.

  • A few queries - who much salt do I use I don't think I'm adding enough
  • Even when left out its hard - do people add oil or how does it work to be able to spread it without resorting to the microwave all the time
  • whats its self life
  • how quickly do you need to take the cream off - I need at least 2 days worth of cream which is day 3.
  • Any other pointers worth mentioning?

macgro7

  • Joined Feb 2016
  • Leicester
Re: Butter making tips
« Reply #1 on: November 28, 2017, 09:10:11 am »
I always wondered why do British people have butter with salt????  :o
If I want to eat toast with jam I don't want salty butter, if I eat with cheese I cap put some salt myself on top lol

I assume the room must be too cold for the bitter to be soft. I think you need to wait till spring...

You can use it for ages! It usually goes for faster if left in warm place. If it starts getting old just boil it and make it into ghee and you can store it for years. My mother in law does that and stores ghee in a pot (covered) in her utility room cupboard, which by the way gets really hot as it's next to the boiler and clothes dryer.
Growing loads of fruits and vegetables! Raising dairy goats, chickens, ducks, rabbits on 1/2 acre in the middle of the city of Leicester, using permaculture methods.

greenbeast

  • Joined Jul 2014
Re: Butter making tips
« Reply #2 on: November 28, 2017, 12:27:44 pm »
I just leave our bought butter in a butter dish out all year, bit harder this year unless the heating has been on.

Personally wouldn't want to be mixing other oils in to make it spreadable. I buy actual butter to get away from all that

sabrina

  • Joined Nov 2008
Re: Butter making tips
« Reply #3 on: November 28, 2017, 02:53:33 pm »
We mix our butter with groundnut oil to make it easy to spread. Think OH found out about it on the internet.

farmers wife

  • Joined Jul 2009
  • SE Wales
Re: Butter making tips
« Reply #4 on: November 28, 2017, 09:09:12 pm »

My kitchen is usually over 20 degrees so the hardness of the butter must be due to some process they do as some butters are softer.


Salted butter is essential here mostly called 'slightly salted' doesn't taste of salt bit like adding salt to cakes it brings up the flavour.


Ghee is a great option as has a higher frying point ideal for omelettes.

SallyintNorth

  • Joined Feb 2011
  • Cornwall
  • Rarely short of an opinion but I mean well
    • Trelay Cohousing Community
Re: Butter making tips
« Reply #5 on: November 28, 2017, 09:25:35 pm »
We skim the milk the following day, so not less than 24 hours after milking.  All utensils, containers, lids etc squeaky clean - washed thoroughly and scalded for at least 30 seconds too.  Covered and refrigerated until we have enough for a batch of butter, or it’s been there about four days, whichever is sooner.

If it’s for cooking immediately we don’t worry about washing it so much. And don’t need to add salt.

If it’s for eating we wash it thoroughly, until the water runs crystal clear.  After the last wash, add a bit of salt.  The salt helps the last water to come out when you pat it.  Water that’s left in, especailly if some buttermilk remains, is what causes that slightly ripe smell and taste. Salt will help but thorough washing is the biggest factor. 

Ours spreads well in our kitchen - usually warm but not hot - but not from the fridge.  Despite all I’ve said about washing all the buttermilk out and patting out the last of the water, if you dry it to within an inch of its life, it may be a bit hard and less spreadable ;). Experiment with timings, how much to wash, how much salt to use, and so on.

Unsalted butter will freeze and we’ve found that our salted also freezes fine and isn’t any different when thawed.  So we make big batches in a food processor, and freeze some.  There are 20+ of us here, so we use up a tub within 36-48 hours.  Hence we can leave a bit of buttermilk in, so it spreads, and eat it before it goes overripe.  You could do the same on a smaller scale, freeze it in sizes that you’ll use within two days. 

The tip about ghee is noted - we’ll have a go at that.
Don't listen to the money men - they know the price of everything and the value of nothing

Live in a cohousing community with small farm for our own use.  Dairy cows (rearing their own calves for beef), pigs, sheep for meat and fleece, ducks and hens for eggs, veg and fruit growing

farmers wife

  • Joined Jul 2009
  • SE Wales
Re: Butter making tips
« Reply #6 on: November 29, 2017, 04:00:47 pm »

Thanks Sally - I have noticed that 'ripe' taste & smell too I thought it was because I had left the cream too long. But looks like I need to wash it more then.  Its quite strong.


I will have to freeze some then.


I'm still looking for ideas how to keep it more spreadable - I assume it needs the buttermilk left in then but leaves the ripe taste.

Rupert the bear

  • Joined Jun 2015
Re: Butter making tips
« Reply #7 on: November 29, 2017, 04:34:58 pm »
My own opinion is that as a hard fat ,butter should be firm at room temperature and should only be warmed when used in cooking, as for toast then thin slices left to melt on the still hot bread then spread  ( preferably a little crisp )
To make a soft butter then you need to blend in a veg oil ( sacrilege ) as SallyintNorth says  " If it’s for eating we wash it thoroughly, until the water runs crystal clear.  After the last wash, add a bit of salt.  The salt helps the last water to come out when you pat it.  Water that’s left in, especailly if some buttermilk remains, is what causes that slightly ripe smell and taste. Salt will help but thorough washing is the biggest factor"

Soft butter is for summer sandwiches any way when it is warn weather  :-\ :-\ :-\

SallyintNorth

  • Joined Feb 2011
  • Cornwall
  • Rarely short of an opinion but I mean well
    • Trelay Cohousing Community
Re: Butter making tips
« Reply #8 on: November 29, 2017, 04:47:13 pm »
Other things that can help, remembering I had problems when I was in Cumbria with a very cold kitchen...

Get one of those butter-curlers, that make little ridged rolls of butter like you used to get in hotels.  It’ll warm up much quicker in that form ;). You can make a poor man’s version using a serrated knife.

Develop a taste for toasted sandwiches ;)

Scratch off the butter you’re wanting to use, in thin layers, and put on a warm plate / in a warm place for a few minutes before using.

Butter the bread before cutting the slice off the loaf.

If using sliced bread, use frozen bread, and butter before defrosting.

Develop a taste for crispbread.  Ryvita’s rubbish, it just crumbles.  Finn Crisp and Kargs are both good and strong.


And the only other thing that’s occurred so far...  You are keeping the milk and cream (a) in squeaky clean conditions and (b) refrigerated, aren’t you?  We found we got an extra two days of the cream not tasting too ripe when we started scalding the lids of the jars we stored it in... ;)

« Last Edit: November 29, 2017, 04:48:48 pm by SallyintNorth »
Don't listen to the money men - they know the price of everything and the value of nothing

Live in a cohousing community with small farm for our own use.  Dairy cows (rearing their own calves for beef), pigs, sheep for meat and fleece, ducks and hens for eggs, veg and fruit growing

farmers wife

  • Joined Jul 2009
  • SE Wales
Re: Butter making tips
« Reply #9 on: December 04, 2017, 08:20:07 pm »

I am keeping the milk cold and trying to be clean as possible.  I clean items in the dishwasher and wash what I can.  The lids are plastic so perhaps I can use hot water.


The ripe taste isn't nasty its 'matured' taste which my children don't like. 


Someone told me not to make butter in the winter as the cows are on hay not grass.  I feed her a mix of all rounder nuts and Lucerne for her treat when milking.


I'm not sure where to go with this.  I have googled it a bit but everything seems to concentrate on chemicals getting into the milk/poorly cow or very dirty conditions which isn't the case.

SallyintNorth

  • Joined Feb 2011
  • Cornwall
  • Rarely short of an opinion but I mean well
    • Trelay Cohousing Community
Re: Butter making tips
« Reply #10 on: December 04, 2017, 09:11:23 pm »
Can I suggest trying it using very thoroughly cleaned and scalded everything?  We found that washing very thoroughly by hand and then scalding for at least 30 seconds made a huge difference over just washing in the dishwasher ;)
Don't listen to the money men - they know the price of everything and the value of nothing

Live in a cohousing community with small farm for our own use.  Dairy cows (rearing their own calves for beef), pigs, sheep for meat and fleece, ducks and hens for eggs, veg and fruit growing

 

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