For the past few months I've been cooking more and more with clarified butter. Great flavor, high smoke point, etc. When I first started making it, I looked up a few "recipes" (more procedures than anything), and I still use the same method. But I thought I'd ask other cooks here, how do you make your clarified butter?

keytohwy

Just melt the butter and skim off the fats that rise to the top.

Melt and pour through cheese cloth. Hardly anything simpler. I do like to use a microwave to melt the butter, however. This prevents any scorching or picking up any other flavors.

Why would butter have ambiguity and be in need of clarification anyway?

quote:

Originally posted by Een:
Just melt the butter and skim off the fats that rise to the top.

What IS butter without the fats?

I do as een does, but also decant the butter and get rid of the solids on the bottom. Cheesecloth can be used as well to get rid of every minute bit.

Just don't rush the process. If you burn the butter for whatever reason, just throw it out and start over.

I slice the butter into a metal bowl and put it into a 200 degree oven until fully melted. I let cool, refrigerate and separate once the top has solidified.

Neil

quote:

Originally posted by wine+art:
Why would butter have ambiguity and be in need of clarification anyway?

Maybe it's just me, but that's funny.

Yeah, the solids just sink to the bottom.

I usually just set the butter in a pot in a warm spot until it starts to melt, then tranfer it to a low heat source. Once the butter is complety melted I crank up the heat and let it go. I usually don't skim the whey foam that forms on the top until all the water is evaporated out of the butter. Then skim the foam off and set the pot to the side and let it sit for a minute (allows the milk solids to float to the bottom. Then carefully strain thru cheesecloth and your ready to go. I wouldn't use clarified butter for searing because it still has a low smoke point when compared to many veggy oils out there.

Just don't rush the process. If you burn the butter for whatever reason, just throw it out and start over.[/QUOTE]

Before throwing it out check to see how burnt the butter is. Brown butter can be used for many things and has a unique flavor to it. I like to use brown butter to make a burnt orange vinaigrette, has a nice nutty flavor to it. When cooking fish it is also nice to baste it with beurre noisette(brown butter).

quote:

Originally posted by Foghorn Leghorn:
What IS butter without the fats?

Nobody has answered the question.....does anybody know the answer?

quote:

Originally posted by Foghorn Leghorn:

quote:

Originally posted by Foghorn Leghorn:
What IS butter without the fats?

Nobody has answered the question.....does anybody know the answer?

Trick question butter is fat. Clarified butter removes all the other stuff. If there is butter without the fat it would be called flavorless artificial crap .

quote:

Originally posted by Pogg:
Trick question butter is fat. Clarified butter removes all the other stuff.

I was referring to Een's post above, which was, "Just melt the butter and skim off the fats that rise to the top."

Do only some fats rise?

I was referring to Een's post above, which was, "Just melt the butter and skim off the fats that rise to the top."

Do only some fats rise?[/QUOTE]

Een was incorrect in calling the foam that forms on the top fat. It is coagulated whey protein. Unsalted butter is composed of milk solids, butter fat, whey proteins and water. The process of making clarified butter is to remove everything except for the fat. That is why you will have a higher smoke point, all the contaminents have been removed.

When you heat the butter to the boiling point of water slowly the water will bubble to the top where the whey proteins form froth. The water evaporates, bubbling stops, froth dehydrates. This will leave a skin of dry whey at the top and dry casein particles at the bottom.

Buy whole butter and melt it.

quote:

Originally posted by Een:
Just melt the butter and skim off the fats that rise to the top.

Up to now that's what I'd been doing. Seemed like a long process that didn't always get everything, or got some of what shouldn't have (like the actual clarified butter beneath). So I tried it again using the cheese cloth method and that works wonderfully.

If there are other suggestions, I'm still game...

keytohwy

Pogg, you are right. I wrote in a hurry and was stupid with my words. If you look above I did clarify (ahem) my statements and talked about the whey proteins. My mind wasn't where it should have been when I wrote that.

Originally posted by Een:
I wrote in a hurry and was stupid with my words.

If I sounded like I was trying to jab at you I apologize. Just trying to answer Foghorn question. Trust me, I understand completely about writing in a hurry. No worries and I meant no attack.

No, no! I just had to kind of laugh when I re-read that and give you your props for catching my crazy.