The Crucial Tip To Remember So That You Never Burn Butter Again

Brown butter, also known in French as buerre noisette, is a magically delicious ingredient created when the right amount of heat is carefully applied to butter, transforming it to reveal more depth and richness, and imparting a distinct nutty flavor profile. It only takes a few minutes on a stovetop to make, but it's important to be careful since butter has a delicate temperament — too much heat and the butter will burn. Your run-of-the-mill butter will burn at any temperature higher than 350 degrees Fahrenheit, while clarified butter can go up to 450 degrees.

To avoid burning your butter, make sure to have on hand a bit of lemon juice, perhaps in a little bowl on the side or even from a squirt bottle, for easy access. Adding the cool liquid will take the temperature of the butter down immediately, preventing burnt butter. Another technique is to have a bowl of cold water next to your burner, so if you ever see the butter going black, you can quickly take your pan off the heat and cool it off in the water. For a third preventative option, you can also add a teaspoon of neutral oil to your butter before you begin cooking it.

Once you've successfully transformed your butter into a nutty brown butter, the possibilities of usage are endless: Brown butter is a choice upgrade for everything from baking cookies to scrambling eggs to sauteeing your favorite green vegetable. The darker the brown butter, the more caramelized the milk solids are, which leads to a more earthy taste that can even become a bit bitter, like coffee.

Since a few seconds can turn beautiful brown butter into unappealing burnt butter, you'll need to watch your pan carefully. First, start off with a cold pan and cold butter to ensure even cooking, and if you can, choose a lighter-colored pan so that you can better see the color of the butter. In case your butter does start to burn, don't fret, for the situation can be salvaged. Just take your cooking casserole with the butter off of the source of the heat immediately. Next, you can use a coffee filter to strain out any burnt bits, which will remove any bitter taste and leave you with simply delicious brown butter.