How to Make Brown Butter and How to Use It

If you haven't heard of the brown butter`, today a world will open up before you. Brown butter, also called beurre noisette, hazelnut butter, ` golden butter, brown or toasted, is the ingredient that works wonders in any recipe, whether in baking or in savory recipes, and it's incredibly easy to make. Brown butter Elevate any recipe you make with it (There's a reason some people call it "liquid gold"!).

One of the most popular in France and known there as beurre noisette or brown butter in English, it takes its name from the aroma it contains (it takes on a unbeatable hazelnut flavor) and by its color (the butter turns a browned color).

Today I'll show you how to brown butter to make the popular Beurre noisette and how to use it. ¡It will take you 5 minutes to prepare it and you'll be surprised at everything you can do with it!

How to make brown butter or brown-colored butter

Making brown butter is very easy. What you're trying to do is remove the non-fat part of the butter (that is, remove the whey, the water), and then brown the butter until it turns a golden or light brown color, without letting it burn.

To make it, you only need half a stick of butter or a whole bar and a saucepan or pan. I'll tell you how to make it:

1. Cut the butter into cubes, of a similar size so that it melts and browns evenly.
2. Insert it into a saucepan or in a deep skillet and turn the heat to medium.
3. Let the butter melt completely (about a minute) and keep it there, stirring constantly.
4. You will see it start to bubble, followed by a period of intense splattering. It's the whey (the part we want to remove), which begins to evaporate.
5. Keep it over the heat until it stops popping, stirring continuously. Lower the heat to minimum if it splatters a lot. The process will take about 4 or 5 minutes.
6. When the butter stops splattering, you’ll see a foam of light bubbles form; the butter has started to turn golden and there are some solids in the liquid (they’re the milk solids, which will settle to the bottom). In a minute, your brown butter will be ready!
7. To know your brown butter is ready, there are two indicators: first, the color, which should be golden like gold, and the milk solids take on a toasty color (never too much, or it will have burned!). The second indicator is the smell: about a minute after it stops splattering and has turned golden, you’ll start to smell a toasty, caramel-like, nutty aroma. It’s ready!
8. If you want a mild brown butter, you can take it off the heat at that point. If you're after a more intense brown butter, keep it over the heat for one more minute, stirring constantly, to toast it further without letting it burn, or you'll ruin the caramel flavor you've achieved.
9. When it’s at the desired stage, it’s important to transfer it to a heatproof container or bowl (if you leave it in the saucepan, it will keep browning from the residual heat).

Brown butter can be toasted more or less, but it must not burn (sample of butter lightly browned and somewhat more toasted):

WMF Fusiontec saucepan, WMF bamboo wood board and Pallarès butter knife

Note: Brown butter is also called blond butter (blond butter) or brown butter (brown butter).

How to use brown butter or browned butter

While traditional butter is creamy and helps your recipes turn out great, brown butter is a whole different story—it’s the ingredient that, thanks to its aromas, will elevate any recipe you use it in.

You can use the brown butter in liquid form (after it cools, if you like) or store it in the refrigerator in an airtight container; it will solidify and you can use it over the next few days.

Uses for brown butter:

• For sponge cakes: any recipe that includes butter should really use brown butter: replace some of the butter in your recipes with it.
• Add it as an ingredient to your cookies: everyone likes cookies... but they'll like them even more if you make them with brown butter.
• To make pancakes: add a touch of browned butter to your pancakes.
• For breakfast, some toast: there's nothing like enjoying it with traditional butter or with brown butter.
• Add it in the granola, you'll see how delicious it tastes and how well the flavor of the brown butter goes with it.
• Add it to the recipes for waffles.
• Add the aroma of hazelnut to your recipe for crepes.
• Roasts chickpeas on a tray with herbs and beurre noisette, they take on an unmatched flavor.
• Add it to the popcorn when you're making sweet popcorn at home.
• The eggs fried, smashed, microwaved, for making tortillas... give them a touch of this butter on top; you'll enrich their flavor while still adding the other seasonings you plan to serve with them.
• When you prepare sandwiches ham-and-cheese sandwiches, toast them in brown butter, you'll see what a twist it gives those traditional sandwiches!
• En pasta: add a drizzle of melted butter to your cold pasta salads, or toss the pasta in a skillet or wok with brown butter when you serve it hot (be sure to add your other ingredients to that pasta, from anchovies to cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, olives, vegetables...
• Prepare the fish, whether on the grill or baked, with brown butter: a generous drizzle of that butter will win you over, on both white and oily fish.
• Apply it to the mashed potatoes: you’ll be surprised how well the potatoes go with its flavor.
• Also in the Roasted potatoes in the oven.
• Sauté the vegetables in a pan or in a wok with brown butter, or add it when you make the vegetables on the grill. You know how good vegetables taste with that nutty flavor.
• For roasting meats, whether on the grill or in the oven - add the butter to the base of the grill or brush the meat you put in the oven (or add a good chunk of the butter to the base of the casserole or tray you prepare it in).
• Do bread with brown butter, like soda bread: it's easy to add that butter to the recipe and it will give the bread a nutty flavor.
• To make sauces: mix brown butter with herbs, spices, vinegar, lemon, mustard, honey, fruit... You can use any of these mixtures to season fish, meats, and sauces. Try your favorite blends!

I hope I’ve convinced you to use Brown Butter. Since I discovered it, I always keep a little jar in the fridge to use for everything. If you decide to make it, I have no doubt it’ll be the same for you. I’d love to hear about it!

Claudia.

NOTE! Difference between brown butter and ghee

Often, when talking about golden butter, people think of ghee, or it can be mistaken for it, but they are not the same. It’s true that both ghee and golden butter are products derived from butter, but they differ in their production process and in some of their characteristics.

El ghee it is a type of clarified butter that originates in India. It is produced by slowly melting butter, which allows the fat to separate from the water and milk proteins. The solid residues and water are then removed, resulting in a purified, golden fat that is traditionally used in Indian cuisine and Ayurvedic medicine. Ghee has a strong flavor and is very stable at high temperatures, making it ideal for cooking and frying.

On the other hand, lwith golden butter or brown butter is a butter from which the water has been removed and it has been cooked over medium-low heat until the milk solids brown, which gives it a flavor and a toasted nut aroma. Brown butter is cooked slowly and not fried, since if it is cooked at too high a temperature, the milk solids can burn and produce a bitter flavor. Unlike ghee, brown butter retains the milk solids, which gives it a slightly grainy texture. Brown butter is often used in French cooking and in baking to add flavor and aroma to breads, cakes, sauces, and other dishes.

In summary, the main difference between ghee and brown butter is that ghee is made from clarified butter, removing the milk solids and water, while brown butter is slowly cooked until the milk solids brown and are retained in the final product. Both products have distinctive flavors and uses in cooking, and they are commonly used in different types of dishes or recipes.