Learn how to make brown butter to add into all your favorite recipes, both sweet and savory. Use brown butter as a secret ingredient for baked goods, or use it as a delicious sauce!
Brown Butter made easy for baking and more!
Brown butter is like a secret ingredient when it comes to baking! It enriches the flavor of baked goods, and can also be used as a sauce with all kinds of dishes.
Learning how to brown butter is one of those basic skills for cooking and baking that I recommend learning. This step by step recipe makes it super easy so you can add this ingredient any time you need it.
Why You’ll Love this Homemade Browned Butter Recipe:
- Easy Skill: This is a good baking/cooking skill to have and it’s super easy too!
- Enhanced Flavor: Browning butter really enhances the flavor and makes it much richer.
- Use It in All Your Recipes: You can use it in so many different recipes, as a sauce, glaze, or as a substitute for regular butter.
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What is brown butter?
Making brown butter is the process of melting and cooking butter on the stove until it turns into a brown liquid, like a sauce. What you are doing is essentially concentrating the flavor (as the water evaporates out), and caramelizing the milk solids within the butter. This is what gives it such a rich flavor.
It tastes like butter, but much richer. It has sort of a toasty, nutty flavor. It complements both sweet and savory dishes.
How to Make Brown Butter
Be sure to see the recipe card below for full ingredients & instructions!
- Cut butter into cubes and place it in a skillet over medium-high heat.
- Let the butter melt fully.
- Whisk melted butter until it turns golden brown. It will foam as you stir.
- Remove it from the pan as soon as it browns so that it doesn’t burn.
- Store it for later and use it in whatever recipes you want. Enjoy!
The entire process of browning butter won’t take more than 10 minutes. The butter will take a couple of minutes to melt, and from there should only take another few minutes to brown.
Keep an eye on it because it will go quickly and start to burn if you don’t remove it from the pan.
Since part of this process is the caramelization of milk solids, this technique works best with real butter. Margarine and vegan butters generally will not give you the same results, although some butter substitutes might have a similar effect.
However you store it, it will solidify (as butter does). So just melt, reheat it, or bring it to room temperature before using.
Refrigerator: Pour it into an airtight container and store in the fridge up to 10 days.
Freezer: Pour it into a freezer-safe container or bag and freeze up to 3 months. Pouring it into an ice cube tray works great to create small portions you can melt and use as you need.
Ways to use Brown Butter
There are SO many ways to use brown butter. Use it as a sauce or glaze, use it in place of regular butter, or add it to recipes that need a little flavor kick.
Here are some things you can make with it:
- Bake cookies (chocolate chip, oatmeal, snickerdoodles).
- Use it in banana bread or as a glaze on top.
- Make blondies or brownies.
- Drizzle it on top of ice cream.
- Use it as a sauce for pasta, gnocchi, or salmon.
Recipe Tips and Notes
- Slice the butter into cubes to start with, so that everything melts and browns evenly.
- Whisk/stir regularly and keep an eye on it to avoid burning.
- It’s done when the butter turns a golden brown. It will create a nutty aroma.
- Keep a bowl/container next to the stove so you can pour the butter into it as soon it browns (otherwise it will keep cooking and burn).
- You can use brown butter as a substitute for regular butter in lots of baked goods. Just add it into a recipe in the same form it calls for (chilled, softened, room temperature, etc.).
This is definitely a basic baking skill you should learn, and luckily it’s super easy. This brown butter will truly take your baked goods and other recipes up a notch!
If you make this recipe be sure to leave us a comment or rating. Enjoy!
How to Make Brown Butter
Instructions
- Slice the butter into cubes and place it in a small skillet set over medium-high heat.½ cup unsalted butter
- Allow the butter to cook until it has fully melted, about 2 minutes.
- Whisk the butter constantly for another 2-3 minutes until it begins to smell nutty and turn golden brown. The butter will foam on top, but you’ll be able to see the color underneath as you whisk.
- As soon as the butter turns golden brown, remove it from the pan so it doesn’t burn.
Notes
- Browned butter is delicious in pasta sauces, cookies, baking, or potatoes!
- Slice the butter into cubes to start with, so that everything melts and browns evenly.
- Whisk/stir regularly and keep an eye on it to avoid burning.
- It’s done when the butter turns a golden brown. It will create a nutty aroma.
- Keep a bowl/container next to the stove so you can pour the butter into it as soon it browns (otherwise it will keep cooking and burn).
- You can use brown butter as a substitute for regular butter in lots of baked goods. Just add it into a recipe in the same form it calls for (chilled, softened, room temperature, etc.).
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