Food & Drink

The $20 French Butter Keeper I Wish I’d Bought Years Ago

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Mais oui, I’m speaking concerning the French butter crock.

Once I was rising up, my mother and father saved their room-temperature butter in an American-style butter keeper (like this one, solely way less fancy). It labored all proper, however it was by no means good. Within the sizzling summer season months, the butter would flip right into a puddle within the cabinet, and within the winter, we’d as effectively have buttered our toast with ice cubes. Once I moved out of my people’ home, I saved my butter in a Mason jar on the counter. I rapidly discovered this was an enormous mistake, as a result of the hermetic glass-and-metal container meant that the butter went rancid even faster than it might exterior of the jar! So then I simply saved it on a small plate, which meant that it was prone to the canine hair that’s perpetually wafting round my kitchen. (Sorry, I do know; gross.)

This software is often known as a butter keeper or a butter bell, as a result of form of the storage effectively. In contrast to American stick storers, a small quantity of chilly water goes into the underside of the crock and this makes all of the distinction: It helps regulate the temperature of the butter because it waits patiently in your toast and tomato sandwiches, preserving it spreadable however not melty. Floor stress is what retains that mass of upside-down butter in place, which I discovered from frenchbutterdish.com, an actual web site that exists and may be very attention-grabbing. Most crocks have a small line close to the underside to point how far as much as fill them with water. In the event you overfill, the butter will get moist and also you’ll get water in your counter.

Sure, you do have to vary the water usually, however there’s no have to get fanatical about it. I refresh mine each morning whereas I watch for my espresso to brew, however I’ve additionally gone just a few days with out noticing any humorous (smelling) enterprise. The crock received’t hold your butter indefinitely, but when it’s taking you longer than, say, a month, to eat just a few tablespoon’s price of deliciously tender butter, then a) Why did you purchase a French butter crock? and b) You want extra dinner rolls in your life.

If you wish to spend a great quantity on a luxe butter crock, it might be very simple to do. Nonetheless, mid-range and low-cost choices work simply as effectively. Amazon has about a zillion, most with the phrase “BUTTER” etched into the aspect in case you get confused with the remainder of the tiny crocks sitting in your counter, I suppose. You may even get a butter bell painted with a barnyard scene, like this one, though I do assume the rooster appears to be like a bit of sinister.

One useful trace on making essentially the most out of your crock: Pack the butter within the effectively when it’s tender. (Cramming slabs of chilly butter inside would result in frustration and received’t have the identical impact.)

Do you’ve gotten a butter crock? Do you adore it? How a lot do you adore it? Inform us within the feedback!

Rochelle Bilow

Contributor

Rochelle Bilow is a graduate of the French Culinary Institute, the previous social media supervisor at Bon Appétit Journal and Cooking Mild Journal. She has additionally labored as a cook dinner on a small farm in Central New York, and a Michelin-starred restaurant in New York Metropolis. Join along with her @rochellebilow.

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