Now here, I expect, George will be happy to defer to my greater experience.
I have made loads of butter at home. All of it by accident.
Recipe:
Accidental Butter
Take any sized container of whipping cream. Put it into an electric mixer
and mix at high speed. Walk away to take care of some other pressing matter.
Return, and admire your butter.
The problem is that it tastes bland. Even with a bit of salt, it just
doesn't seem to taste like butter. This is where the ageing process comes
into play. Premium butters are given a few days of bacteria growth to flavor
them prior to churning. But home-made butter is made from pasteurized cream
which is pretty much bug, and flavor, free.
Ghee is a more complicated issue. It is made from churned and, presumably,
full-flavored butter. Th butter is melted and the oil is poured off through
cheesecloth to remove the milk solids and some of the water. But there is
still a fair amount of water in the oil, so it is slow cooked to boil off
the remaining water without burning the oil. The result is pretty much pure
butter fat and it has a lot less flavor now that the milk solids are gone.
The result of cooking with ghee is like cooking with lard – you can raise
the heat very high without burning the oil. This promotes caramelization of
the meats and vegetables producing excellent flavors. But the upside of
cooking with whole butter is the caramelization of its milk solids which
happens at a lower temperature than is optimal for cooking meats. So ghee
does better at getting the caramel out of meat but at the loss of the milk
caramel. If my use of the term "caramel" surprises or offends you here, I
suggest you substitute the French word which is "fond." It's the stuff that
sticks to the pan and is used to make gravy and sauces. Fond made by searing
meat in whole butter can easily become too bitter and burnt tasting.
It is a well-known trick amongst cooks to add a few teaspoons of vegetable
oil to the melted butter before frying. This lets you fry hotter than you
can with pure butter without the butter burning. Perhaps George will tell us
how this bit of science works since I don't know.
For those who are using this Boog Travel Blog to further their culinary
education, I suggest you try making some Brown Butter Sauce today. It is
really simple and illustrative. Take a cube of butter and slowly melt it in
a heavy pan. Turn up the heat a bit and let the butter just begin to brown
(kind of a beige color). This is called beurre blanc (not to be confused
with the sauce of the same name). Pour out a couple of tablespoons and set
aside. Then put the butter back on the heat and let the browning continue
until it is fully browned but not at all burned, again pour out some and set
aside. This is called beurre brun. Take the last little bit and let it heat
it until it just begins to burn a tiny bit or preferably is just very dark
brown. This is beurre noir.
Now taste all three on some nice french bread. All three are delicious and
all three are classic French toppings for fish. Also, all three are the
basis for classic French sauces flavored with onions, vinegar and/or white
wine. Beurre noir has a slow-cooked variant called beurre noisette (less
brown, no burning at all). This is used in baking, most notably in
madeleines, contributing their characteristic subtle caramel flavor in a
cookie that does not cook hot enough to have much caramelization of its own.
-Bob
On 10/13/07, Herb Blumstein wrote:
>
> How hard would it be to churn butter at home and get a good quality
> butter?
> And for cooking, wouldn't ghee be a good, maybe better, substitute?
>
>
>
> On 10/12/07, gefmey@cox.net wrote:
> >
> > Let me be the first to say that how saddened I am by Bob's dementia. I
> > had heard rumors to the fact but this is really the first time that I have
> > seen how complete it is. Bob, we are all here for you in your time of need.
> >
> >
> > G
> > —- Bob Morgen wrote:
> > > So George completely agrees with me, as usual. This is comforting.
> > >
> > > Like I said, lactobacillus (yogurt bugs) are added to the cream prior
> > to
> > > churning. Since the dictionary (I looked) defines yoghurt as fermented
> > milk,
> > > I fail to understand George's objection to the term. Premium butters
> > use
> > > whatever bugs are floating around in the air and so it probably isn't
> > easy
> > > to know which one is actually in the butter. Presumably a mix.
> > >
> > > Anyway, I am please to have helped to educate George again.
> > >
> > > -Bob
> > >
> > > On 10/12/07, gefmey@cox.net wrote:
> > > >
> > > > Oh Bob!! I don't even know where to begin on this one. Your best
> > option
> > > > is to take a short course in food microbiology, or better yet just
> > stick to
> > > > food deep fried in some industrial strength non-microbially reactive
> > > > petroleum product. I hear the French are doing amazing things with
> > vaseline
> > > > and sous vide techniques.
> > > >
> > > > Butter is NOT fermented, at least not intentionally. When butter
> > ferments
> > > > or ages the production of butyric acid gives it that distinctive
> > "Palo Alto"
> > > > characteristic. This is not usually desireable, as it indicates the
> >
> > > > breakdown of the butterfat
> > > >
> > > > You are correct that fermentation does take place but in the milk
> > prior to
> > > > churning in butter that is not labelled "sweet" (most of the US) ut
> > labelled
> > > > "cultured" (most of Europe).
> > > >
> > > > The bacteria that are added however are NOT yogurt bacteria (even to
> > cheap
> > > > butter, unless maybe it comes from China, where there may also be
> > traces of
> > > > lead or dipropylene glycol) which are Lactobacillus acidophilus, and
> > > > Streptococcus. thermophilus. Usually Lactococcus lactis subsp.
> > lactis,
> > > > Lactococcus lactis subsp. cremoris, Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis
> > biovar.
> > > > diacetylactis, Leuconostoc mesenteroides subsp. cremoris (Leuc.
> > citrovorum)
> > > > is added or the milk is allow to naturally ferment for a day or so.
> > > >
> > > > Remind me not to try any dishes that Bob prepares using his special
> > > > "cultured" butter.
> > > >
> > > > George
> > > > —- Bob Morgen wrote:
> > > > > Sharon's legendary experiments in butter ageing aside, there is
> > > > something to
> > > > > ageing butter. Premium butters are fermented for a few days before
> > > > churning
> > > > > to give them more of a tangy/buttery flavor. Cheaper butters have
> > a bit
> > > > of
> > > > > yogurt bacteria added to hasten the process.
> > > > >
> > > > > Cooks Illustrated did blind tasting on expensive premium butters
> > vs
> > > > cheap
> > > > > butter. While there was a bit of a difference it didn't show up as
> > much
> > > > to
> > > > > most tasters.
> > > > >
> > > > > Interestingly, Land of Lakes did very well both in the premium and
> > > > ordinary
> > > > > butter categories.
> > > > >
> > > > > I looked at what is being offered as expensive premium butters in
> > the
> > > > USA
> > > > > and ironically most of them are ordinary butters in their country
> > of
> > > > > origin. I have tried them all and, while I've never met a butter
> > i
> > > > didn't
> > > > > like, except Sharon's, there isn't much to recommend them over
> > American
> > > > > butters. Our daily household butter here is Kerrygold from
> > Ireland. It
> > > > is
> > > > > the cheapest thing at the market here but sells for a fortune in
> > the
> > > > States.
> > > > > Lurpak, from Denmark, is made in monster sized factories from cows
> > that
> > > > > never see the light of day. The biggest selling French premium in
> > the US
> > > > is
> > > > > the one with rock salt crystals in it. That's cheating.
> > > > >
> > > > > -Bob
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > > On 10/12/07, Dianne Ellsworth < ellswortha@earthlink.net> wrote:
> > > > > >
> > > > > > Was 1996 a good year? (for butter).
> > > > > >
> > > > > > Gee, didn't know it was vintage. Is it AOC too?
> > > > > >
> > > > > > I've got lots of butter at my place and you're all welcome to
> > it, but
> > > > it's
> > > > > > pretty recent, so may not have that nice marbling and nose of
> > the
> > > > truly aged
> > > > > > butter.
> > > > > > Dee
> > > > > >
> > > > > > —–Original Message—–
> > > > > > >From: boogkb@tmo.blackberry.net
> > > > > > >Sent: Oct 11, 2007 4:32 PM
> > > > > > >To: Vox <980286c3a15f1c66@moblog.vox.com>, Boogs Sack <
> > > > jwgrey@netbox.com>
> > > > > > >Subject: BSMA Barco
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > >11 Oct.
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > >We are now out of the outer banks and in the dismal swamp. Its
> > real
> > > > name.
> > > > > > Heading to Barco. The only place we found to stay for 90 plus
> > miles
> > > > is a
> > > > > > B&B in Barco. Again a bit less distance than ideal.
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > >Pretty strong headwind (cold front starting to finally come in
> > )
> > > > today on
> > > > > > a 5 lane Hiway with narrow but ok shoulder. The ride is on a
> > barrier
> > > > island.
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > >The B&B turned out to be first rate. 1827 house. Xmas
> > decorated, her
> > > > > > hobby. Loaned us their van so we could get to a rest. A number
> > of
> > > > miles
> > > > > > back.
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > >To repeat the obvious "do not mess about in George's backyard!
> > "
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > >Judi and Bobby have now booked Chez Boog for the holidays.
> > > > Provisioning
> > > > > > being planned. Looking for some 1996 butter.
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > >Dinner was among the yachts on the intercoastal waterway.
> > Another
> > > > cole
> > > > > > slaw, and more crab and shrimp. Home made, still warm, freshly
> > baked,
> > > > > > potato chips.
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > >The chowder, pictured, was fine, no cream. What makes something
> > a
> > > > chowder
> > > > > > rather than a soup?
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > >
> > > > > >
> > > > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> >
> >
>
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