Tony Zentgraf
Clarifying Butter – Two Ways
Clarifying Butter is easy to do. There are two methods to separate the milk solids from the oil. The purpose of clarifying butter is to get oil that will cook at a higher temperature than regular butter. With the milk solids removed, the likelihood of the oil burning is lower.
Clarified butter is also what is used to make hollandaise sauce and other sauces to get a nice butter flavor without using whole butter. Clarifying butter is different than making a brown butter or ‘Beurre Noisette’. Look for a post to come on how to make ‘Beurre Noisette’.
How to Clarify Butter
Classic Method
Classically, clarifying butter is done as a low and slow method. Placing the butter in a pot on a burner with a very low heat. The butter will slowly melt. The solids will sink to the bottom and some will need to be skimmed off the top.
The classic method does take some time. It iis a great method if you have the stove or oven on for an extended period of time. Place the butter over the burner that has a vent from the oven or on a warm spot on the stove top. Then forget about it for hours. This is a good method if you do not need it quick. Kind of a set it and forget it method if not on direct heat.
Quick Method
If you are needing or wanting to clarify butter quickly, try this method. Place the butter in a pot and heat the butter over medium high heat. Over a higher heat the butter will separate as it heats. You have probably seen this if you use a pat of butter in a saute pan for sauteing.
Keep an eye on the butter as it melts and begins to separate. You want the butter to separate but not brown. As the butter separates, skim any milk solids that rise to the top off. After the butter has separated, remove from the heat. Ladle the clarified butter out of the pot leaving the milk solids behind.
You can attempt to filter the remaining butter and milk solids through a cheesecloth or coffee filter. Do this step over a separate bowl to avoid adding the solids back into the clarified butter. Once the oil has been strained and there are no milk solids remaining, add to the first batch of clarified butter.
In both methods, once the clarified butter is separated from the solids, refrigerate the clarified butter. Clarified butter will solidify once refrigerated and can last for up to 6 months.
Sauteing with Clarified Butter
Regular butter that not clarified has a smoke point of about 350°. Light sauteing with regular butter is good if you want go develop some color on food. Clarified butter has a higher smoke point. The smoke point is increased to about 450°. This allows you to fry without burning the butter or developing smoke from the fry method as easily.
Is Ghee the same as Clarified Butter?
Yes and no, Ghee is a clarified butter that is used in Southeast Asian cuisine as well as India and Pakistan. The process is similar to clarifying butter but the biggest difference when making ghee is how and why it is cooked longer.
The longer, low and slow process removes additional water content from the butter. The butter is clearer than that of a French style of clarifying butter. As the extra water content is removed from the ghee, it develops a more concentrated, intense & nuttier flavor than a clarified butter. The milk solids remain in the ghee as it is cooking. This is what develops the nutty flavor in the oil.
Because Ghee has the water content removed from the clarified butter, ghee is shelf stable at room temperature. Ghee is best used for frying and cooking at higher temperatures than clarified butter due to the extra water being removed.
Use this recipe for Clarifying Butter – Two Ways in the Clarified Butter Garlic Confit Recipe
Then make some delicious Garlic Confit Mashed Potatoes with the Clarified Butter Garlic Confit!
Clarifying Butter – Two Ways
Print RecipeEquipment
- 1 Sauce Pot
- 1 Kitchen Spoon
- 1 Ladle
- 1 Mesh Strainer
- 1 Cheese Cloth
Recipe Multiplier
- 1 lb Butter - Salted or Unsalted
Instructions
Quick Method to Clarifying Butter
- In a sauce pot, place the butter.
- Over a medium high heat, melt the butter.
- Using a kitchen spoon, if needed move the butter around to get to melt evenly.
- Once the butter has separated, approx 15-20 minutes, remove from the heat.
- Ladle the clarified butter out of the pot into another container or bowl.Leaving the milk solids behind.
- Strain the milk solids through double folded cheese cloth to remove as much clarified butter as necessary. Store the clarified butter in the refrigerator for up to 6 months.
Classic Method to Clarify Butter
- Place the butter in a sauce pot, place the pot over a very low heat.Alternately, you can place the pot over an oven vented burner that is not on or on a warm stove top location.
- The process is similar to the quick method but this method will slowly melt the butter and separate the milk solids slowly. Additional water may be removed from the butter in this method as it can sit on a warm stove area for hours to slowly clarify the butter.
- Ladle the clarified butter out of the pot into another container or bowl.Leaving the milk solids behind.
- Strain the milk solids through double folded cheese cloth to remove as much clarified butter as necessary. Store the clarified butter in the refrigerator for up to 6 months.
