Butter A product made from the solid ingredients in milk (fat and protein). Most butter is made from cow’s milk, but it can be made from the milk of sheep, goats, buffaloes or other mammals.

80% of the butter is fat, 15% is water and 5% is protein. The protein present is the reason why butter will stick at room temperature. It begins to melt at about 32 degrees Celsius.

The natural color of the butter depends on the diet of the animal that produces the milk. Colors range from white to pale yellow. Commercial butter is usually yellow or pale yellow to meet consumer expectations.

Types butter

• Sweet Cream Butter is made from cream that has been steamed to kill any type of bacteria. In doing so, the fermentation of the natural sugars in the cream is stopped. This butter is sweet and has a light, fresh flavor. Popular in the USA.

• Raw Cream Butter It has not been steamed, nor is it allowed to ferment. The shelf life of raw cream butter is very short (about 10 days).

• Cultured Butter is produced by allowing bacteria to ferment the sugars in cream before turning it into butter. This provides flavour, tangy, and complex. Cultured butter was the predominant type of butter before refrigeration and pasteurization. Today, commercial cultured butter is made from cream that has been steamed and then re-inoculated with a specific bacterial strain to produce the fermentation.

• Ghee Ghee is produced by heating butter until the water evaporates and the proteins separate from the fats. The resulting product is approximately 100 percent buttercream. Ghee, with its unique flavor, is a popular ingredient in Middle Eastern cuisine.

• Spreadable Butter Butter can be very firm at refrigerating temperatures and manufacturers have produced different types of spreadable butter to help combat this problem. Spreadable butter is usually made by combining conventional butter with oils, such as vegetable oil, which remain liquid at cooler temperatures. Another technique used to create a spread that remains soft in cold temperatures is drawing air or water into the butter.

• Fruit, Vegetable, and Nut Butters Often used to describe a spreadable puree that does not contain any dairy products. Nut butters, such as peanut butter or almond butter, have a higher fat content and consistency similar to dairy butter but do not contain dairy products. Fruit and vegetable butters, such as apple butter, are simply mashed fruits or vegetables that have been cooked to reduce the moisture content and create a spreadable consistency akin to dairy butter.