How To Make Brown Butter

Course Condiment

Cuisine French

Prep Time 1

Cook Time 5

Total Time 6

Servings tablespoons

Learning How To Make Brown Butter requires just one ingredient, a whisk, a skillet, and less than 10 minutes of your time!

Slice the butter into tablespoons and place it in a stainless steel or light-colored skillet set over medium-high heat. Using a dark non-stick skillet will make it hard to monitor the browning process and therefore isn't recommended.
½ cup butter
Allow the butter to cook until it has fully melted, about 2 minutes.
Next, 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.
Store the browned butter in an airtight container in the fridge for up to ten days.

This method will work for any amount of butter and you can use salted or unsalted.
Slicing the butter before cooking allows for a quicker and more even cooking process.
Letting the butter sit at room temperature for 15 minutes before cooking reduces the risk of burning.
Brown butter is great for sauces, baking, and more.
If a recipe calls for brown butter, use it as is in the form it calls for: melted, room temperature, cold.
- For melted you can use it right away after the browning process is complete.
- For room temperature, transfer it to a heat-safe container and let sit at room temperature for about an hour.
- For cold, transfer to a heat-safe container and place in the refrigerator until solid.
If you want to substitute browned butter for butter in a baking recipe, you'll need to account for the loss of water from the browning process and typically the rule of thumb is to add an additional tablespoon of butter for every 1/2 cup (or stick) of butter called for in the recipe.