How Butter Is Made At Home

butter on a slice bread

If there is one thing that does not have changed over the years then it is how butter is made.

It is more done in factories nowadays but the principle stayed the same as the way our ancestors did it on their farms.

If you are on a Keto diet you can do this at home and add it to your food.

What Do You Need To Make Butter

The main ingredient in butter is milk. This milk can come from a variety of animals such as cows, goats, sheep, yak, and all the way up to camels.

Although most milk is pasteurized in the factory before it is sold there are still farms that sell raw milk.

Step By Step Butter Production

Separate the cream from the milk

Pour the milk into a jug and set it in the refrigerator for a few days until you see the cream floating on top of the milk.

Skim the cream of what is now skim milk at the bottom. Hence that is where the term skim milk comes from.

Now there are a few ways you can proceed but they all come down to shaking or churning.

Churner

A churner is the old fashion way of making butter. There are many types of churners and some are small enough to set on your countertop.

A jar

A jelly jar will do the trick but for larger quantities, I suggest a mason jar.

Pour the milk into the jar and start shaking and shaking and shaking till you are blue in the face.

You will have to shake for at least 40 minutes to see any result.

Food Processor

This makes it a lot easier to make butter from the cream you separated from the milk. Start with a medium speed. After you see clumps forming turn the machine to a low speed.

Now slowly you will see butter and buttermilk and all you have to do is strain it and separate the buttermilk from the butter in that way.

Standing Mixer

This is probably the easiest way to make butter. There is however one big difference in the way you do it.

The cream has to be at room temperature, or as close as you can get it! But the mixer bowl needs to be cold.

Pour the cream into the mixer bowl and turn it on low. Now slowly increase the speed all the way up to maximum. Be careful it might splash a little at first.

In about 4-5 minutes you will see butter forming and once it sticks to your whisk attachment you can go to the next step of straining.

What Is Straining?

You will have two things left after the whole process. Butter and Buttermilk. Both can be used in many recipes.

You can use a mesh strainer or cheesecloth to strain out the buttermilk.

Now store your butter in anything that will work and add some ice water. Now shake it again or put it back in your food processor or mixer.

Keep straining the liquid until it comes out clear. Put your butter in a cheesecloth and squeeze out all the remaining liquids.

“Now pat yourself on the shoulder you have made butter.”

I found a video on how to make butter at home. I have never seen this method but it seems a pretty simple process to me.

Making Butter At Home – My Opinion

Although I have tried to make butter at home it is just too much work for me. Plus it is hard to find raw milk in stores because of government laws about raw milk.

To make it easier you can start with heavy cream and I did that and found that a lot easier and less time-consuming.

You will have a lot of buttermilk left so make sure that you either like to drink it or can use it in other recipes such as homemade biscuits.

Photo of author

Peter Jameson

Peter Jameson is passionate about eating healthy food. While he is doing his search for this, he will share that with the Couch Potato Delivery's readers. As an experienced home cook, he knows what to look for in the food delivery services he reviews. You can find more about him here.