HOW TO STORE BUTTER AT ROOM TEMPERATURE
Butter Production: How is it Produced?
Butter is a dairy product produced from ice and cream collected from farm animals which includes buffalo, camel, rams and other pasture feeding animals which produces milk. The cream is separated from the actual milk by the butter producer. The cream is delicious, has a pH of more than 6, fresh and free from bacteria. Pasteurization is a process where milk is subjected to a temperature of about 100 centigrade to get rid of microorganisms. In Europe, a more controlled process is used to process milk to a particular flavor and taste to produce what is called ‘cultured butter.’
Crystallization of butterfat globules from cream at particular temperatures is important for it to be churned properly and to ensure a fine texture. This is called the aging process. This process is used to control cream at particular temperatures to produce a desired molecular structure. This aging process takes nothing less than 15 hours.
It is then formed by agitating cream. The granules begin to germinate and cluster together. The resulting mixture comprises of two solutions; butter, buttermilk. Using a separation machine, buttermilk is drained away from the mixture. Salt is added for shielding it and adding a little more flavor to it.
Finally, it is packaged into nice shaped containers, stored in cool and dry places before it is transported to the market for sale.
Types of Butter
Unknown to many, it has different classes, source, and uses. Basically, it is an emulsion solution of fat immersed in water. Based on the constituent and usage, there are different kinds which you’ll find in the store and how to use them.
European-butter: Yes, there might be various kinds of consumed in Europe; this is the reason you have to check the label of the butter before purchasing. Some of them come with special designations due to the location where it is produced or where it is mostly used e.g. Bordeaux butter, France.
Clarified-butter: this has a higher smoke rate than the normal ones and contains mostly fat because the water present in it evaporates and the milk present is extracted from it. It lasts longer than the average ones. Usually, it is consumed in Asia and a part of Africa. It is most conducive for frying food items.
Cultured-butter: this is produced from the fermentation of cream from the regular ones. The fermentation is not a natural one but an induced one. Bacteria are added to help ferment it. It tastes better than normal ones and has a pleasing aroma.
Clotted cream butter: this is produced in an entirely different way. It is used in making the tasty cream milk consumed in England. Milk is mixed with ice and is heated in a dish. The cream floats over to the top of the mixture before it is extracted.
Can or Should you Refrigerate Butter?
If you are the type that loves taking it every morning, luckily for you, this article describes fully how you can preserve it so you can keep enjoying it while it lasts. Like many of us, it is a pleasure to take baked bread every morning while spreading butter on its surface. The meal could be delicious but it could be heartbreaking to discover that the butter has turned cold, requires much force to make it spread and tastes a little bit sour.
The solution that comes up in most peoples’ minds is to cover it and keep it in a cupboard at room temperature to help to retains its quality. Sometimes, we could be disappointed because this method may not be effective at least not for a very long period of time. This could keep some wondering if refrigerating it was a perfect and long-lasting solution.
If you consider most dairy products such as milk, ice cream and the rest, you will notice that the best way of preserving them is by refrigeration. If we expose them to temperature, it’s just a matter of time before they will become sour and lose their flavor. Since butter or margarine is made from these dairy products, it is reasonable to suggest that should also be preserved by refrigeration.
To further validate this point, simply analyze its chemistry. Butter contains about 80% fat. Science tells us that when fat is combined with small amount of water, it irritates bacterial growth. That’s the exact thing that happens when it is preserved in the refrigerator. It solidifies by absorbing moisture and would remain intact for a very long time.
What Happens when you Refrigerate Butter?
After spending a few days in the refrigerator, it solidifies and becomes very hard. Before baking or cooking, you must subject it to heat so that it returns to its original state. It is produced by separating milk into its components. These are buttermilk (liquid) and butter-fat (solid).
Butter is an essential diary product. Considering the amount of fat it has. It is more than 80% of fat which is almost thirty times that of milk. This fat composition is what gives it the taste, what makes it spread. It contains a very high amount of protein which has so many health benefits. Scientists, in order to understand how it can be preserved, carried out an experiment to know how to better present it. Three samples were left for days. The first had salty water sprinkled on it and sparingly on the second. Nothing was done to the third. All three of them covered and stored under good conditions. It was found that the first retained its quality, the second retained its quality as well except for the third that became rancid. It is very important to know that sprinkling salt on butter helps prolong its life.
Spoilt butter is dangerous for consumption. It forms poisonous compounds with the atmosphere through a process called oxidation. It may even change from its usual color to something else. Air and light are catalysts that quicken the rate at which butter gets spoilt. Unsalted butter is preserved by storing in the refrigerator where air and sunlight cannot penetrate. However, some people don’t cherish this much because it makes it hard and requires melting before usage.
While storing it in the refrigerator, it is important to note that it must be wrapped in a laminated paper to prevent contacting the odor of other food kept in the freezer. When you wrap it in plastic material or a laminated paper before putting in the freezer, prolongs the life than usual. It retains its freshness as if it was kept some few minutes before.
Storing Butter at Room Temperature: How Effective is this?
The fact that it can be kept in the refrigerator does not rule out the fact that exposing it to room temperature is valid. Most butter producing industries find this method very helpful in storing it in large quantities for days. The belief is that it has low water content hence it can offer good resistance to bacteria for a while. Some nutritionists like Harold McGee are good supporters of this idea.
Useful advice when Storing Butter at Room Temperature
If you prefer this method of preservation, make sure it’s in small quantity. Firstly, one thing that greatly irritates it is light and air. The light will cause electromagnetic reactions to occur with it while exposure to air will be the same thing as exposure to microbes. To prevent this from happening, put it inside a dish and cover with something that deflects sunlight and is tight to prevent contact with air.
The atmospheric condition of where you store it is also very important. Cool atmosphere supports its preservation. It is best to store it at cool temperatures; this is where refrigerating has the upper hand. If the temperature in your kitchen measures up to 60 Fahrenheit, the refrigerator should be an instant resolve.
What Dish is Best for Storing Butter?
If you want to preserve it for another day when you’ll need it, you must consider this as well. Can you store it in just any kind of container? Should you store it in a plastic or metallic material? Which is best for storing it? You can’t really tell which materials will prevent air and light from getting contact with it but there is one thing for sure; there are special materials that are meant for storing it. These materials are specially made in such a way that it can retain butter and seal it totally from air and light.
You could purchase one at a nearby store or search it online. Quickly, here are some features a good material for storing butter should have;
- A tight seal
This seal should be tight enough to keep it in a fresh condition and prevent it from picking up odors. The seal should be one that you can open easily without spilling it.
- Measuring marks
Yes, some might actually wondered why this is included but it is very important. A good material butter-dish should come with measuring marks so that you can know the amount that is stored. This will also assist you when baking.
iii. Good handles
This is essential so you can hold it carefully, so it won’t slip off your hands or accidentally fall over.
Spoilt Butter, Should it be Consumed?
As we have discussed, butter has a very long lifespan. Unlike most foods, it can last several days or even weeks before getting spoilt. When preserved, its lifespan can last up to a year. Light and air can accelerate its oxidation process. Oxidation occurs when the fat (a hydrocarbon) reacts with air or sunlight to form another type of compound that is not butter but looks similar or have similar characteristics except that it could be poisonous. The process is responsible for the metallic sour taste of spoilt butter. It is imperative to also know that oxidation is a property of metals that involves loss of ions. This perhaps explains the metallic taste of spoilt butter.
When you purchase it, if you notice, it has an expiry date printed on its pack. After this date, it is considered expired and it tastes sour. When it decays further, one or all the following will be experienced.
- Color changes
- Foul odor
- Terrible taste
The process of oxidation occurs in stages.
- The initiation stage
- The propagation and the
- Termination
During the initiation or the beginning stage, atmospheric gas reacts with fatty acid present in it to form a higher compound of hydrogen and peroxide which are extremely volatile. For this initiation process to kick-off, there must be a catalyst present such as a middle-class metal like copper, enzymes such as lipids, heat energy or light energy. The reaction is a chain type. The product formed keeps reacting with the lipids to form higher compounds. As the reaction proceeds, it decays the more. The stage where this occurs is called the propagation state. In the termination state, less reactive hydrocarbons are formed such as aldehydes.
Few days after expiration, it might still taste good but after some days, in the presence of catalysts, an oxidation reaction occurs and new compounds are formed in butter. During this stage, if you taste it, it could have bad reactions in your body.
Bacterial Decomposition of Butter
We have discussed its chemical decomposition. How do microbes decompose butter? Is there any relationship between its decomposition by chemical or its bacterial decomposition?
It tastes like bitter cola when microbes gain access and begin to germinate in it. It happens when milk is preserved in the unfavorable atmosphere. Streptococcus lactis is the microbe responsible for its decomposition. Bacteria can come in contact with it when it is stored in dirty dishes, covered with untidy materials or when in contact with house flies. The case becomes terrible when the atmosphere is not cool. Butter is an excellent environment where bacteria thrive successfully; it contains several nutrients and has a neutral pH that aids their survival.
