tbs unsalted butter

Oils & FatsYear-round; widely available in refrigerated sections of grocery stores globally.

Rich in fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K (especially grass-fed varieties); contains conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) and butyric acid, though primarily composed of saturated and unsaturated fats.

About

Unsalted butter is a dairy fat product produced by churning cream or milk until the fat globules coagulate into a solid emulsion, without added sodium chloride. Originating from animal husbandry practices across Europe and beyond, unsalted butter is composed primarily of butterfat (80-82%), water (15-17%), and milk solids (1-2%). Its color ranges from pale yellow to deep golden depending on the diet of the dairy cattle and the season of production. Unsalted butter differs from salted varieties in that no preservative salt is added, making it more suitable for applications where salt content must be precisely controlled, particularly in baking and pastry work.

Culinary Uses

Unsalted butter serves as a foundational fat in cuisines worldwide, essential in French cooking (beurre blanc, pastry doughs, emulsified sauces) and integral to baking applications where sodium levels must be managed. It provides flavor, texture, and structure in cakes, cookies, pie crusts, and laminated doughs such as croissants and puff pastry. In savory cooking, it enriches sauces, vegetables, and proteins; in finishing dishes, a knob of cold unsalted butter (monter au beurre) creates glossy emulsified sauces. Its neutral salt profile allows the baker and cook to calibrate seasoning precisely without sodium interference.

Forms & Preparations

Stick/block — Solid form sold in 1/4-pound sticks or larger blocks; the standard culinary form for most cooking and baking.
Melted — Heated until liquid; used for brushing pastries, drizzling over vegetables, or as a base for emulsified sauces.
Softened/room temperature — Left at ambient temperature until pliable; essential for creaming with sugar in cake batters and for whipping into frostings.
Cubed — Cut into small pieces and kept cold; incorporated into dough for biscuits, pie crusts, and other laminated pastries for flakiness.
Clarified (ghee-style) — Heated to separate butterfat from water and milk solids; yields higher smoke point and longer shelf life.

Substitutes

Unknown — Use in 1:1 ratio; reduce added salt in recipe by approximately 1/4 teaspoon per tablespoon of salted butter to compensate for sodium content.
Unknown — Use in 1:1 ratio by volume; results in slightly higher smoke point and more pronounced dairy flavor; may affect texture in baking due to water removal.
Unknown — Use in 1:1 ratio by volume; imparts distinct coconut flavor and produces different texture in baked goods; better for savory applications where coconut complements the dish.
Unknown — Use in 0.75:1 ratio (reduce by 25%); suitable for most savory cooking and some cakes, though lacks the flavor and emulsification properties of butter.
Unknown — Use in 1:1 ratio; contains 86%+ butterfat; produces richer flavor and superior texture in pastries, though may require slight recipe adjustments for water content.

Recipes Using tbs unsalted butter (21)

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Asiago Cheese Bread

Asiago Cheese Bread from the Recidemia collection

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Berry Lemon Scones

These scones are really good, they are like biscuits, and they go great with butter on them. They are a cinch to bake and make.

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Bourbon Apples

Bourbon Apples from the Recidemia collection

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Char-Broiled Sirloin Steak with Cabernet Butter Sauce

Char-Broiled Sirloin Steak with Cabernet Butter Sauce from the Recidemia collection

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Chocolate Bananas Foster

Down in New Orleans, where Bananas Foster was invented, they'll bring out this hot plate and make the dish table side, including a spectacular flambé.

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Cornbread & Chicken Casserole

If you like, you can substitute turkey, beef, or even tuna for the chicken.

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Gingered Apple Crisp

This is really yummy, if you like apples, also has a lot of cinnamon and ginger in it. Has a walnut topping that has even more of that cinnamon, ginger good taste. Good served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

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Grilled Sirloin Steak

Top sirloin is a great beef bargain. It's juicy and flavorful when cooked properly.

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Italian Rice Pilaf

This dish has got a lot of Italian flavors, like bay, thyme, rosemary, garlic, and Chianti wine.

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Kesra — Moroccan Bread

This are the instructions for using a mixer and dough hook to knead the dough. But you can adapt this easily to using a bread machine to do your kneading. I know — I used to use a bread machine to do most of my kneading. You can also hand knead.

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Mexican Rice Pilaf

There's a lot of Mexican flavors in this dish, like tequilla, Mexican oregano, chile powder, habanero chiles, tomato paste, and rice.

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Microwave Salmon with Vegetables

This entire meal cooks up in 4 minutes. Try getting pizza delivery that fast.

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Oatmeal-Peanut Butter Blondies

Submitted by Oral Slither A blondie is like a brownie without chocolate. These bars are soft, slightly chewy, with a crisper crust, and moderate peanut butter flavor. This recipe was adapted from the Brownies and Blondies cookbook.

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