A Better Bit of Butter

[Sakkarin Profile]

As the cost of "cheapo" butter has gone up, the price of the more expensive butters seems to have stayed the same, so at £2 compared to £1.60, I treated myself to some UNPASTEURISED Beurre d'Isigny in Sainos - I hadn't realised such a thing existed, and intriguing, as I find unpasteurised cheeses invariably taste so much better than pasteurised.

Well as expected, it tasted very much stronger than my normal butter, but then I realised that it is very heavily salted, whereas I weaned myself onto unsalted butter some years ago. I confess that I have no way of really comparing it given the saltiness. Any thoughts?

I suppose I could get some salted butter to compare, but there doesn't seem much point in that if I go for unsalted. I'm not aware that there are any unpasteurised unsalted butters around; as I say I didn't even discover the salty one till two days ago.

[Joanbunting Profile]

I almost always use Isigny butter sakkers. I just love it. I can get both unsalted (doux) and salted , (sale) here. It hasn't really budged in price but I usderstand that here the supermarket set prices for commodities such as butter at the start of each year and that stays for the whole year.

Consequently we have had shotages of the cheaper brands of butter. I tend to use Charenet-Poitu butter for things like baking.

I don't use all that much except for baking. When i do I like the really good stuff.

Many years ago we took our son and my dad to Normandy to visit the beach dad landed on the day after D-Day, the war graves etc. We stayed in Isigny and the two of them ate for England. It was a moving and memorable trip and the three of us are so gld we did it

[Renée Profile]

I sometimes buy Isygny butter, Sakks, but I haven't seen the unpasteurised one. This is one that I like to get occasionally:

http://longleyfarm.com/longley-farm-butter

I developed a liking for Jersey milk, cream and butter whilst on a holiday with my mother on the island of Guernsey.

[Joanbunting Profile]

Renee, they would kill you in Guernsey if you said you liked Jersey butter

One has to say Channel Islands when on the mainland and use the appropriate island name when there.

However I totally agree. Jersey (which is where my son and family live) cream, yogurt and butter is to die for. When they come here cream and yogurt are a must bring - they are not allowed to stay otherwise.

I don't know if you understand the intense rivalry that exsists between Newcastle and Sunderland but it is the same. if not worse, between Guernsey and Jersey.

[Renée Profile]

Oh, I see, Joan! Mum and I did walk past a field on a sunny day, which had Jersey cows, or would they be Guernsey cows? Come to think of it, we had sailed across to Herm Island, so they would be Herm cows?

[scullion Profile]

I have no way of really comparing it given the saltiness. Any thoughts?

you could try de-salinating it.
put some of the butter (or all) into a pan of water.
gently heat until the butter has melted, give it a stir and turn off the heat.
put it to cool in the fridge until the butter has re-solidified.
make a hole in the layer of butter and pour off the water - which should now contain the salt as well.

[Stokey Sue Profile]

Surely that will de-emulsify it scullion? Waxy clarified butter not the creamy stuff?

I notice the good butter Mark linked to on the Bearnaise thread is described as "European style cultured butter" and I think for me the culturing is the key

For me the perfect butter is made with slightly soured cream and unsalted, however good the cream is it still needs that little hint of creme fraiche for me

So Isigny, Brittany, some German and Austrian butter, some Italian but not usually Dutch or English, though English Country Life is not bad as a basic. I think they tend to be paler than other butters?

Elizabeth David commented that most people like either the bread or the butter to be noticeably salted but not both, I think she was right. I've noticed in restaurants where they make a big deal out of giving you the Brittany butter with crystals of sel de Guerande in it, they tend to give you quite strongly flavoured and seasoned breads as well and it's for my taste overload

[Sakkarin Profile]

Sounds interesting, but I would presume that any tasty water-soluble elements of the butter would also be flushed away with the water, although it may be useful if making ghee...

Guernsey/Jersey: I've always presumed these were huge compared to our own silly little islands, until I chopped up some google maps to do a comparison, I realised I was wrong, they are even smaller than our Isle of Sheppey...

[Renée Profile]

That's very interesting, Sakkarin and I see that Herm Island must have been so tiny, it didn't show up alongside Jersey and Guernsey!

[Sakkarin Profile]

On the same scale Monaco is just a pixel!

[Renée Profile]

Yes, I've been there and can well imagine!

Here is the population and sizes of the islands:

Jersey 100,080 (118 km2)
Guernsey 63,026 (65 km2)
Alderney 2,000 (8 km2)
Sark 600 (5 km2)
Herm 60 (2 km2)
Jethou 3 (0.2 km2)
Brecqhou (Brechou) (0.3 km2)

[scullion Profile]

i wouldn't suggest you cook the butter to clarify it but this may show what has been done in the past.

Bel_Cream_maker_instructions.jpg (634.56 KiB) Viewed 2161 times

[Sakkarin Profile]

I used to have one of those I bought out of curiosity from a charity shop, but never managed to get anything out of it

[scullion Profile]

i bought a very art deco looking one, that clamps on, from eBay last year. they make quite interesting bookends. it didn't work either but i was shown how the one with the glass jar/bottom worked, by a friend in devon, decades ago - and it worked really well.
mind you, it was quicker to walk over the road to the farm if they wanted cream.

[Gillthepainter Profile Website]

I made cream back in the old days.
Out of curiosity. And remember the mention of the Bel cream maker on the old thread.




When put in the fridge it's more like creamy butter.



Well done on weaning yourself off of the salty butter though, Sakkers.
I never could.

[Badger's Mate Profile]

Went to Alderney last years, first visit to the Chanel Islands. We thought the butter was lovely; the dairy farm has got a herd of Guernseys iirc.

[Joanbunting Profile]

There are both Guernsey and Jersey cows. Sark, which is, to me, very wierd, is much closer in all ways to Guernsey than Jersey. I don't recall seeing any cows there though.

I like Jersey very much but no way could I live there. Our son lives in a deep valley on Jersey and his house is surrounded by fields of cows. There is a dairy farm on the doorstep.

I don't know about the water but I do know that most of Jersey's water comes from a desalination plant and is not very nice. They do have a well but the water from it turns D-I-L and GD's hair green.

[Stokey Sue Profile]

When I was a child our milk came from Guernsey (breed) cows kept locally in Hampshire, but I'm not aware of any butter, though the cream was delicious, and the milk so rich we took off top of the milk with a bulb baster and whipped it

There are Alderney cows too I think; no t'internet says the pure breed is extinct

[Pampy Profile]

The Bel cream maker looks like it works on the same principle as the cream maker attachment for my Kenwood Chef. I use it a lot and always get very good results.

[Alexandria Profile]

@Sakkarin,

This Normandie based traditional butter producer, does make non salted butters ..

These products are a marvel and are used by the grand French Pastry Chefs

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Thank you for posting ..