Compound Butter Recipe (2024)

James Peterson in his Sauces: Classical and Contemporary Sauce Making book is very explicit in his instructions to carefully blanch your fresh green herbs in boiling water for 30 sec, shock in ice-water and then carefully dry them BEFORE mincing and grinding them with butter. This step will help preserve the fresh vibrant green color and also set the flavors so your butter or sauces don't become a dull green grey or worse black from the action of enzymes due to browning from air.

I make compound butter all the time. My recipe is similar to Sam's basic one. Here's what I do: unsalted butter (room temp), garlic, salt, pepper, lemon zest and fresh thyme. I make a paste of the garlic and salt and then add the pepper, lemon zest and thyme to the paste. Then I mix the paste into the butter, put in a ramekin, or wax paper and stick it in the fridge. Delicious on most any beef or lamb - especially grilled NY strip steaks! Yum. A little bit goes a long way!

Want to know more about compound butters and their role in classical French cuisine? Check out these sauce making texts. Compound butter recipes are a very important part of French culinary cannon and many well regarded and important recipes appear in Michael Roux's SaucesThe Sauce Bible: Guide to the Saucier's Craft by David Larousse and James Peterson's Sauces: Classical and Contemporary Sauce Making

Once the butter is melted the chilled product is not the same texture at all. I even serve the discs of butter beside my meat or vegetables so that it does not melt as dinner progresses. Much tastier!

I make this a lot, it's a good way to use up fresh herbs. You can also go sweeter - a cinnamon/diced orange peel turned out very well.

I've done something similar with olive oil. I freeze it in a Ziploc bag flat so I can break off a frozen piece. Doesn't have the butter flavor but can be quite useful is you don't eat dairy with meat.

Added to cooked brussel sprouts.

I generally sauté the minced shallots in 2 T white wine. The result is more mellow. It is good on meat, eggs, pasta, soup…just use your imagination and you will not be disappointed. Keep it as a staple in your fridge.

I minced just-picked rosemary, oregano and thyme from my garden and mixed them into a stick and half of room temperature butter, with a bit of black pepper added. I spooned the mixture into a silicone ice cube tray and froze, then popped out the blocks of the butter and stored them in a zip top freezer bag. Now I can take out as many of the frozen blocks as I need without thawing the whole batch.

Made with Trader Joe’s Vegan buttery spread for thanksgiving. Delicious. Used citrus champagne vinegar and lime. My herbs did not turn grey or black. Making second batch today. Elevates whatever you serve with it.

I generally sauté the minced shallots in 2 T white wine. The result is more mellow. It is good on meat, eggs, pasta, soup…just use your imagination and you will not be disappointed. Keep it as a staple in your fridge.

James Peterson in his Sauces: Classical and Contemporary Sauce Making book is very explicit in his instructions to carefully blanch your fresh green herbs in boiling water for 30 sec, shock in ice-water and then carefully dry them BEFORE mincing and grinding them with butter. This step will help preserve the fresh vibrant green color and also set the flavors so your butter or sauces don't become a dull green grey or worse black from the action of enzymes due to browning from air.

Want to know more about compound butters and their role in classical French cuisine? Check out these sauce making texts. Compound butter recipes are a very important part of French culinary cannon and many well regarded and important recipes appear in Michael Roux's SaucesThe Sauce Bible: Guide to the Saucier's Craft by David Larousse and James Peterson's Sauces: Classical and Contemporary Sauce Making

I've done something similar with olive oil. I freeze it in a Ziploc bag flat so I can break off a frozen piece. Doesn't have the butter flavor but can be quite useful is you don't eat dairy with meat.

I make this a lot, it's a good way to use up fresh herbs. You can also go sweeter - a cinnamon/diced orange peel turned out very well.

Added to cooked brussel sprouts.

I make compound butter all the time. My recipe is similar to Sam's basic one. Here's what I do: unsalted butter (room temp), garlic, salt, pepper, lemon zest and fresh thyme. I make a paste of the garlic and salt and then add the pepper, lemon zest and thyme to the paste. Then I mix the paste into the butter, put in a ramekin, or wax paper and stick it in the fridge. Delicious on most any beef or lamb - especially grilled NY strip steaks! Yum. A little bit goes a long way!

Can you melt the butter in a microwave, add the other ingredients, and then stick in freezer? Or do the ingredients separate?