pltrgyst wrote:
> On Thu, 24 Aug 2006 18:15:51 -0400, "Bob (this one)" > wrote:
>
>>> Because, for one thing, the amount of salt in "lightly salted" butter is highly
>>> variable, by both manufacturer and batch.
>>
>> Sorry. No, it isn't....
>
>>> We don't buy any but unsalted butter for any purpose.
>>
>> I'm sure that's the case. But there's no good reason that
>> you've offered.
>
> That's not my opinion -- it was the result of a Cooks Illustrated test about
> five years ago.
>
> I'll have to see if Robert Wolke has ever touched on the subject...
Cook's Illustrated articles can't be accessed unless you're
a subscriber, Larry. I'm not. I looked for Wolke on the
subject and couldn't find anything online.
Harold McGee has written about it in the revised and updated
edition of "On Food and Cooking." He says, generalizing,
that butters made in the U.S. have between 1% and 2% salt,
rounded figures. That would, at the extreme ends of that
range, be between one and two teaspoons per pound. That is
between 1/4 and 1/2 teaspoon per stick of butter. 1/32 of a
teaspoon or 1/64 of a teaspoon of salt per tablespoon
butter. The "highly variable" range is 1/32 of a teaspoon of
salt.
Here's the calculation:
If you look at the sodium content of the butter in your
fridge, you can calculate that there's about a teaspoon and
a quarter in the whole pound of butter. The numbers below
are so small that they need to be rounded unless we want a
multi-page treatise. Rounding throws off the precision, but
still lets it fall within reasonable approximations.
The usual ratio shown in the nutrition panel is 90 milligrams of
sodium in 14 grams (1 tablespoon) of butter. Sodium
comprises about 40% of the weight of salt. That means
roughly 225 milligrams or .225 grams of salt in a
tablespoon of butter. Those numbers are rounded, but they're
close enough. Extending that ratio to the whole pound
brings you to 32 tablespoons X .225 grams = 7.2 grams salt
per pound of butter. Various reliable sources give rounded
numbers that range from 7 grams salt per pound up to about 9
grams per pound. When you think that 1 ounce = 28 grams,
these are small numbers and a variation like this is
essentially meaningless unless it's a serious health
issue for some critical condition.
A cup of salt weighs about 12 ounces. A teaspoon of salt
(1/48 of a cup) weighs about 1/4 ounce or 7 grams. A pound
of butter is 2 cups volume and 454 grams weight.
A whole pound of butter will have about 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
or about .3 ounces by weight or about 8.8 grams. One
1/4-pound (1/2 cup) stick of butter would have about .3 of a
teaspoon salt or 2.1 grams and a tablespoon would have about
..26 grams. About 1/4 of one gram of salt per tablespoon of
butter; about 0.04 teaspoons, or less than 1/100 of an ounce
of salt.
Here's the U.S.D.A. database for "butter, salted"
<http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/cgi-bin/list_nut_edit.pl>
Note that it says 82 milligrams sodium per tablespoon
butter. Rather close to the 90 mg, rounded, I cited.
Here it is for "butter without salt"
<http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/cgi-bin/list_nut_edit.pl>
It says that there's 2 milligrams of sodium in unsalted
butter. That means that 80 milligrams of salt is added to a
tablespoon butter. Well within the range implied by the
rounding of the basic numbers.
"Types of Butter
Salted Butter
The most common kind of butter, made from cream, and
containing about 2% salt.
Reduced and Low Salt Butters
"Reduced salt" or "low-salt" butter usually has about
1% salt, half as much as standard butter. Unsalted butter
has none, of course, but it doesn't keep as long; salt
increases the shelf life as well as changing the taste.
Cultured Butter
Cultured, sour cream, or Danish-style butter has some
selected culture is added to the cream and a different
flavor develops, which is more acidic.
Dairy Blends
Dairy blends are a mix of butter and vegetable oil (up
to 50%). They taste like butter, but have less milkfat,
obviously, and are easier to spread after refrigeration.
Ghee
Ghee, or clarified butter, is essentially just the
milkfat and not the solids from the butter. It is often used
for frying.
Whey butter
Whey butter is made from cream that has been separated
from milk whey. This type of cream is left over from cheese
making, which uses the curds of the milk and squeezes out
the whey.
The use of butter is a cultural thing; for example, Northern
Europeans and their descendants around the world use butter
where Southern Europeans would use olive oil. Butter was
forbidden on fast days and during Lent for Catholics, and
one of Martin Luther's complaints against the Roman Catholic
Church was the choice they required between importing olive
oils from Italy with their attendant taxes, or buying
indulgences allowing people to eat butter. He felt this was
the Church's way of gaining revenue from Northern Europe. In
1520, he wrote that "Eating butter, they say, is a greater
sin than to lie, blaspheme, or indulge in impurity." This
everyday issue may have helped Protestantism catch on in
countries where butter was a common part of the diet.
Sources:
Carlson, Laurie Wynn. Cattle: An Informal Social History.
Chicago: Ivan R. Dee, 2001.
http://www.milkingredients.ca/DCP/ar...d=145&page=216
http://www.dairycorp.com.au/butter/butter_types.htm
http://www.dairycorp.com.au/butter/butter_history.htm
http://www.idb.ie/products/WBUSAL.HTM
http://www.uwec.edu/Academic/Geograp.../w111/cows.htm
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The site has wonderfully whimsical notes with good
information...
"Anyways, here is how you make butter -" ... and it goes on
to explain how with tongue in cheek. Good for a grin and
good for actual information.
<http://everything2.org/index.pl?node=butter>
Happy butter to all...
Pastorio