On Sat, 17 May 2003 18:07:26 -0400, "Richard J. Doelger"
> wrote:

>Could someone explain why so many recipes which call for "unsalted
>butter" go on to list salt as an added ingredient?
>Thanks,
>Dick
>

A lot of people have weighed in on freshness/quality/shelf-life, etc.

To me, I guess the key issue is that _I_ control how much salt to add,
rather than have it included.

To be honest, I don't go out and spend huge $$$ for the "high-quality"
unsalted butter, just the Land O' Lakes unsalted butter at the
grocery...it's comparably priced to the "lightly salted" butter that
it sits next to...so price isn't really an issue.

Bob

>Land O' Lakes unsalted butter at the
>grocery...it's comparably priced to the "lightly salted" butter that
>it sits next to...so price isn't really an issue.

Not around here. A generic "lightly salted" gets as low as $1/pound here.
Unsalted never sinks below $2/pound, and it only gets that low rarely.

I've got the freezer full of it from buying it on sale.

"WardNA" > wrote in message
...
> >Land O' Lakes unsalted butter at the
> >grocery...it's comparably priced to the "lightly salted" butter that
> >it sits next to...so price isn't really an issue.
>
> Not around here. A generic "lightly salted" gets as low as $1/pound here.
> Unsalted never sinks below $2/pound, and it only gets that low rarely.
>
> I've got the freezer full of it from buying it on sale.

My understanding is that unsalted butter does not keep as well as salted and
therefore is more expensive - but as a result is is also likely to be
fresher.


--
Peter Aitken

Remove the crap from my email address before using.

Peter Aitken wrote:

> "WardNA" > wrote in message
> ...
>
>>>Land O' Lakes unsalted butter at the
>>>grocery...it's comparably priced to the "lightly salted" butter that
>>>it sits next to...so price isn't really an issue.
>>
>>Not around here. A generic "lightly salted" gets as low as $1/pound here.
>>Unsalted never sinks below $2/pound, and it only gets that low rarely.
>>
>>I've got the freezer full of it from buying it on sale.
>
> My understanding is that unsalted butter does not keep as well as salted and
> therefore is more expensive - but as a result is is also likely to be
> fresher.

It doesn't keep as long as salted, but lifespan should be calculated
in months refrigerated and years if kept frozen at commercial
temperatures.

It isn't more expensive either wholesale or retail. Side by side
pricing in supermarkets is the norm across the US.

It isn't likely to be fresher because less of it is made than salted
and it sells well within sell by dates. The dairy guys have good
historical industry figures about how much to make and when to make it.


Pastorio

Bob Pastorio > wrote:
>It doesn't keep as long as salted, but lifespan should be calculated
>in months refrigerated and years if kept frozen at commercial
>temperatures.

Coincidentally, late last night my upstairs DVR recorded
Alton Brown doing a show all about butter.

Salt is there only to improve shelf life, but unsalted
butter is wrapped in foil for exactly the same reason.

Alton says a stick of butter of either type is good for
4 months, and the "use before date" is almost always 4
months after the day the butter was made, and butter is
usually made with milk straight from the dairy. So look
at that date and subtract 4 months and you'll know exactly
how old your butter is.

He says he doesn't let it stay in the freezer longer
than that, either, but I don't think that means it won't
last longer.

I know I've used butter that was 8-12 months old with
no discernible deterioration in any quality (why? I don't
use much but 8-12 months before I'd gone on a jag and tried
several kinds at once, so it had piled up in the fridge).

>It isn't more expensive either wholesale or retail. Side by side
>pricing in supermarkets is the norm across the US.

I've noticed unsalted being a little more expensive.
Because of the foil, I imagine.

>It isn't likely to be fresher because less of it is made than salted
>and it sells well within sell by dates. The dairy guys have good
>historical industry figures about how much to make and when to make it.

Here's some randomly apropos links I dug up.

The FDA gives hints for making and selling your own butter:

http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/qa-ind4e.html

The National Association of Margarine Manufacturers whine
to the FDA because they think their product is NOT the
new Asbestos:

http://www.fda.gov/ohrms/dockets/dai...2/80027d31.pdf

The FDA's detailed rules for adulterating your butter:

http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/script....cfm?FR=101.67

Finland has figured out how to feed cows over the winter to
improve the shelf-life of butter (search down for "silage"):

http://virtual.finland.fi/finfo/english/innovat.html

--Blair
"I want to get a law degree so I can send
four-page letters to the government saying
my 1st Amendment rights are being trampled
so please can I sell poison as candy?"

"WardNA" > wrote in message
...
> >Land O' Lakes unsalted butter at the
> >grocery...it's comparably priced to the "lightly salted" butter that
> >it sits next to...so price isn't really an issue.
>
> Not around here. A generic "lightly salted" gets as low as $1/pound here.
> Unsalted never sinks below $2/pound, and it only gets that low rarely.
>
> I've got the freezer full of it from buying it on sale.

Salted or unsalted, butter has been unusually cheap around here for a good 6
months. Don't know why. I've got a freezer full as well, most around
$1.50/lb.

robert > wrote:
>
>"WardNA" > wrote in message
...
>> >Land O' Lakes unsalted butter at the
>> >grocery...it's comparably priced to the "lightly salted" butter that
>> >it sits next to...so price isn't really an issue.
>>
>> Not around here. A generic "lightly salted" gets as low as $1/pound here.
>> Unsalted never sinks below $2/pound, and it only gets that low rarely.
>>
>> I've got the freezer full of it from buying it on sale.
>
>Salted or unsalted, butter has been unusually cheap around here for a good 6
>months. Don't know why. I've got a freezer full as well, most around
>$1.50/lb.

I don't know either, but if supermarket t-bones don't
come back under $7/lb soon, I'm going to start hunting
overpopulated dairy cows...

--Blair
"I'd bet money they forgot to make a
rule saying I need a license."

In article >, Craig Welch
> writes:

>Blair P. Houghton > wrote:
>
>>I've noticed unsalted being a little more expensive.
>>Because of the foil, I imagine.
>
>None of the butter we buy is in foil. It's all in plastic tubs.

In plastic tubs it's oleo. Butter isn't sold packaged in plastic. Butter is
sold in parchment, aluminized paper, or waxed paper... plastic would impart a
foul taste.


---= BOYCOTT FRENCH--GERMAN (belgium) =---
---= Move UNITED NATIONS To Paris =---
Sheldon
````````````
"Life would be devoid of all meaning were it without tribulation."

Some recipes call for unsalted butter because the recipe already has salt in
it and the addition of more salt would throw the recipe formula off and
potentially affect the outcome of the said recipe. However, unsalted butter
is always the freshest. It is almost always wrapped in foil whereas the
salted butter is wrapped in a paper type product. I have found that most of
my recipes taste better when I use unsalted butter except for some of my
buttermilk breads and rolls where the more salt, the better the taste of the
bread.

--
Jim
Owner
Camelot Bakery and Kitchens
"Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons for thou art crunchy and taste good
with ketchup"



"WardNA" > wrote in message
...
> >Land O' Lakes unsalted butter at the
> >grocery...it's comparably priced to the "lightly salted" butter that
> >it sits next to...so price isn't really an issue.
>
> Not around here. A generic "lightly salted" gets as low as $1/pound here.
> Unsalted never sinks below $2/pound, and it only gets that low rarely.
>
> I've got the freezer full of it from buying it on sale.

On Mon, 5 Jan 2004 22:58:27 -0500, "Camelot Bakery"
> wrote:

>Some recipes call for unsalted butter because the recipe already has salt in
>it and the addition of more salt would throw the recipe formula off and
>potentially affect the outcome of the said recipe. However, unsalted butter
>is always the freshest. It is almost always wrapped in foil whereas the
>salted butter is wrapped in a paper type product. I have found that most of
>my recipes taste better when I use unsalted butter except for some of my
>buttermilk breads and rolls where the more salt, the better the taste of the
>bread.

I believe unsalted butter also has more cream

>Doe John gringo
>
>I believe unsalted butter also has more cream.

No shit, Einstein... considering salt contributes somewhat to weight/volume:
http://www.ochef.com/553.htm


---= BOYCOTT FRENCH--GERMAN (belgium) =---
---= Move UNITED NATIONS To Paris =---
Sheldon
````````````
"Life would be devoid of all meaning were it without tribulation."

Katz,

Not only is there no "cream" but you contributed worthless info again. I
guess your GD was warrented.

"Commercial butter is 80-82 percent milk fat, 16-17 percent water, and 1-2
percent milk solids other than fat (sometimes referred to as curd). It may
contain salt , added directly to the butter in concentrations of 1 to 2
percent. Unsalted butter is often referred to as "sweet" butter. This should
not be confused with "sweet cream" butter, which may or may not be salted.
Reduced-fat, or "light," butter usually contains about 40 percent milk fat.
Butter also contains protein, calcium and phosphorous (about 1.2%) and
fat-soluble vitamins A, D and E."

from: http://webexhibits.org/butter/composition.html

Stick to your lookups and quotes of people who know what's what.



"PENMART01" > wrote in message
...
> >Doe John gringo
> >
> >I believe unsalted butter also has more cream.
>
> No shit, Einstein... considering salt contributes somewhat to
weight/volume:
> http://www.ochef.com/553.htm
>
>
> ---= BOYCOTT FRENCH--GERMAN (belgium) =---
> ---= Move UNITED NATIONS To Paris =---
> Sheldon
> ````````````
> "Life would be devoid of all meaning were it without tribulation."
>

Doe John wrote:

> On Mon, 5 Jan 2004 22:58:27 -0500, "Camelot Bakery"
> > wrote:
>
>
>>Some recipes call for unsalted butter because the recipe already has salt in
>>it and the addition of more salt would throw the recipe formula off and
>>potentially affect the outcome of the said recipe. However, unsalted butter
>>is always the freshest. It is almost always wrapped in foil whereas the
>>salted butter is wrapped in a paper type product. I have found that most of
>>my recipes taste better when I use unsalted butter except for some of my
>>buttermilk breads and rolls where the more salt, the better the taste of the
>>bread.
>
>
> I believe unsalted butter also has more cream
Nope!!!
--
Alan

"If you reject the food, ignore the customs, fear the religion, and
avoid the people, you might better stay home."
--James Michener