How Butter Is Made

Butter is a creamy, rich food made from the fat in cow's milk. It has been made for thousands of years and is used in cooking and baking all over the world. Making butter is surprisingly simple. When cream is shaken or stirred very fast, the fat sticks together and separates from the liquid, creating butter.

How Butter Is Churned

First, cream is separated from milk. The cream is then churned, which means it is stirred or shaken very fast. As it churns, the tiny fat particles in the cream bump into each other and stick together. Eventually, solid clumps of butter form and separate from a thin liquid called buttermilk. The butter is then washed with cold water and sometimes salt is added.

Butter in Cooking

Butter is used in many ways in the kitchen. It makes toast taste delicious and adds richness to sauces. In baking, butter makes cookies, cakes, and pastries tender and flaky. Melted butter is drizzled over popcorn and vegetables. Different countries have their own styles of butter, from European butter with more fat to Indian ghee, which is clarified butter.

Fun Facts

• You can make butter at home by shaking heavy cream in a jar for about 15 minutes.
• It takes about 21 pounds of whole milk to make one pound of butter.
• The largest butter sculpture ever made weighed over 1,000 pounds.

Did You Know?

People have been making butter for at least 4,500 years, and some ancient cultures buried butter in bogs to preserve it!