17 Different Types Of Butter With Images

Types Of Butter

Butter is an important ingredient that every kitchen must have but since there are a lot of options to choose from in the market nowadays, you might be wondering as to which butter should you choose to buy. Since butter can be used in different dishes and desserts, there are many different types of butter that works well in recipes. In today guide, we have gathered the different types of butter and how each butters are made. Read on below to know more.

ProductBrandNamePrice
Minerva DairyAmish Style Roll ButterCheck Price on Amazon
Vermont Cultured Butter with Sea Salt (6 ounce)Check Price on Amazon
kevalaKevala Ghee - Clarified Butter 2 LB (32 oz)Check Price on Amazon
Land O LakesLand O Lakes Salted Whipped Butter, 5 Pound -- 2 per case.Check Price on Amazon
St. HelenSt. Helen Goat Butter Set. 8.8 oz Pack of 4.Check Price on Amazon

* If you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. For more details, please visit our Privacy policy page.

Different Types Of Butter

There are numerous types of butter and each differs in taste, color and uses. That is why it is important to know the types of butter to be able to use the correct butter for a specific recipe. Listed below are the different types of butter.

Unsalted Butter

Unsalted butter has a mildly sweet taste making it ideal to use for baked goods. It is called unsalted butter simply because this type of butter does not contain salt, and with that you will have more control of the amount of salt you put into a dish when butter is needed. Ideal for dishes that you can longer taste nor adjust especially during the cooking process.

In baking for example, water content, fat content especially the salt content can greatly affect the result of a particular recipe. Therefore when baking, always take into consideration the type of butter you use but when in doubt, go with unsalted butter instead.

Buy it now on Amazon


Salted Butter

Next on the list is the Salted Butter. Since the unsalted butter mentioned above contains no salt, this one from the name itself represents it simply means it has salt content. Although unsalted butter is commonly used for baking, that doesn’t mean salted butter isn’t.

For every 4 ounces of salted butter, it typically contains at least 1/4 teaspoon of salt added. Although it may seem a small amount of salt, it is more than enough to actually make a big difference in relation to the taste it can provide to a recipe.

There are baking recipes that do require the use of salted butter rather than the unsalted one simply because salted butter can give the some recipes the small taste it actually needs.

Buy it now on Amazon


Sweet Cream Butter

Sweet cream butter is another type of butter that made from pasteurized fresh cream. There are other butters that are made from cultured or sour cream that results to a tarty flavor. It is also known as pasteurized fresh cream.

Sweet cream butter can either be salted or unsalted, that is why make sure to carefully check the label before purchasing sweet cream butter to know if you are buying the salted sweet cream butter or the unsalted sweet cream butter.

Buy it now on Amazon


Cultured Butter

Cultured butter is a butter also made by mixing it with cultures or bacterial cultures. A good example similar to how cultured butter is made is the yogurt. It is also known as Artisan butter.

Making cultured butter is very simply. bacterial cultures are added to the pasteurized cream for it to ferment and then thickens. After which the churning process will now begin to make a butter. Cultured butters are creamy and are usually filled with lactic acid flavor.

The fermented creams gives Cultured butter its acidic and tangy flavor similar to culture or sour cream and yogurt, this is mainly due to the fermentation process. Although cultured butters are generally have high butterfat content as compare to another type of butter which is the uncultured butter.

Buy it now on Amazon


Clarified Butter

Clarified butter is a type of butter made from butterfat, water and milk solids. Making Clarified butter involves simple processes such as removing water and milk solids, therefore butterfat is left behind which actually has a higher smoke point and a more richer and more fuller flavor.

Ghee is a type of clarified butter. It is usually used for searing and or roasting on high heat temperatures. The main difference between Clarified butter and Ghee is that with Ghee it is cooked longer after water contents re moved. Thereby, milk solids are left to toast with the same texture as that of a brown butter.

Buy it now on Amazon


Organic Butter

It is called Organic butter simply because the cows where the butter milk is taken were made to grow without using any pesticides nor fertilizers or growth hormones. This means that the cows grows naturally, eating organic foods rather fed with fertilizers.

Organic butter is usually used on individuals that are on an organic diet.


Plant-Based Butter

Plant based butters are made from combining plant derived oils with water. It is basically a type of butter that is perfectly made for vegans or individuals on a dairy free diet.

Plant based butter is made primarily with these common ingredients such as olive oil, coconut oil, palm oil and avocado oil.

Although plant based butter is not made with the typical ingredients of the butter, it still has the same taste similar to that of a regular butter.

Buy it now on Amazon


Grass-Fed Butter

Another types of butter on our list is the Grass fed butter. It is typically made with milk taken from cows that basically feeds on grass. This type of butter is considered to be one of the healthy butter because it is all natural, grass fed cows (grass only diet) therefore grass fed butter contains omega3 fatty acids, fat soluble vitamins and healthy fats.

Grass fed butter is usually used in making pasta sauce, pic crusts, either roasting a vegetable or roasting fish and can also be used in making cookies.


European Style Butter

European style butter is a type of butter that is churned longer as compared to American butter so that it can reach its way to a minimum of 82% butterfat. With a high butterfat percentage, the lower its moisture content is with European butters.

European style butter is perfect to use when making pastries and pie crusts.

Buy it now on Amazon


Spreadable Butter or Margarine

Spreadable Butter is also referred to as Margarine. It is made by mixing butter and vegetable oil. It is called as such (spreadable butter) simply because the mixture of both the butter and the oil will result in a very spreadable consistency which tends to be very smooth therefore commonly used for spreading on dishes and desserts such as waffles, pancakes, hotcakes toasts and a lot more.

Buy it now on Amazon


Whipped Butter

Whipped butter is a type of butter that is softened then whipped with nitrogen gas. Nitrogen gas is added to the softened butter to make it more fluffy and with an airy texture.

The airy texture on whipped butter is best for use to spread n waffles, breads, pancakes, bagels. It can also be used to spread in cinnamon rolls as well.

A whipped butter features a pearly sheen color with a mild flavor.

Buy it now on Amazon


Goat Butter

Goat Butter is your regular butter but this one is made from using the milk of the goat rather than using the milk from a cow.

It is ideal for individuals that are lactose intolerant. Best use on smearing on cookies that are made with butter, vegetables and breads.

Buy it now on Amazon


Amish Butter

Amish Butter is a type of butter that is made from using cow’s milk. The milk is churned slowly to about 84% butterfat. Amish butter is typically made by churning cream with high fat content therefore it is more creamier as compared to American Butter and European butter.

Amish butters are commonly used in baling pies, apple dumpling, and pretzels.

Buy it now on Amazon


Compound Butter

Compound butter is a regular butter that is mixed with other ingredients such as spices (such as paprika or chipotle chile powder), herbs (such as thyme and basil), cheese and other seasonings.

If you want to easily slice your compound butter, you can rolled and turn into a log wrapped in plastic.

Buy it now on Amazon


Brown butter

Brown butter is made by heating melted butter wherein the milk solids becomes toasted creating a browned butter.

A browned butter typically has a caramel and nutty flavor. It is best used to make brownies, granola bars, cookies, waffles and pancakes.

Buy it now on Amazon


Irish Butter

Irish butter, as the name itself present, is made by Irish Dairy cows. It is a European butter variety also churned until it reaches to a point of 82% butterfat.

Buy it now on Amazon


Light Butter

It is a traditional butter churned with water and air. It has at least 25% lesser butter fat as compared to a traditional butter therefore light butter ideally used for as a spread rather than an ingredient to your baked goods.

Buy it now on Amazon


Soften the Butter

Listed below are the easy ways on how to soften a butter for use in your recipe.

  • Let it sit on the counter ahead of time. If softened butter will be used in your recipes, make sure to allow the butter to sit at room temperature ahead of time. So that when the time comes that you will be needing it for your recipe, it has already softened.
  • Cut butter into small pieces. Another easy way to soften a butter is to cut the block or log of butter into smaller pieces or diced. Keep in mind that the smaller the diced are or the smaller the pieces of butter are, it will quickly soften. You can also use a cheese grater so that you can easily slice and cut butter into smaller pieces.
  • Another easy way is to pound the butter using a rolling pin. To do this, simply place the butter on a parchment paper then cover it with another parchment paper on top. Start pounding the butter until the thickness becomes at least 1/4 inches. That way it will soften quickly and easily.
  • Next is to cover the butter with a bowl. To do this, prepare a bowl that fits your butter. Meanwhile in a separate pot, bring water to a boil. Next, add boiling water to the prepared bowl and wait for at least 2 minutes. Discard water from the bowl and then flip bowl over the butter to completely cover it. It usually takes 2 minutes or more for butter to starts to soften.
  • Use the microwave. The fastest way to soften a butter is by using a microwave. There are microwaves that have a specific button to soften a butter but if your microwave doesn’t have that settings, not to worry as you can soften your butter by heating the butter in the microwave using the 5-10 second interval. Make sure the temperature of the microwave is set to a very low setting. Check every 5 second so as not to overheat the butter and has not completely melted.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best butter to use when baking?

As previously mentioned, the best butter for baking is the unsalted butter. Examples of unsalted butter ideal for baking are: sweet cream butter, European butter, cultured butter, grass fed butter, plant based butters, Browned butter and Amish butter. Just make sure all these types of butter are unsalted butters. Using unsalted butter is ideal because that way you can control and manually adjust the taste and salt content you add to your recipe as compared to using salted butter.

What is the best butter for cooking?

There’s really isn’t a particular type of butter that is used for cooking, well for cooking the best butter is one that is solid. But for a particular type, it goes down to what you are cooking. There are different types of butter and some differs in terms of flavor, salt content and smoke point.

Does Butter go bad?

Yes, as a matter of fact butter could go bad. When talking about salted and unsalted butter, unsalted butter tends to go bad easily than salted butter because the salt in a salted butter helps preserve the butter.

Unsalted butter goes bad if left at room temperature for 6 hours, while salted butter can last for a few days when placed at room temperature. However when placed inside the fridge, unsalted butter can last for more than a month, while salted butter on the other hand lasts for months.

Final Thoughts

Butter can be used in so many different ways such as for baking, cooking or can also be used as a spread on toast. Different types of butter are used in different ways. The lists mentioned on this article are the different types of butter.

You can all sorts of butters in your kitchen so that can try as many butters are you like. That way you will be able to know which of the butters will suit your recipe best.

ProductBrandNamePrice
Minerva DairyAmish Style Roll ButterCheck Price on Amazon
Vermont Cultured Butter with Sea Salt (6 ounce)Check Price on Amazon
kevalaKevala Ghee - Clarified Butter 2 LB (32 oz)Check Price on Amazon
Land O LakesLand O Lakes Salted Whipped Butter, 5 Pound -- 2 per case.Check Price on Amazon
St. HelenSt. Helen Goat Butter Set. 8.8 oz Pack of 4.Check Price on Amazon

* If you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. For more details, please visit our Privacy policy page.

Similar Posts