How To: Make Your Own Butter

Follow these simple steps for making butter — the Victorian way!

a pat of homemade butter is shown along with the ingredients for making it

Homemade Butter Tutorial

Step 1: Gather your supplies

You will need:

  • ½ litre of 35% whipping cream
  • a mason jar
  • two bowls
  • a wooden spoon
  • A jug of cold water
  • A good pinch or two of salt

supplies for preparing homemade butter

Step 2: Shake it up!

Pour 1/2 litre of whipping cream into the mason jar and close the lid tightly. Begin shaking the jar up and down. You will have to do this for about five minutes. If your arm gets sore, enlist family members to take turns helping!

Mason jar full of cream being shaken

The cream will first start to thicken, and then begin to separate. Keep going — you’re almost there!

Step 3: You’ve got butter!

When the liquid and fat have separated, will hear a sloshing sound in the jar. The liquid is buttermilk. The fat is your butter!

fat separated from liquid in Mason jar

Step 4: Mold and wash the butter

Remove the butter and buttermilk from the mason jar and place into a bowl. With a wooden spoon shape and mold your butter into a ball, gently squeezing out any liquid.

butter in wooden bowl

Carefully pour the buttermilk into a separate bowl or container. Do not throw this away! You can use it for baking or making pancakes.

bowl of butter with buttermilk in separate bowl

Rinse the butter several times with cold water. Repeat until the water runs clear.

Step 5: Salt the butter

To keep your butter fresh longer, mix in approximately 1 tsp of salt.

adding salt to homemade butter

DID YOU KNOW? Before the refrigerator was invented, salting food helped to preserve it longer!

Step 6: Enjoy!

Enjoy your homemade butter on a piece of bread, or use in a recipe for cookies or cake. Store your butter in a container in the refrigerator.

bread with homemade butter

 

decorative figure

 

For More Victorian Culinary Adventures: