Herb butter is soft butter with herbs in it, rolled into a log and chilled. Slice a coin of it onto a hot steak, a jacket potato or a piece of fish and it melts into a sauce you did not have to make.
There are two ways to make herb butter. Cold: fold chopped fresh herbs into softened butter. Infused: warm butter with dried herbs for a couple of hours, strain, and set it. Cold takes ten minutes and gives you green flecks. Infused takes an afternoon and gives you smooth butter that tastes of the herb all the way through.
Both start from the same base. Learn it once and every variation below is a swap of one ingredient.
The base recipe
- 250 g unsalted butter
- 4 tablespoons finely chopped soft herbs (parsley, chives, chervil, dill or a mix)
- 1 small garlic clove, grated (optional)
- Finely grated zest of half a lemon
- ½ teaspoon flaky salt
Unsalted butter lets you choose the salt. Salted butter plus flaky salt is too much, and you cannot take it back out.
Method 1: cold herb butter, ten minutes
- Soften the butter. Leave it out until a finger pressed into it leaves a dent without effort. Not melted. Melted butter sets grainy and the herbs sink.
- Dry the herbs. Wash, then dry them completely in a tea towel. Wet herbs make the butter weep.
- Chop them fine. A sharp knife, not a blender. A blender bruises soft herbs and turns them dark.
- Mash everything together in a bowl with a fork until the green is even.
- Roll it. Spoon the butter onto a sheet of baking paper in a rough line. Fold the paper over and push the butter into a log with a ruler or the edge of a baking tray. Twist the ends like a sweet wrapper.
- Chill it until firm, about an hour, then slice as you need it.
The test of a good log: it slices clean into coins without cracking. If it cracks, it is too cold. Give it five minutes.
Method 2: infused herb butter in the NOIDS Herb Lab
The infused method uses dried herbs and long, gentle heat. The flavour moves into the fat itself, and the herbs come out at the end. You get a smooth, single-colour butter.
On a hob this means a pan held at a steady low heat for hours. The NOIDS Herb Lab holds 100 °C within 1 °C for 2 to 3 hours on its own, then beeps.
- Put up to 30 g of dried herbs in the glass, below the MAX mark. Thyme, rosemary and oregano work well dried.
- Add unsalted butter in pieces.
- Fit the sleeve and the lid, and press the glass down into the base until it touches the probes.
- Turn the dial to Oil. It beeps after 3 seconds and starts heating. The run takes 120 to 180 minutes.
- When it beeps again, lift the glass out, fit the filter set and strain the butter into a jug.
- Pour it into a silicone mould or an ice cube tray. Chill until set.
The glass and the filter set go in the dishwasher. More on the device and its programmes on the herbal extraction shelf.
Cold or infused: which one
| Cold | Infused | |
|---|---|---|
| Herbs | Fresh | Dried |
| Time | 10 minutes plus chilling | 2 to 3 hours plus setting |
| Look | Green flecks | Smooth, one colour |
| Flavour | Bright, fresh, sharp | Deep, even, savoury |
| Best on | Steak, fish, corn, bread | Pan sauces, roast veg, rice, baking |
Use cold butter when you want the herb to taste green. Use infused when you want it to taste of the herb without seeing it.
Five herb butters from the same base
Keep the 250 g of unsalted butter and the salt. Swap the rest.
1. Garlic and parsley. 4 tablespoons parsley, 2 grated cloves of garlic, lemon zest. The one for garlic bread and snails.
2. Chive and shallot. 3 tablespoons chives, 1 very finely chopped shallot. For jacket potatoes and scrambled eggs.
3. Thyme and rosemary. 1 tablespoon each of thyme leaves and finely chopped rosemary, or infused from dried. For roast chicken, under the skin.
4. Chilli, lime and coriander. 3 tablespoons coriander, 1 finely chopped red chilli, zest of 1 lime. For corn on the cob and grilled prawns.
5. Tarragon and mustard. 2 tablespoons tarragon, 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard. For steak and for a chicken breast pan-fried in it.
How long herb butter keeps
All herb butter lives in the fridge. Never leave it out on a warm counter.
Herb butter with fresh garlic or fresh herbs: fridge, and use it within 4 days, or freeze it. Garlic and herbs are low-acid foods, and Oregon State University Extension warns that they can carry Clostridium botulinum from the soil. Wrap them in a fat that shuts out the air and keep it warm, and you have the conditions it needs. OSU gives the 4 day fridge rule for homemade garlic and herb mixtures in oil. We apply the same rule to fresh garlic and fresh herbs in butter.
Infused butter, strained and made with dried herbs: fridge, up to a week.
For longer, freeze it. Slice the log into coins before freezing, or freeze the moulded portions, then bag them and write the date on the bag. You take out one coin at a time and the rest stays frozen.
Write the date on the baking paper the day you make it. On day three, nobody remembers.
What to do with herb butter
- Steak. A coin on top as it rests. It melts into the juices.
- Jacket potatoes. Split, a coin inside, salt.
- Corn on the cob. Roll the hot cob over the butter.
- Fish. A coin on a fillet as it comes out of the pan.
- Garlic bread. Spread on a split baguette, wrap in foil, bake.
- Pan sauce. Swirl a coin into the pan juices off the heat.
- Rice. Stir a coin of infused thyme butter through plain rice.
- Toast. Hot toast, cold herb butter, nothing else.
The mistakes that ruin it
Melted butter. It sets grainy and the herbs sink. Soften, do not melt.
Wet herbs. The water separates out and the butter weeps. Dry them in a tea towel.
A blender. It bruises soft herbs and turns them dark. Chop by hand.
Too much salt. Salted butter plus extra salt. Start unsalted.
Fresh garlic butter left out. Fridge, 4 days, or freeze. Every time.
FAQ
How long does herb butter last in the fridge?
With fresh garlic or fresh herbs, use it within 4 days. Infused butter made with dried herbs and strained keeps up to a week. Freeze anything you will not use in time.
Can you freeze herb butter?
Yes. Slice it into coins or set it in moulds, freeze, then bag and date it. Take out one portion at a time.
What herbs are best for herb butter?
Soft herbs for cold butter: parsley, chives, chervil, dill, tarragon, coriander. Woody herbs for infused butter: thyme, rosemary, oregano.
Should I use salted or unsalted butter?
Unsalted, then add salt yourself. You control how salty it ends up.
Can I leave herb butter out on the counter?
No. Keep it in the fridge, and if it has fresh garlic or fresh herbs in it, use it within 4 days.
