As he's doing a lot more baking lately, my DH asked about the difference between salted and unsalted butter. He didn't appreciate my "one has salt, the other doesn't" response, but that really is the difference. Chefs prefer unsalted butter because it allows them to control the amount of salt in, and thus, the flavor of the dish. The Joy of Baking says that the shelf life of unsalted butter is about 3 months, while the shelf life of the salted (preserved) butter is about 5 months.
Given that butter never lasts that long in my house, I think we should give the sweet butter a try.
And, for more than you could ever want to know about the history of butter, read on.
1 comment:
In my house, unsalted butter is for baking, salted is for having on sandwiches, popcorn, whatever -- like you wrote. I keep both on hand. Unsalted doesn't 'taste right' for eating, because we expect a bit of salt. It was originally added as a preservative, as you wrote. Did you read that Japan is having a serious butter shortage? OH NO! My trip to Japan will have to be delayed. :)
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