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HOW TO MAKE BROWN BUTTER IN 10 MINTS

How to make brown butter in 10 minutes, nutty, toasty, and full of flavor. With science backed tips, step by step instructions, and a hydration conversion chart.
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Prep Time 2 minutes
Cook Time 8 minutes
Cooling Time 30 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 113 g (½ cup / 1 stick) unsalted butter

Equipment

  • 1 Light-colored stainless steel saucepan or skillet (not dark cast iron or nonstick)
  • 1 Heatproof Bowl
  • 1 Rubber spatula or wooden spoon
  • 1 Kitchen scale (recommended)

Method
 

  1. Cut the butter into tablespoon-size pieces so it melts evenly. Place in a light-colored saucepan.
  2. Melt on high heat until completely melted. Reduce to medium/medium-low heat.
  3. Watch the stages, melting, foaming (water evaporating), then quieting. Stir constantly.
  4. Look for brown bits forming at the bottom of the pan (about 5-8 minutes). The butter will turn amber and smell nutty.
  5. Remove from heat just before you think it is done. The residual heat will continue cooking.
  6. Pour immediately into a heatproof bowl. Scrape every last brown bit from the pan.
  7. Rest for 20-30 minutes in the freezer until the butter comes to the top and the bits settle at the bottom. Do not use hot brown butter in baking, it will cook your eggs!

Notes

  • Use unsalted butter. Salted butter foams more and makes it harder to see the color change.
  • Use a light-colored pan. A dark cooking surface hides the brown bits.
  • Stay at the stove. Brown butter goes from perfect to burnt in seconds.
  • Stir constantly. The bits need to stay equal in the pan.
  • Do not leave it in the hot pan. Pour it into a bowl immediately to stop the cooking process.
  • Scrape the pan. The brown bits are where the flavor lives—do not leave them behind!
  • If you burn it, start over. Burnt butter tastes bitter and cannot be fixed.
  • If a recipe calls for creaming butter and sugar, let the brown butter solidify in the refrigerator first.
  • To store, refrigerate for more than a year or freeze for years.
Hydration Conversion Chart
 
 
Regular Butter Brown Butter Yield Moisture to Add Back
113g (½ cup / 1 stick) 90-95g 1 tablespoon milk/melted butter
226g (1 cup / 2 sticks) 180-190g 2 tablespoon milk/melted butter
339g (1½ cups / 3 sticks) 270-285g 3 tablespoon milk/melted butter
452g (2 cups / 4 sticks) 360-380g 4 tablespoon milk/melted butter
How to use the chart:
  1. Brown your butter.
  2. Weigh the finished brown butter.
  3. Add the missing moisture (water or milk) to bring it back to the original weight.