Herb Butter Recipes: Quick and Easy
How To Do It
Herb butter can turn an ordinary dish into a gourmet treat, and it just couldn’t be any easier. I first stumbled upon herb butter recipes when reading a delightful book called Summer Delights by Noel Richardson. I have also found similar herb butter recipes online and they all call for the same basic method. You chop up fresh herbs and work them into butter softened to room temperature using a food processor or hand mixer. That’s it! Pretty and delicious.
I have come up with another method which I think delivers more of the delectable herb flavour. It is a bit more work but still remarkably easy, and if you make fairly big batches you can simply freeze it.
Here is my method.
Melt your butter in a saucepan, add your fresh or dried herbs and let it simmer on low for five minutes or so. Be careful here as butter can easily burn. Take it off the heat and let cool for a bit (it should still be liquid) and then pour it into a blender.
Blend on a medium speed for a ten seconds or so. Pour it into a crock, let it harden and that's it! Or to be extra fancy you could pipe it into a pretty bowl.
I realize once butter has been melted and left to harden again it changes texture, but once it is used in the food it really doesn't matter.
The herb to butter ratio is really a matter of preference, and feel free to experiment and mix and match to your own taste, but a general rule of thumb is about two tablespoons of fresh herbs to one quarter of a cup butter.
The herb butter will keep about two weeks in the fridge and about two months in the freezer.
How To Use Herb Butter
Spread on fresh warm bread or toast or bagels.
Toss with warm pasta. Add chopped cooked chicken and fresh tomatoes and finish with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese.
Melt on steamed veggies.
Put a dab on barbequed steak or chicken or fish.
Fry your favourite meat or eggs in it.
Use as a spread on bread for sandwiches.
Put a dollop on your hot soup.
Put a dab inside a hamburger patty before cooking.
Toss it in fresh cooked rice.
Substitute it for plain butter or shortening when making biscuits.
Do you have more ideas on how to use herb butter? Please share in the comment section below.
Some Great Food and Herb Combinations
- Chicken-sage, rosemary, thyme and my favorite tarragon
- Salmon- dill, lemon thyme, tarragon
- White fish-parsley, dill, thyme
- Prawns-garlic, chives, parsley
- Beef-garlic, oregano, thyme, rosemary
- Pork-garlic, sage, parsley
- Tomatoes-basil, oregano
- Corn-chives, sage, thyme
- Potatoes-Mint, garlic, parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme
- Bread-basil, chives, dill, fennel, rosemary, sage, thyme
- Rice-rosemary, parsley, chives, garlic
- Pasta-chives, thyme, parsley, basil, cilantro