Clarified Butter

Yes I am using a whole blog entry for butter.

How do chefs perfectly sear a scallop with out burning or over caramelizing it?

Butter fat. 

Butter has three parts to it.

Milk Bodies, fat, and water.

Ever throw a tab of butter in a hot pan?  It melts, gets brown then burns.

Whatever you try to cook in that burned butter will blacken as well, even if its not cooked.

If you remove the milk bodies, and the water the fat will not burn and whatever is cooked in it will caramelize wonderfully.  It has a high heat capacity so you can cook smoken hot and really fast.  Butter adds a wonderful creamy taste to whatever you are cooking as well. 

The microwave:

In a microwave safe container, I use a Pyrex measuring cup, stuff in several sticks of butter.

 

 

Nuke it on high until it all melts.

Let it sit.

The butter will separate into three layers.  Water on the bottom, fat in the middle, and milk bodies float to the top.

With a spoon carefully ladle off the milk bodies off of the top.

Now you can easily ladle the fat into a sauté and use it as is.

Here the milk bodies have been skimmed off.

In a water bath:

I use a small hotel pan, and a Bain Marie Pan.  I place the hotel pan on the back of my range and fill it with water.  The Bain Marie goes in the water and I fill it with sticks of butter.  I heat the water and let the butter melt.  When it has separated I skim off the milk bodies.  I have a ladle that is in the Bain Marie while I am cooking.  Any time I need butter, I simply reach over and ladle in what I need.

 

Once the butter has been cleaned you can turn off the heat.  If it starts to re-coagulate turn it back on and melt it again.  When done cooking cover with Saran Wrap and refrigerate.

In the pan: