I don't pay attention: if it's buttered, it's all good. I would like to point out that, in the US at least, unsalted butter is usually labeled as having "natural flavor" added. Whatever that is, I suppose it's added to make up for the lack of flavor coming from not being salted.
So I previously worked in a butter factory, and the "Natural Flavoring" we used for unsalted butter was Lactic Acid. Simply put, it serves as a preservative to keep the butter fresh. Salted butter doesn't need this as the salt in the butter acts as a preservative.
I know that in some factories they use a specially cultivated bacteria much like the ones found in yogurt as a preservative instead of the lactic acid, but I don't know if that is required to be listed on the ingredient label.
And that's why I always use slightly past-mature levain whenever making croissants with New Zealand butter. It's always said that fat and acid pair well. And I definitely can taste the difference (I live in the far far east, French butter cost twice than New Zealand butter. And Dutch butter cost a fortune)
While the Reddit guy's factory may have used only lactic acid, the truth is that "natural flavoring" can mean whatever the manufacturer wants it to as long as it's not completely created artificially piece-by-piece at the molecular level. One factory using lactic acid is great, but for all that the label tells you, the rest of the butter companies could be using anything as their "natural" flavor. Even flavors made from sawdust or embryos can be called "natural" flavoring. I would suggest that most manufacturers who have nothing to hide would have the courage to list what they're actually putting in their butter rather than hiding behind the catchall of "natural flavoring".
Euro, Scandi, & NZ butters are most often cultured -- made from lightly fermented milk -- while US dairies apparently add the dread 'natural flavor' to compete .. but to me there's really no comparison -- tho I'm probably biased because my partner is Swiss.
I primarily use salted, as KG for me is a spreading / eating butter and I prefer that to be salted. I had not noticed the difference in fat content though.
Cultured butter seem to have a depth of flavor that “regular” butter doesn’t. I like Vermont Creamery’s (here in US, not that easy to find) cultured butter and have also purchased small batch locally made cultured butter (if in NYC, most recent was from Frenchette bakery). Delicious on warm, crusty bread.
Brand doesn't matter so much as the feed the cows eat. If you want good tasting butter you want it from grass fed cows. I use KG grass fed myself because it's easiest to find around my neck of the woods. Just try KG (green label, gress fed) next to your favorite kitchen butter.
Best butter I ever had was homemade from cream skimmed from local grassfed raw cow milk. I also made homemade naturally cultured butter from the same and it was equally incredible, maybe even better. If you're a cheese aficionado you will never recover from the experience of tasting homemade raw cultured butter. . .
My favorite storebought brand is Kerrygold, but you see I've never bought any other European/high-quality butters because it's just never within our budget. I don't care if it's salted or not; you can always sprinkle salt on top of your butter after buttering a slice with unsalted butter. But to save time I buy salted. It has a longer shelf life too.
Has anyone else noticed, though, that Kerrygold has gotten a little less golden than when they first started selling it in the US? When I first saw KG, I think it was only sold at special stores like Publix. Now it's everywhere, even Walmart. Shortly after it "blew up" in the US I noticed it was a bit less richly yellow than it used to be. Did they have to lower the quality of the care or feed to allow their company to expand so rapidly? I also feel like it tastes slightly less rich than it used to - but that might be a psychological trick I played on myself after noticing it's less golden. :P
I don't pay attention: if it's buttered, it's all good. I would like to point out that, in the US at least, unsalted butter is usually labeled as having "natural flavor" added. Whatever that is, I suppose it's added to make up for the lack of flavor coming from not being salted.
TomP
https://www.reddit.com/r/AskCulinary/comments/26q208/comment/chteii1/
Gary
And that's why I always use slightly past-mature levain whenever making croissants with New Zealand butter. It's always said that fat and acid pair well. And I definitely can taste the difference (I live in the far far east, French butter cost twice than New Zealand butter. And Dutch butter cost a fortune)
Jay
While the Reddit guy's factory may have used only lactic acid, the truth is that "natural flavoring" can mean whatever the manufacturer wants it to as long as it's not completely created artificially piece-by-piece at the molecular level. One factory using lactic acid is great, but for all that the label tells you, the rest of the butter companies could be using anything as their "natural" flavor. Even flavors made from sawdust or embryos can be called "natural" flavoring. I would suggest that most manufacturers who have nothing to hide would have the courage to list what they're actually putting in their butter rather than hiding behind the catchall of "natural flavoring".
Euro, Scandi, & NZ butters are most often cultured -- made from lightly fermented milk -- while US dairies apparently add the dread 'natural flavor' to compete .. but to me there's really no comparison -- tho I'm probably biased because my partner is Swiss.
Kerrygold. Simply the best butter that is the most easily found.
It is the most widely available. Even Walmart stocks it.
I noticed the KG salted and unsalted have different fat contents. Which do you use?
I primarily use salted, as KG for me is a spreading / eating butter and I prefer that to be salted. I had not noticed the difference in fat content though.
Cultured butter seem to have a depth of flavor that “regular” butter doesn’t. I like Vermont Creamery’s (here in US, not that easy to find) cultured butter and have also purchased small batch locally made cultured butter (if in NYC, most recent was from Frenchette bakery). Delicious on warm, crusty bread.
Brand doesn't matter so much as the feed the cows eat. If you want good tasting butter you want it from grass fed cows. I use KG grass fed myself because it's easiest to find around my neck of the woods. Just try KG (green label, gress fed) next to your favorite kitchen butter.
Best butter I ever had was homemade from cream skimmed from local grassfed raw cow milk. I also made homemade naturally cultured butter from the same and it was equally incredible, maybe even better. If you're a cheese aficionado you will never recover from the experience of tasting homemade raw cultured butter. . .
My favorite storebought brand is Kerrygold, but you see I've never bought any other European/high-quality butters because it's just never within our budget. I don't care if it's salted or not; you can always sprinkle salt on top of your butter after buttering a slice with unsalted butter. But to save time I buy salted. It has a longer shelf life too.
Has anyone else noticed, though, that Kerrygold has gotten a little less golden than when they first started selling it in the US? When I first saw KG, I think it was only sold at special stores like Publix. Now it's everywhere, even Walmart. Shortly after it "blew up" in the US I noticed it was a bit less richly yellow than it used to be. Did they have to lower the quality of the care or feed to allow their company to expand so rapidly? I also feel like it tastes slightly less rich than it used to - but that might be a psychological trick I played on myself after noticing it's less golden. :P