Butter making has been around for thousands of years, with evidence of butter production dating back as early as 2000 BC. In the olden days, butter was made by hand, without the use of modern machinery and techniques. The basic process involved churning cream to separate the butterfat from the buttermilk. This manual churning was very labor intensive and time consuming. Despite the work involved, butter was highly valued for its ability to preserve and enhance the flavor of food. Let’s take a look at how our ancestors made this tasty dairy product.
The Source of Cream
In order to make butter, you first need cream. In the olden days, cream was obtained from raw milk fresh from a cow, goat, or other dairy animal. Milk would be left to sit for a period of time, allowing the lighter cream to separate and rise to the top. The cream would then be skimmed off by hand. This fresh, unpasteurized cream had a higher butterfat content than modern day cream, resulting in a richer, thicker butter.
Cows that grazed on open pastures and fields of diverse grass and flowers produced milk and cream with unique flavors and aromas based on their diets. This gave butter a more complex taste compared to butter made from the milk of grain-fed cows in confinement. Small family farms would often have just a cow or two, producing enough fresh milk and cream for the household’s needs.
The Churning Process
Once enough cream was collected, the churning process could begin. There were a variety of traditional butter churns used:
- Barrel churn: A wooden barrel turned with a crank or paddle to agitate the cream inside
- Plunger churn: A wooden tub plunged up and down with a wooden staff to churn the cream
- Pot churn: An earthenware or wooden pot shaken back and forth to churn the cream
- Paddle churn: A wooden paddle moved back and forth through cream in a wooden bucket
- Upright churn: A tall, narrow wooden container rocked back and forth on a stand
- Dash churn: A handheld plunger in a jar operated by pressing the plunger repeatedly up and down
Churning times varied based on factors like temperature and fat content, but generally the process took from 20 minutes to over an hour of vigorous churning motion. Cooler temperatures thickened the cream and made churning more difficult. As the cream was agitated, the membranes around the liquid butterfat globules would break down and the fat would start clumping together into solid masses, separating out from the liquid buttermilk.
The churner could tell when the process was complete by the sound the cream made going from a splashing noise to a thicker plopping sound as the butter clumped together. The buttermilk would be drained off, and the butter grains would be gathered together and rinsed with cool water to remove any remaining buttermilk.
Working the Butter
After churning and rinsing, the butter still contained residual buttermilk and had a very grainy, clumpy texture. Butter makers used wooden butter paddles and presses to work the butter, squeezing out remaining liquid and kneading it into a smooth, solid mass. This was done by repeatedly folding, pressing, and squeezing the butter. It was sometimes also washed several more times to remove as much buttermilk as possible, which helped it keep longer. The butter maker’s strength, energy, and time spent working the butter greatly impacted the final texture.
Adding Salt
Once the butter was worked, salt was often added as a preservative and for flavor. The purity and source of the salt affected the final taste. Butter could be salted to different levels based on personal preference and local tastes. Some butter was heavily salted, other was lightly salted, and some was left unsalted. The butter was often shaped into bricks, blocks, or balls, and imprinted with wooden paddles that created unique decorative patterns.
Storing Butter
Keeping butter fresh was a challenge before refrigeration. In summer months, excess butter was often preserved through salting and packing in wooden firkins, earthenware crocks, or wicker baskets lined with cheesecloth. These would be placed in the coolest area possible – root cellars, cold spring houses, or wells. Butter packed this way could keep for months in cool conditions.
Another means of preservation was clarifying the butter into ghee, removing the moisture and milk solids to prevent spoilage. The resulting ghee could be stored longer at room temperature. But most butter was consumed fairly quickly by the household or community that churned it.
Regional Variations
Local environmental conditions like grass, feed, breed of cattle, climate, and water quality influenced the flavor and quality of butter. Over time, distinct regional butter making traditions developed:
- Ireland – Renowned for high quality grass-fed butter in salted, unsalted, and clarified ghee forms
- France – Normandy butter prized for its high fat content from cows grazing on coastal grasses
- Scandinavia – Traditionally produced cultured butter with sour flavor notes
- Netherlands – Strong tradition of butter sculpture using wooden molds
- Russia – Famous cultured butter with fermented aromas
- India – Ghee clarified butter ideal for high temperature cooking
- United States – Butter traditions borrowed from European settlers took on regional traits
Butter Maker’s Role
Butter producers took great pride in their skills and reputation, as the quality of their butter directly affected their livelihood and status. The butter maker’s personal knowledge, care of the animals, timing during milk and cream processing, diligence in churning, and method of working the butter all significantly impacted the finished product. Their goal was to produce tasty “proper butter” with a firm body, fine even texture, good keeping qualities, and appealing flavor.
Butter Consumption
Butter was a highly valued food product prior to the modern era. It added richness, moisture, and flavor to breads, vegetables, grains, and meats. It was also used in cooking, baking, and food preservation. Butter provided calories and nutrients, and had non-food uses such as in lamps. Average consumption was often high by today’s standards – in 1800s United States over 18 pounds of butter yearly per person. Having quality butter on hand was a sign of self-sufficiency and status for a household.
Transition to Mechanization
In the mid 1800s, several innovations lead to increased butter production and reduced labor:
- Rotating drum churn – Increased churning efficiency
- Cream separator – Allowed faster cream collection
- Refrigeration – Enabled longer storage of butter
- Pasteurization – Improved milk shelf life and safety
- Rail transport – Allowed wider distribution and trade
By the early 1900s small local butter production declined as industrial creameries took over mass production using these modern processing methods and machines. While providing efficiency and volume, some argue these changes negatively impacted butter quality, uniqueness, and taste.
Conclusion
For centuries butter created from milk and cream was highly valued. Producing quality, tasty butter took time, diligence, and skill. Each region’s climate, feeds, breeds, and traditional techniques impacted the final product. Industrialization brought butter to the masses, but also resulted in lost regional diversity and handcrafted quality. Today many still appreciate the superior taste of small batch, artisanal butters reminiscent of the olden days.