Description

Butter is a dairy product created from proteins and fats found in milk and cream. In the U.S., most butter is cow milk-based, but butter also comes from many other sources such as milk from sheep, goats, buffalo, and yaks.

Manufacturers and home chefs create butter by churning milk or cream to separate fat globules from the buttermilk. They also sometimes add salt and food coloring.

Rendering butter (removing the water and milk solids) produces butterfat-rich clarified butter, or ghee. Home chefs like cooking with ghee because it has a higher smoke point than regular butter, which browns or burns easily. The higher smoke point makes ghee well-suited for frying and sauteeing foods at high heat.