Sweet Cream Butter: How to Make Butter at Home

Sweet cream butter uses pasteurized fresh cream as its main ingredient in addition to salt, although the amount of salt varies depending on the producer. Despite the name, the production of sweet cream butter does not involve adding sugar. Unsalted sweet cream butter is also popular with cooks and bakers since using unsalted butter allows the chef to better control the amount of salt in a recipe.

Sweet cream butter is a common grocery store butter in the United States, which is why people sometimes call sweet cream butter “American butter.”

There are a few differences between sweet cream butter—sometimes called “American-style butter”—and European butter, or cultured butter.

• Sweet cream butter has a lower fat content. According to United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) standards, sweet cream butter must contain eighty percent butterfat. European butter, on the other hand, has a higher fat content—between eighty and ninety percent butterfat. Fat content impacts flavor, texture, and color.
• Sweet cream butter has a lower smoke point. An ingredient’s smoke point refers to the highest temperature it can withstand before smoking and eventually catching fire. European butter has a higher smoke point than sweet cream butter, making it better for recipes involving high temperatures.
• European butter churns for a longer period. Churning separates the milk solids from the whey, with the milk solids eventually becoming butter. European butter churns for about thirty to forty-five minutes, whereas heavy cream churns for about twenty to twenty-five minutes to produce sweet cream butter. The longer churning time produces a higher fat content in European butter.
• European butter is more yellow in color. Differences in fat content, churning time, and the quality and culture of the milk produce different end results. Sweet cream butter is lighter in color, whereas European-style butter is far more yellow.
• European-style butter uses cultured cream. Instead of using fresh cream, as sweet cream butter does, European-style butter uses cultured cream. Culturing the dairy takes anywhere from six hours to forty-eight hours and results in a tangy flavor, similar to that of sour cream or buttermilk.

Follow these steps to make salted sweet cream butter at home:

1. 1. Add heavy cream and salt to a mixing bowl. Use heavy cream that has undergone pasteurization, also known as heavy whipping cream, and contains zero preservatives or stabilizers. Add a pinch of kosher salt or sea salt. Prepare to whip the ingredients in a stand mixer with its whisk attachment or with the regular beaters of a hand mixer.
2. 2. Whip beyond the point of whipped cream. Whip the cream until it starts to look similar to whipped cream. As it thickens, the mixture will start to hold the impression of the whisk. Continue whipping beyond this point. The cream will begin to curdle, then the solids will separate from the water. After about twenty minutes, the solids should form a ball around the whisk.
3. 3. Wash the butter. Remove the ball of butter solids from the bowl and rinse it under cold water for a few minutes. This washes away any remaining buttermilk from the butter and extends the shelf life of the butter.
4. 4. Wrap and refrigerate the butter. Surround the butter with plastic wrap, beeswax wrap, parchment paper, or a resealable bag. Store the sweet cream butter in the refrigerator and use all of it within two to three weeks.

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