Forever Food Storage, Never Rotate, Butter

The next few posts will be things that once you store correctly, you never need to rotate.  They can sit on your shelf until your great-great-grandkids find it and wonder what other crazy things you have on your shelves.

Oil is such an important part of food storage.  It has been told that during WWII those on the run, or those suffering in consentration camps, craved butter.  Fat feeds your brain and regulates hormones. 

Clarified, canned butter, also know as Ghee, is perfect.  A healthy oil that is choleserol free. Once stored correctly it will never go bad.  It will be priceless if, when, we have to rely on our food storage.

Clarified butter is really soft and sort of grainy when cool.  It melts at a lower temperature (70 degrees) but othere than those differences it can be used just like everyday butter/margarine.  It smells delicious, but doesn't have a lot of flavor so I like to add a little salt when I use ghee.

You can buy commurcially prepared butter, but it is expensive and just as easy to do at home.  Set a goal to can 1 lb. of butter a week until you have a couple of gallons.  I'll tell you about other oils to add soon. 

The instructions follow.  Be patient with yourself.  You might mess up a couple of times.  It's okay.

Materials needed:        

ü Heavy bottomed pot with tall sides because the butter splatters some as it boils. 

ü 1lb of butter.  I use unsalted but have been told it doesn’t matter.  The actual instructions say to use “organic butter from pasture fed cows” but I think $1.50 butter works just as well as $5.00 butter.

ü Cheese cloth or a fine, wire strainer

ü Container to store your butter.  Any clean container with a lid will work.  This does NOT need to be sealed like other canned foods.  I use an empty mayo or peanut butter jar that has been cleaned out real well and is completely dry.  I just add the next layer until it is full.

Instructions:        

v Put the butter in the pot and place it on the burner.  Turn the burner on to its lowest possible setting that will still melt the butter.  Mine is the “R” on WARM. 

v Set your timer for 50-60 minutes.  It will take trial and error to know how long it takes.  Too short and it wont set up, too long and it is ruined.

v DO NOT STIR, AT ALL.  White, foamy, yuck will rise to the top and gritty stuff will sink to the bottom.  This is the stuff that you’ll strain off in the end. 

v You know it is done when the white, foamy, yuck turns gold and crispy.  Brown and crispy is a sign of over done.  Everything needs to be a beautiful golden yellow color. 

v Slowly pour contents through several layers of cheese cloth or through your fine wire strainer.  The oil is VERY, VERY, VERY HOT so be sure you strain it into a container that can handle the heat until it has a chance to cool down.  Let it cool down at least 1 hour before pouring it into any plastic container. 

If you have questions or would like a demonstration please call:

Brenda Burrup, brendaburrup@q.com