Cultured butter

Cultured butter is made by adding lactic acid bacteria to cream and allowing it to ferment before churning, which produces a tangier, more complex flavor than regular sweet cream butter. Standard American butter is typically made from fresh, unfermented cream and has a milder, sweeter taste.

Most butter produced in continental Europe—especially in France, Germany, and Denmark—is cultured butter, which is why it has a richer, more tangy flavor than standard American sweet cream butter. European butter also often has a higher fat content, typically around 82% compared to the U.S. minimum of 80%.

Yes, you can culture cream by adding a small amount of crème fraîche, buttermilk, or a commercial mesophilic starter culture and letting it sit at room temperature for roughly 12 to 24 hours before churning. After churning, the cultured buttermilk byproduct can be saved for baking or as a starter for future batches.

Like all dairy butter, cultured butter should be refrigerated for long-term storage to prevent rancidity, though its lower moisture and higher acidity from fermentation give it slightly more stability at room temperature than sweet cream butter. Many people keep a small portion in a covered butter dish for a few days of table use without issue.