Friday
Jan162009
Brown Butter Is Magical
Friday, January 16, 2009 at 1:35PM
So I followed Ruhlman's advice and decided to finally make some brown butter. Last night, for dinner, I cooked up some simple cheese tortellini. Rather than use tomato sauce, I decided to drop a stick of butter into a medium frying pan over medium-high heat.
The effect was quick and satisfying: after the butter melted it began to foam, and as the foam was clearing it began to turn dark gold, then amber-brown. The smell was amazing - cooks aren't kidding when they say it smells nutty. I tossed the tortellini in this, and stirred in some freshly grated Parmigiana Reggiano. I added a mixture of freshly ground pepper and coriander (I mixed a few coriander seeds in with the pepper in the mill - it's fantastic).
Brown butter is extremely versatile - either as a simple sauce or the base for myriad other dishes. I can already think of using some when I cook eggs or bake desserts. A graham cracker pie crust that uses brown butter would be incredible.
The effect was quick and satisfying: after the butter melted it began to foam, and as the foam was clearing it began to turn dark gold, then amber-brown. The smell was amazing - cooks aren't kidding when they say it smells nutty. I tossed the tortellini in this, and stirred in some freshly grated Parmigiana Reggiano. I added a mixture of freshly ground pepper and coriander (I mixed a few coriander seeds in with the pepper in the mill - it's fantastic).
Brown butter is extremely versatile - either as a simple sauce or the base for myriad other dishes. I can already think of using some when I cook eggs or bake desserts. A graham cracker pie crust that uses brown butter would be incredible.
tagged Food
Food
Reader Comments (3)
Put deh bown budduh in da pot.
Put deh bown budduh in da bowl.
Tug a wittuh wevuh and make a wittuh wish
And fwush deh bown budduh in da hole.
THAT, Mugs, is disgusting. And hilarious.
You can't eat my brown butter Dan.