Stored Butter

[RossA]

This is great! I had no idea that you could store butter for years unrefrigerated. Now I have one more useful project that will make my wife look at me like I'm crazy. Oh, well, I'm used to that.

[Loshali]

shake shake shake, shake shake shake, shake your butter...

lol, I should have said it better, your right loshali, kids should not be aloud anywhere near hot oil/grease/butter, or anything else. I was speaking of the times you shake, when it is starting to seperate because it is cooling to that point. sorry for any confusion. If you could tell, I do not have any kids yet. haha but I would sure not allow them near anything boiling hot :)

Oh, you know youre right Gee, the shaking part would be a good project for the kids. Sorry, all I could see was a little one climbing up to the stove to stir the pot or helping with the ladling. I agree the shaking would be good for them.

[lazer128]

is there any way to plug up the holes and make them usable again, I wonder.

I "stole" this from another forum. Automotive Bondo should work well....

I rebuilt a crock using Bondo. After it dried I sanded the patches and used spot putty to fill in small holes/cracks...sanded it again and painted it with oil paint, mixed to match the gray glaze on the crock...After it dried, I sprayed a clear matte sealer allover it...Looks good from a distance...LOL.

Another good patch material to use is dental putty...It comes in a white powder form and you add water...mix and apply to cracks, and over holes (missing areas)...
I apply masking tape inside the crock & over the missing areas, so the patching material will stay in place until it sets up.

Jugs are more hard to fill in, so you need a thick heavy quik-drying material to patch it....like Bondo.

I have seen people tape over the outside of a holed jug and pour the patching material inside the jug , then place the jug so the patch material covers the holed area...When dried, , remove the tape and sand, etc...

For handles....use a small amount of Bondo...Place two gobs, where the handle was attached, press the handle into them, until you "feel" you have a secure seat......let it set a short while, then trim off the excess with an exacto knife, after dry...paint the exposed Bondo.

[gkim4107]

lol, I should have said it better, your right loshali, kids should not be aloud anywhere near hot oil/grease/butter, or anything else. I was speaking of the times you shake, when it is starting to seperate because it is cooling to that point. sorry for any confusion. If you could tell, I do not have any kids yet. haha but I would sure not allow them near anything boiling hot :)

[Loshali]

is there any way to plug up the holes and make them usable again, I wonder.

I dunno, I thought about it. Maybe a cork or something. But the bottom was chipped around the hole so even though it was wth a drill bit, apparently it wasnt a masonery drill bit so it left chipped and jagged edges. Not sure how to mend pottery....

[Brosia]

is there any way to plug up the holes and make them usable again, I wonder.

[Loshali]

sounds pretty easy. Lots of shaking involved. If you have any kids that could be a fun helpful learning experience for them.

Gkim, you're working with scalding hot butter. Even though its only simmering, it will still burn and scar delicate skin. I wouldnt recommend letting children help with this project. Canning other stuff, by all means show, teach and learn them. But I"ve seen too many children burned from hot oils and grease, so please take care in letting them help on this project.

Fresh butter is much better, but not everyone can have a goat or mini-cow. I'm going to can some butter too, when I catch it on sale. I want to get a couple of Dexter cows if possible, maybe a goat or two. Dexters are very small. Goats will eat most anything, scraps, plants in the garden, etc. Plus they help with tilling and composting and fertilizing.

I went to an old estate sale yesterday and there were butter churns and pickle crocks, and someone had drilled holes in the bottom of every one of em so they could plant flowers in em!!! what a waste....

[gkim4107]

sounds pretty easy. Lots of shaking involved. If you have any kids that could be a fun helpful learning experience for them.

[Brosia]

I've never tried canning butter (it's on my list of things to learn!) but it seems relatively simple.
Here's one set of instructions (out of the millions you could find googling)

1.Use any butter that is on sale. Lesser quality butter requires more shaking (see #5 below), but the results are the same as with the expensive brands.


2. Heat pint jars in a 250 degree oven for 20 minutes, without rings or seals. One pound of butter slightly more than fills one pint jar, so if you melt 11 pounds of butter, heat 12 pint jars. A roasting pan works well for holding the pint jars while in the oven.

While the jars are heating, melt butter slowly until it comes to a slow boil. Using a large spatula, stir the bottom of the pot often to keep the butter from scorching. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes at least: a good simmer time will lessen the amount of shaking required (see #5 below). Place the lids in a small pot and bring to a boil, leaving the lids in simmering water until needed.


4. Stirring the melted butter from the bottom to the top with a soup ladle or small pot with a handle, pour the melted butter carefully into heated jars through a canning jar funnel. Leave 3/4" of head space in the jar, which allows room for the shaking process.


5. Carefully wipe off the top of the jars, then get a hot lid from the simmering water, add the lid and ring and tighten securely. Lids will seal as they cool. Once a few lids "ping," shake while the jars are still warm, but cool enough to handle easily, because the butter will separate and become foamy on top and white on the bottom. In a few minutes, shake again, and repeat until the butter retains the same consistency throughout the jar.


6. At this point, while still slightly warm, put the jars into a refrigerator. While cooling and hardening, shake again, and the melted butter will then look like butter and become firm. This final shaking is very important! Check every 5 minutes and give the jars a little shake until they are hardened in the jar! Leave in the refrigerator for an hour.

Canned butter should store for 3 years or longer on a cool, dark shelf. [It does last a long time. We have just used up the last of the butter we canned in 1999, and it was fine after 5 years.] Canned butter does not "melt" again when opened, so it does not need to be refrigerated upon opening, provided it is used within a reasonable length of time.

[Moira]

I have some. Canning your own is probably a better option.
Butter also freezes well if you like to keep 6 months worth on hand.

[voodoo]

Tried it, not overly impressed. Not bad if you have nothing else. I have since learned how to can your own butter, in jars, and it is very good. Lasts for years.

[monet861]

Have any of you ever seen this product:

http://cgi.ebay.com/12-Cans-Real-Butter-Disaster-Canned-Emerg-Survival-Food_W0QQitemZ310119557441QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item310119557441&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=66%3A2%7C65%3A1%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318

I just don't know that it could last forever. But very interesting.