Can You Save Butter That's Been Melted?

If you're an avid baker or keen home cook, you probably often have a stick or two of different types of butter resting on the counter. Making sure it's at the right temperature is one of the most important tips when cooking with butter – bringing it to room temperature is key for tender cookies and cakes, for example, so that you can cream the dairy product and sugar together. Some people even like to bake with melted butter, rather than just softened. 

But what happens if you have an extra stick lingering after all the baking is done? Can you put it back in the fridge, or is it all a big waste? Or perhaps you've put it in the microwave to soften your butter fast, only to find it melted into a puddle within a few seconds — what's a baker to do then? Can you save it?

Thankfully, for the first scenario, softened butter that's been out for a few hours can easily be popped back into the fridge to use at a later date. Melted butter, on the other hand, is not so simple. While it is still generally safe to consume, the water and fat emulsion in a stick of butter breaks when it becomes melted. Melted and cooled butter might not be the best use for some baked goods because of its textural change — but it can still potentially be used in other ways in the kitchen.

If your butter has only been softened before being refrigerated again, it should be fine to use for baking projects. The texture can make or break your baking, because the suspension of water and fat in a stick of butter helps build structure — interestingly, butter is a water-in-oil emulsion as opposed to most naturally occurring examples, which are oil-in-water. When you cream together butter and sugar for cookies or cakes, air is whipped into the butter which makes a light base for your doughs and batters.

When you refrigerate previously melted butter, however, you notice that the butter separates and can take on a grainy appearance. The broken emulsion would not be able to retain the same structure as a regular stick of butter, and can drastically alter the texture of your bakes. Incidentally, if you do need to cool overly softened or partially melted butter quickly for baking, it's better to stir in a few ice cubes rather than put it in the fridge.

Luckily, there are other ways to use previously melted and refrigerated butter beyond baking, so do not fret too much. The butter can be melted down again and used in any recipes that require melted butter, such as chewy cookies or brownies. It can also be used in cracker crusts, or spread on pancakes — or you can use it to make brown butter. This gives it a lovely a nutty flavor which enhances all sorts of dishes — try using browned butter for richer banana bread, or add it to pasta.