How to Make Herb Butter + Tips & Variations

Look no further if you’ve ever wondered how to make herb butter. It takes about 10 minutes to make, and you’ll want to slather it on everything!

Learning how to make herb butter is incredibly easy! You’ll often see it referred to as compound butter, which is just a fancy name for butter that’s been softened and mixed with herbs, citrus zest, and seasonings. It takes minutes to make and adds a special touch to any meal.

I make all different kinds of compound butter, but this one is my favorite for steak. As soon as the butter hits the hot steak, it melts and coats the meat with its buttery, herbaceous deliciousness. It’s so delicious and one of my all-time favorite meals!

There are many options, and it’s a great way to use herbs that are getting ready to spoil. I used rosemary, sage, basil, and tarragon for this recipe, but here are a few more ideas.

Herb butter for turkey (game changer)

Follow the recipe below and add extra sage plus thyme. Make a double batch, rub some under the skin of the turkey before roasting, and serve the rest on the side to slather on rolls!

• Lemon & Dill Butter: fresh dill, lemon juice, zest, and salt
• Garlic & Chive Butter: finely chopped garlic, chives, and salt
• Sun Dried Tomato Butter: finely chopped sun-dried tomatoes, parsley, and salt
• Garlic & Rosemary Butter: finely chopped garlic, rosemary, parsley, and salt
• Chipotle Lime Butter: minced chipotle peppers, garlic, lime zest, and salt

Simple compound butter is just as exciting. Try tarragon butter on seared chicken, rosemary butter on a hot steak, truffle butter stirred into risotto, basil butter slathered on crusty bread, lemon butter on grilled fish or shrimp, and sage butter on roasted turkey!

Sweet compound butter can jazz up waffles, pancakes, and biscuits!

• Rosemary Sage Honey Butter: finely chopped rosemary, sage, honey, and salt
• Orange Honey Butter: honey, orange zest
• Cranberry Orange Butter: finely chopped dried cranberries, maple syrup or honey, orange zest
• Maple Pecan Compound Butter: pure maple syrup, toasted pecans, salt
• Cinnamon Vanilla Honey Butter: honey, cinnamon, vanilla extract

The variations are endless, and there are no rules. Use as much as you want, but don’t go crazy all at once. Add a little at a time. You can always add more, but you can’t take it out. If you accidentally go heavy-handed with an herb or salt, add more softened butter to mellow the flavors back out.

How to make herb butter:

Ingredients used in this recipe:

• Butter: A good quality butter will make this even more delicious.
• Fresh herbs: Fresh herbs give this a ton of bright, herbaceous flavor.
• Salt: We are using unsalted butter to control the salt.
• Black pepper and crushed red pepper: Both offer a subtle pop of heat.

How to make herb butter:

• Soften the butter by leaving it on the counter for an hour. *microwave tip below
• Add all the chopped herbs and seasonings to the softened butter in a mixing bowl.
• Stir well and immediately transfer to your favorite serving dish or roll into a log as described below.
• Store in the refrigerator for up to a week or freeze for up to two months.

Equipment used in this recipe:

• Small mixing bowl
• Herb scissors or kitchen shears
• Large fork for mixing
• Butter dish for storing
• Butter knife
• Small food processor

Recipe tips and variations:

If you only have dried herbs, they’ll work fine; I’ve done this many times myself! It won’t have that pop of freshness that fresh herbs give, but it’s still delish.

If you’re sensitive to salt, start with less and add more to taste. That said, remember that salt is a flavor enhancer. If the butter seems to need something, it’s probably a little more salt.

To soften the butter in the microwave, cook it on the defrost setting, and check it every 10-20 seconds. Watch it carefully! It can go from seemingly hard to melted butter in seconds. It melts from the inside out, so don’t just look to see if it’s soft. Use a fork and press on it every 10-20 seconds.

A good pair of kitchen scissors makes chopping the herbs quick and easy. I rarely use a knife anymore!

You could add everything to a small food processor to make this easier.

If you’re serving the butter soon after making it, you can leave it at room temperature. It’s easier to spread when it’s soft. Once you put it in the refrigerator, it will harden, so I recommend taking it out an hour before serving. If you’re serving individual portions, it will be easier to slice when it’s still cold. I love placing a slice of butter in little condiment bowls and setting one at each place setting.

To form the softened butter into a log:

• Place all of the softened butter into the middle of a large piece of plastic wrap.
• Use a spatula to form a rough log. It doesn’t have to be perfect.
• Roll it up, gently shaping it as you go.
• Twist the ends of the plastic wrap until you have a tight, firm log.
• Refrigerate for at least 6 hours to harden.

This would make a lovely housewarming or hostess gift with a loaf of crusty bread!

Ways to serve herb compound butter:

• Serve on top of grilled meat, poultry, or seafood for a big pop of flavor.
• Level up your Thanksgiving turkey by using this instead of regular butter.
• Jazz up corn on the cob.
• Add a big spoonful to hot pasta, rice, or mashed potatoes.
• Spoon some into hot pasta along with some parmesan cheese!

Serve this with:

• Homemade Basil Pesto
• Old Fashioned Goulash Recipe
• Butter & Lemon Baked Rice
• Easy Beer Bread Recipe
• Oven Roasted Broccoli

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How to Make Herb Butter + Tips & Variations

Look no further if you’ve ever wondered how to make herb butter. It takes about 10 minutes to make, and you’ll want to slather it on everything!

Print This Recipe Pin This to Pinterest

Prep Time: 15 minutes mins

Total Time: 15 minutes mins

Servings: 1 cup

Ingredients

• 2 sticks unsalted butter, good quality
• 1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley, chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh sage, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh chives, finely chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon chili flakes (optional)

Instructions

• Soften the butter by leaving it on the counter for an hour.
• Add the softened butter, herbs, and seasonings to a mixing bowl.
• Stir well to combine.
• Taste and adjust the salt.
• Transfer to your favorite serving dish or roll into a log 
• Store in the refrigerator for up to a week or freeze for up to two months.

Notes

You can easily half this recipe by using half the amount of each ingredient.

To soften the butter in the microwave, use the defrost setting, and check it every 10-20 seconds. Watch it carefully! It can go from seemingly hard to melted butter in seconds. It melts from the inside out, so don’t just look to see if it’s soft. Use a fork and press on it every time you check it.

To form the softened butter into a log, see the instructions in the post.

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