Cultured seaweed butter
Item 1 of 1
- Side
- medium
- 20
- 30 minutes
This cultured seaweed butter recipe is a labour of love, but worth it for those industrious cooks who enjoy the process of making their own butters and vinegars. To begin, you'll need to create a black ale vinegar in which to infuse the seaweed, and then get to work on making the cultured butter. The combination of flavours is stunning – Scott serves the butter with his rich and delicious black ale and rye seed bread recipe.
First published in 2017
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Ingredients
Metric
Imperial
Black ale vinegar (base for the seaweed vinegar)
- 500ml of ale, Scott uses Skye Black Ale
- 100ml of apple vinegar with the mother, (unrefined, unpasteurised vinegar)
For the seaweed vinegar
- 50g of sugar kelp, freshly washed, or use dulse, kombu or sea lettuce if prefered
Cultured butter
- 960ml of double cream, fresh
- 120g of natural yoghurt
To make the seaweed butter
- 7g of shony seaweed flakes, plus extra for dusting
- 1/4 tsp sea salt, Scott uses Isle of Skye
SAVE RECIPE
Equipment
- Sterilised jars
- Large vacuum bags
- Chamber sealer
- Water bath
- Food mixer with whisk attachment
Method
1
To begin, make the black ale vinegar to pickle the seaweed for the butter. Pour the ale into a glass jar, add the apple vinegar with the mother and cover in a muslin cloth. Leave for 2 weeks at room temperature
- 100ml of apple vinegar with the mother, (unrefined, unpasteurised vinegar)
- 500ml of ale, Scott uses Skye Black Ale
2
When the vinegar is ready, pass through a muslin cloth into a clean jar to strain out the mother culture
3
Once the vinegar is ready, place the seaweed in the jar with the vinegar, making sure the seaweed is fully submerged. Put a lid on the jar and leave at room temperature for 4–5 days. After this time, keep in the refrigerator until needed
- 50g of sugar kelp, freshly washed, or use dulse, kombu or sea lettuce if prefered
4
Preheat a water bath to 24°C
5
To make the cultured butter, mix the double cream and yoghurt together and place in a vacuum bag. Seal in a chamber sealer and place in the water bath for 48 hours
- 120g of natural yoghurt
- 960ml of double cream, fresh
6
Remove from the water bath and cool to 15°C. You will need 200g for this recipe, but you can save the remaining butter for use in other dishes, or freeze it
7
Place the 200g of cultured butter in an electric mixer and whisk slowly for 5 minutes, or until the butter separates from the buttermilk. Pour off the buttermilk and keep stored for baking recipes, such as scones and soda bread. Wash the butter in ice cold water then squeeze out and pat dry
8
Whisk 1 tbsp of the seaweed vinegar into the softened cultured butter. Add the sea salt and shony seaweed flakes to the bowl and incorporate into the cultured butter and vinegar mixture. Taste, adding more seaweed flakes, vinegar or salt if required. Store and keep refrigerated until required
- 1/4 tsp sea salt, Scott uses Isle of Skye
- 7g of shony seaweed flakes
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