How to Make Compound Butters to Preserve Your Fresh Garden Herbs

How to Make Compound Butters to Preserve Your Fresh Garden Herbs 

If your backyard garden or patio pots are anything like mine right now, you are probably buried under a mountain of fresh basil, chives, parsley, and thyme. 

Every summer, I start with grand plans to stay on top of my herbs, but by mid-season, the plants grow faster than I can use them.

Basil overflowing

I never throw away herbs, but they can get a little overgrown or go to flower, which changes their texture and flavor.   It feels awful after all of those weeks of making sure they didn’t freeze during the spring or dry out during our heat waves. 

Over the years—from my time running a bakery in Massachusetts to cooking in small kitchens across the UK and France—I’ve learned a great way to make the most of my herbs.  That is to make compound butter. 

Compound butter is simply high-quality butter whipped or mixed with sweet or savory ingredients. When you add the herbs to the butter, you lock in their flavor at the peak of the season.  Plus, you have a ready-made flavor bomb sitting in your freezer. When you're cooking later in the year, having a log of custom herb butter in the freezer means you can tap into summer in seconds without chopping a single thing.

Why Compound Butter Works 

When you chop herbs and leave them in the fridge, exposure to oxygen turns them brown and damp. That dampness accelerates rot.

Butter, however, is a mixture of fat and a tiny bit of water. Did you know that fat is a natural preservative and that the essential oils in herbs are fat-soluble?  This means their flavor dissolves directly into the butter fat, preserving the taste of the herbs at peak freshness. 

Freezing compound butter further stops degradation, giving you fresh garden flavor for up to six months.

Before You Start - Here Are My Tips for Making Compound Butter.

Dry Your Herbs Completely Before Mixing

Wash your fresh herbs, then dry them thoroughly using a salad spinner and paper towels until no visible water remains before chopping.  If you don’t dry them completely, you create watery pockets that can cause the butter to separate and potentially spoil faster.

Use Citrus Zest Instead of Squeezed Juice

When adding citrus to your herb butter, stick exclusively to finely grated citrus zest rather than liquid juice.  Besides the water factor, the zest has the essential oils of the lemon or whatever you are using.  Remember that essential oils dissolve in fat so they are perfect to add flavor to the butter. 

Slice and Flash-Freeze "Single-Serve" Coins

This is a great time saver! Roll your compound butter into a log using parchment paper, chill it in the fridge until firm, and slice it into half-inch coins. Freeze the coins flat on a tray before transferring them to a freezer bag. This makes them easy to use, and you don’t have to thaw the whole log for a couple of pieces of compound butter.

Four Compound Butter Recipes

When making these, start with 1 stick (1/2 cup or 8 tablespoons) of butter, softened to room temperature. 

Smoked Paprika, Lime & Chive Butter

• The Recipe:

  • 1 stick unsalted butter

  • 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh chives

  • 1 tsp smoked paprika

  • 1 tsp fresh lime zest 

• How to Use It: Slather this directly over hot, freshly steamed or grilled corn on the cob. The heat melts the butter into every crevice, while the lime zest cuts through the richness of the sweet corn. It’s also phenomenal melted over grilled chicken breasts or tossed into warm black beans.  I love to add some grated Parmesan Cheese on it too!

Garlic, Herb & Lemon Butter

• The Recipe: 

  • 1 stick unsalted butter

  • 2 tbsp finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

  • 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh tarragon or chervil

  • 2 grated garlic cloves

  • 1 tsp fresh lemon zest

• How to Use It: Top a pan-seared steak or thick-cut pork chop the second it comes off the heat so it forms a rich pan sauce. It’s equally brilliant melted over seared white fish or baked potatoes. Yum!!!

Garlic, Basil & Sun-Dried Tomato Butter.

• The Recipe: 

  • 1 stick unsalted butter

  • 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh basil

  • 2 tbsp finely oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes (drained and minced)

  • 2 grated garlic cloves

• How to Use It: Stir a dollop into hot, freshly cooked pasta for an effortless meal, spread it onto crusty sourdough before broiling for the ultimate garlic bread, or melt it over roasted zucchini and eggplant.

Honey, Thyme & Blackberry Butter

• The Recipe: 

  • 1 stick unsalted butter

  • 2 tbsp honey

  • 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves (finely chopped)

  • 3-4 fresh blackberries (mashing lightly into the butter for a marbled effect)

• How to Use It: Spread over warm buttermilk biscuits, morning toast, English muffins, or fresh-from-the-oven scones.

This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to combinations. I also like to make a sage and thyme butter to use with chicken because it reminds me of Thanksgiving, or rosemary, garlic, and lemon, and then using it on roasted potatoes.  Oh so good!

What combination will you try?