My opinion on Powdered Butter and Home Canned Butter
I get asked frequently what my opinion is on storing butter for long term use and people are shocked when I say I don’t. I keep it in my freezer because it will store for 6 months, but yes, if there was an emergency where we had no electricity we wouldn’t have butter and I’ll tell you why…powdered butter can be hard to use and is most definitely more expensive than fresh butter, which makes it hard to justify using every day. And since you can use peanut butter or jam on toast and beans as a fat substitute in cakes, brownies, quick breads, and cookies and you can use shortening (I know, I know….alot of people are against shortening….but that is why you can use the beans! 
To me, the powdered butter isn’t worth the money. I’d rather use beans and get the extra fiber, protein, nutrition, and vitamins that come along with it for a MUCH CHEAPER price tag.
Now for the home “canning” of butter. I’ve seen a lot of recipes circulated around for “canning” butter, well actually it’s just melting butter and putting it in warmed bottles from your oven to create a seal and letting it firm again. I was really interested in this idea so I researched it more and found the bad news! It isn’t safe to “can” your own butter. It can make your family sick, and not the throw up sick, like the hospital could die sick. It can cause botulism (the same thing you can get from eating foods from dented cans) that can kill you. Even the National Center for Home Preservation has spoke out against home canning of butter. Here’s why in their own words…
“Should I use directions for canning butter at home that I see on the Internet?
Indeed, there are some directions for ‘canning’ butter in circulation on the Internet. Most of what we have seen are not really canning, as they do not have Boiling Water or Pressure Canning processes applied to the filled jar. Jars are preheated, the butter is melted down and poured into the jars, and the lids are put on the jars. Some directions say to put the jars in the refrigerator as they re-harden, but to keep shaking them at regular intervals to keep the separating butter better mixed as it hardens. This is merely storing butter in canning jars, not ‘canning’. True home canning is when the food is heated enough to destroy or sufficiently acid enough to prevent growth of all spores of Clostridium botulinum (that causes botulism) and other pathogens during room temperature storage on the shelf.
Additionally, when you consider the economics of the process (energy costs involved with heating, cost of jars and lids, etc.), even if the butter is bought on sale, it may not be economically viable to prepare butter to store for years in this manner. Good quality butter is readily available at all times, if butter is needed for fresh use. If the concern is about emergency food supplies, there are dry forms of butter that can be purchased and stored, oils that can be used in an emergency, or commercially canned butter in tins (although we have only seen this for sale from other countries). Melted and re-hardened butter may not function the same as original butter in many types of baking anyway.
There are a few issues with the common directions circulating on the Internet at this time (Spring 2006):
Physical safety and food quality: In the provided directions, the jars are preheated in an oven (dry-heat), which is not recommended for canning jars. Manufacturers of canning jars do not recommend baking or oven canning in the jars. It is very risky with regard to causing jar breakage. There is no guarantee that the jars heated in this dry manner are sufficiently heated to sterilize them, as we do not have data on sterilizing jar surfaces by this dry-heating method.
The butter is not really being ‘canned’; it is simply being melted and put in canning jars, and covered with lids. Due to some heat present from the hot melted butters and preheated jars, some degree of vacuum is pulled on the lids to develop a seal. It rarely is as strong a vacuum as you obtain in jars sealed through heat processing. The practice in these ‘canned’ butter directions is referred to as ‘open-kettle’ canning in our terminology, which is really no canning at all, since the jar (with product in it) is not being heat processed before storage.
Although mostly fat, butter is a low-acid food. Meat, vegetables, butter, cream, etc. are low-acid products that will support the outgrowth of C. botulinum and toxin formation in a sealed jar at room temperature. Low-acid products have to be pressure-canned by tested processes to be kept in a sealed jar at room temperature. It is not clear what the botulism risk is from such a high-fat product, but to store a low-acid moist food in a sealed jar at room temperature requires processing to destroy spores. A normal salted butter has about 16-17% water, some salt, protein, vitamins and minerals. Some butter-like spreads have varying amounts of water in them. We have no kind of database in the home canning/food processing arena to know what the microbiological concerns would be in a butter stored at room temperature in a sealed jar. In the absence of that, given that it is low-acid and that fats can protect spores from heat if they are in the product during a canning process, we cannot recommend storing butter produced by these methods under vacuum sealed conditions at room temperature.
Some other directions do call for ‘canning’ the filled jars of butter in a dry oven. This also is not ‘canning’. There is not sufficient, research-based documentation to support that ‘canning’ any food in a dry oven as described on this web page or any page that proposes oven canning is even sufficient heating to destroy bacteria of concern, let alone enough to produce a proper seal with today’s home canning lids.
In conclusion, with no testing having been conducted to validate these methods, we would NOT recommend or endorse them as a safe home-canning process, let alone for storing butter at room temperature for an extended period. We do know that the methods given for preheating empty jars, or even filled jars, in a dry oven are not recommended by the jar manufacturers or by us for any food. Aside from the physical safety and quality issues, and the fact that it is not canning at all, if there happened to be spores of certain bacteria in there, these procedures will not destroy those spores for safe room temperature storage.”
http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/questions/FAQ_canning.html#33
The Utah State Extension service also agrees, saying…
“What NOT to Store…Home Canned Butter, especially unsalted, canned butter. (Why – unsalted canned butter has NO protection from botulism, slated, home canned butter has no science-based process to can safely)”
http://extension.usu.edu/foodstorage/htm/what-not-to-store
AND…
“Cautions Issued for specific foods, Butter — For now, canning butter using any method is not recommended. Some methods are dangerous at best; others are not backed by science.”
http://extension.usu.edu/juab/files/uploads/FCS/Common%20Canning%20Mistakes.pdf
If that isn’t enough, I spoke with a woman from the Utah State Extension service who said that she has had many people come to her to find out why their family got REALLY sick from eating home “canned” butter. You can purchase safely canned butter in a tin can from emergency stores for a VERY HIGH price and again, I don’t think it’s worth it when you can use beans, other oils and shortening as substitutes for oil in your baked goods and jam or peanut butter on your toast.
Here are a few links on using beans for oil from my blog: COOKIES, BROWNIES, CAKE. There is also more information in my book about how to use them in your own recipes…just please, don’t can your own butter!
FREE Macey’s Class! Friday at 10:00 a.m.
I hope you all had a GREAT Memorial Day. I had a great time visiting graves and remembering those that went before us to make our lives so wonderful now.
Just wanted to let you know, I’ll be at the Macey’s in Pleasant Grove teaching a FREE class on food storage THIS Friday (May 29th at 10:00 a.m.). I’ll be showing how to do food storage in a blender and specifically beans (more food storage in a blender to come!). So if you’ve ever wanted to see how I make brownies, cakes and cookies, using beans now is the time! You’ll need to call (801-796-6601) and sign up as space is limited. Can’t wait to see you there! (Oh, and if you have a book that needs signing…bring it along, I’d love to sign it after class!)
Great Review!
I love hearing from all of you about my book. The positive feedback has been wonderful…and makes all of those very, very long nights writing it all worth it! Here is one review I couldn’t pass up from Jim at EverythingPrepared.com!
Here is what Jim had to say…
I Can’t Believe It’s Food Storage is a great book I highly recommend. How would you like to have your home food storage and actually be able to eat it too?
The “Rock Star of Food Storage” finally reveals the methods she uses to simply and deliciously use her food storage in her everyday meals. This book is a must have for for anyone with food storage. You will not have to wonder any longer about how to use your home food storage as Crystal provides simple, step-by-step examples that will help you use it instead of lose it. I wish I had this book years ago.
I have to admit, when Crystal contacted me about reviewing I Can’t Believe It’s Food Storage, I was a bit skeptical, but excited too. I had learned about the book through Twitter (eatfoodstorage) and the Food Storage Network. They have some great information on their sites so I was interested in seeing what Crystal had to say in her book. I had initially contacted her about reviewing it, but hadn’t heard anything.
When Crystal did contact me, I looked forward to receiving the book. After all, I enjoy reading about food storage and emergency preparedness and have a small library of books on the subjects.
There are 7 great things I noticed about this book:
- It is easy to read and follow.
- It shows you how to decide if you are a menu person or a themed person.
- It teaches you “tricky” ways to sneak food storage into your meals so your family will be wanting second and third helpings (We used this in our family with great results even before I read Crystal’s book).
- It is well researched with addresses (linking info) to key resources you can use right now (this save you a lot of time).
- Key questions about food storage are answered with tips and links to helpful videos.
- It is written for LDS readers with quotes and thoughts from LDS leaders so the LDS population won’t have to search for them.
- Best of all…there are over 100 tried and “kitchen-tested” recipes in I Can’t Believe It’s Food Storage.
Side Bar: Thank you Matt (Crystal’s Husband) and Kate (her daughter) for being the taste testers.
Bonus: You’ll love the conversion charts. It makes it easy to convert measurements, and it takes away the guesswork and time to do math calculations.
There was only one thing wrong with the book. It didn’t include our Home Food Storage Supplies website as a place to purchase products online (just a little humor). Maybe I can talk her into adding it to her next edition of I Can’t Believe It’s Food Storage.
All kidding aside. This is an outstanding book I highly recommend.
I believe everyone should have this book.
James Medina
President
Everything Prepared, LLC
http://www.everythingprepared.com
Thai Peanut Chicken Noodle Salad-Pasta Food Storage Recipes
If you think spaghetti noodles are only for spaghetti…think again! This is honestly my new favorite summer “salad” recipe and I plan on bringing it to potlucks, family events, friend events…well you get my drift. It is so different (and by different I don’t mean disgusting, I mean different as in not the same old thing you see at family get togethers). It is good warm or cold…so you know, perfect for leftovers. You’ve got to give this try it’s one of my favorite food storage recipes! It has a little zip, a little zang, and a lot of taste!
Thai Peanut Chicken Noodle Salad
1 C. Asian Sesame Dressing (I use Ken’s Steakhouse light version)
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 cooked boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into chunks
2 Tbsp. crunchy peanut butter
2 Tbsp. honey
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper
1 pkg. (1 lb.) thin spaghetti
4 green onions, sliced
1 cup chopped cilantro
Directions
Cook spaghetti as directed on package. Toss cooked chicken chunks with 1/4 c. Asian Sesame Dressing. Mix remaining dressing mixture, peanut butter, honey and crushed red pepper.
Drain spaghetti. Add to chicken mixture with peanut butter mixture and all remaining ingredients; mix lightly. Serve warm or chill in fridge for 4 hours before serving.
