Herb Butters

Chef Tim Bilton continues his series of brilliant insights into how to best use fresh herbs.

Herb Butters

Herb butter are a great way to elevate simple cooked vegetables like new potatoes, peas, baby carrots, fish, steaks, pasta, gnocchi, barbecued sweet corn and even the humble baked potato.

Herb butter is a great way of using that summer glut of fresh herbs and is a great way of preserving them for the leaner winter months.

Butter infused with your garden herbs tastes like a little bit of luxury but they are so easy to make.

Fresh rosemary butter is fantastic to add to roast potatoes towards the end of cooking.
Chive and lemon butter finished over simply grilled fish.
Parsley and garlic butter great for a quick garlic toasted crostini.
Sage butter for roast chicken.
Mixed herb butter sliced over a sizzling steak and watch it melt.

Simple Herb Butter

1 x 250g Butter
5g Chives finely chopped
5g Tarragon finely chopped
10g Parsley finely chopped
2 sprigs Thyme leaves picked
½ Lemon zest and juice
Pinch Sea salt

Place the softened butter into a bowl.
Add all the herbs, lemon zest, juice and salt.
Mix everything together so all the herbs are evenly distributed in the butter.
Spoon onto non-stick baking paper or cling film.
Roll it in the paper or cling film into neat roll approx. 4cm in diameter and fold over the ends to seal.
This can be kept in the fridge for about three weeks or freezer for up to six months.

Café de Paris Butter

250g Softened butter
15g Finely chopped chives
15g Finely chopped parsley
5g Dijon mustard
Splash Noilly Pratt or sherry
2 cloves Garlic, crushed
15g Capers, finely chopped
6 Anchovies, finely chopped
½ Lemon zest
5g Smoked paprika
5g Mild Curry powder

Place the softened butter into a bowl.
Add everything.
Mix everything together so all the herbs, spices, capers, anchovies, mustard are evenly distributed in the butter.
Spoon onto non-stick baking paper or cling film.
Roll it in the paper or cling film into neat roll approx. 4cm in diameter and fold over the ends to seal.

This can be kept in the fridge for about three weeks or freezer for up to six months.

Slice this over a sizzling steak and you will never look back.