Salted vs. unsalted butter?

[mlktwins]

I am trying some new cookie recipes this weekend. One recipe calls for unsalted butter, but normally I just use the salted. Will there be a huge difference in the taste of a cookie? For example, imagine a Nestle Toll House chocolate chip cookie using unsalted vs. salted? I have only ever used salted. I am not a baker except at this time of year LOl.

[AnnE-girl]

I always use unsalted for baking because it's hard to reduce the salt in the recipe correctly to adjust for the salt in the butter. That's a horrible sentence, but I hope that makes sense. Recipes are written assuming unsalted butter is being used. Can you buy just enough unsalted for your baking this time of year?

[kiana]

I never use unsalted. If a recipe specifically calls for unsalted butter (most of my cookbooks are old enough that they don't) and I use salted I leave out about 1/4 tsp of salt per stick. 

[cjzimmer1]

I always use salted no matter what the recipe calls for.  Personally I can't taste any difference.

[LucyStoner]

When a recipe calls for unsalted butter and I only have salted (rare but it happens), I reduce the salt in the recipe slightly. There's 1.25 tsp salt in one pound (4 standard sticks) of butter. I reduce salt by about 1/4 tsp per stick of salted butter used in recipes where unsalted is called for.

[Cinder]

I think it depends on your palate. I generally use salted butter in my "everyday" cookies but skip the salt. They taste fine to us. My neighbor uses salted butter *and* adds the salt in the recipe. My family thinks her cookies are salty and won't eat them. Maybe they're just used to the less-salt way that I use or maybe my neighbor is oblivious to her over-salted cookies.

[marbel]

I always use unsalted for baking because it's hard to reduce the salt in the recipe correctly to adjust for the salt in the butter. That's a horrible sentence, but I hope that makes sense. Recipes are written assuming unsalted butter is being used. Can you buy just enough unsalted for your baking this time of year?

 

Is that true?  I always thought recipes were written assuming salted butter.  Generally if a recipe says "butter" I used salted; if it says "unsaltted butter," I follow that.  

 

But I've also seen a guideline for adjusting the amount of salt in a recipe.  It's 1/4 teaspoon per stick/half cup of butter.  So, if I use salted butter when unsalted is called for; I reduce by that amount.  That's not perfect, because there's no way to know exactly how much salt is in the butter, but it's probably good enough.

 

Butter keeps well in the freezer.  I generally keep a few boxes of unsalted for baking.  

 

I once made toffee using unsalted instead of salted butter and didn't add any salt.  Ugh, it tasted so flat.  Never made that mistake again.  :-)

[heartlikealion]

I actually was wondering about this topic last night! I wanted to make something that called for butter and I figured they wanted unsalted and all we have at the house at the moment is salted. I googled it and read the same thing that AnnE-girl said.

[Ellesmere]

This  blog post at King Arthur, discusses why you mostly use unsalted but what to do if you only have salted.

Here is a recipe where they talk about why salted works best for some recipes -- but they write most of theirs for unsalted butter.

A Sally's Baking Addiction post on the same topic:

http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2016/06/22/salted-butter-vs-unsalted-butter-baking/

You can see her advice is the going advice in most baking books but she says her mom never follows it and things are fine. It's like the difference with my mom. I measure everything precisely with a scale and she never does but her stuff always is amazing. We just learned to bake in different ways and she is more intuitive so she adjusts as she goes. 

I have one baking book that does use salted for every recipe but that is the only one I've come across so far. Most of mine state they tested with unsalted.

 

 

Edited December 10, 2016 by CaladwenEleniel

[heartlikealion]

Oh great the hive doesn't agree on this so back to my original thoughts --- recipes should specify! lol

[flyingaway]

I like to be able to control the salt in recipes and always wondered who was buying salted butter. Maybe this explains why I generally find other people's baked goods to be too salty.

[Lady Florida.]

I always use salted, never reduce the salt in the recipe, and neither I nor anyone else notices. 

[Carol in Cal.]

I use salted in recipes from 1960's and 1970's cookbooks, because that was SUCH a norm then.  I use unsalted for everything else.

 

I also know the difference between 'one medium potato' and 'one Costco potato'.  

 

Hence, I am very old.

 

But not old enough to know what 'one number two can' is.

[Cinder]

This reminds me of the time we visited MIL and went to the store for her. She asked us to get butter, so we got butter. The salted kind. When we got back she said she wanted unsalted butter. I said "butter" means salted and "unsalted butter" means unsalted butter. She insisted "butter" means unsalted. Perhaps it's a generational difference--she was born in the 20's, I was born in the 60's.

[LucyStoner]

Is that true? I always thought recipes were written assuming salted butter. Generally if a recipe says "butter" I used salted; if it says "unsaltted butter," I follow that.

 

But I've also seen a guideline for adjusting the amount of salt in a recipe. It's 1/4 teaspoon per stick/half cup of butter. So, if I use salted butter when unsalted is called for; I reduce by that amount. That's not perfect, because there's no way to know exactly how much salt is in the butter, but it's probably good enough.

 

Butter keeps well in the freezer. I generally keep a few boxes of unsalted for baking.

 

I once made toffee using unsalted instead of salted butter and didn't add any salt. Ugh, it tasted so flat. Never made that mistake again. :-)

Yes, it's true. Unsalted butter is the default for bakers.

[AK_Mom4]

When I bake with salted butter, I leave out the additional salt in the recipe.

 

When I bake with unsalted butter, I include the salt called for in the recipe.

 

No complaints about salt quality in the baking so far.

[LuvToRead]

I always used unsalted.  I rarely measure salt, I just throw in a pinch or too, so I can't say if it is more or less than what the recipe calls for.  If I am putting butter on bread, I just sprinkle on a little salt over the butter.  

[MEmama]

I use unsalted butter and never ever add salt. I can taste it immediately in other people's baking. I tend to think nearly everything is over salted, though.

[AmandaVT]

When I bake with salted butter, I leave out the additional salt in the recipe.

 

When I bake with unsalted butter, I include the salt called for in the recipe.

 

No complaints about salt quality in the baking so far.

 

This is what I do too. Although sometimes I do add an extra, small pinch of salt for chocolatey things.

[marbel]

I use salted in recipes from 1960's and 1970's cookbooks, because that was SUCH a norm then.  I use unsalted for everything else.

 

I also know the difference between 'one medium potato' and 'one Costco potato'.  

 

Hence, I am very old.

 

But not old enough to know what 'one number two can' is.

 

You know, that is probably why I assume the default is salted.  That is when I was growing up, seeing my mother cook,taking Home Ec in school.  Salted butter was the norm, unless we were using margarine.    

 

And, I have noticed that Martha Stewart's recipes always specify unsalted butter, which I'm sure added to that impression.   Because, why would the recipe bother to specify, if unsalted was the standard?

 

I've continued to cook this way all these years (assuming a recipe meant salted butter unless unsalted was specified) and things have always worked out, so I never had reason to think differently.   Till this thread.  Now I'm questioning everything I've ever known, or thought I've known, about cooking.   :lol:  :lol:

 

ETA: I think I once knew what a number two can was, but I've since lost that bit of knowledge.

Edited December 10, 2016 by marbel

[regentrude]

I always use unsalted. Most of my recipes come from countries where unsalted butter is the default.

 

On a different note: I noticed the quality of the domestic butter declining over the past decade. Where I was able to replicate my grandmother's recipes 15 years ago with normal grocery store butter, about 3-4 years ago the dough would no longer hold together because of the increased water content. It took several very frustrating failures until I found that was the cause. I now only use imported Irish butter for holiday baking because the regular stuff is so low quality.

 

ETA: I don't get the point of salted butter. I can always add salt, but it is not possible to take it back out.

Edited December 10, 2016 by regentrude

[FriedClams]

For real baking (like, you really, really care about the loft, etc of your cookies our cakes), unsalted makes a big difference. For day to day, either works.

[J-rap]

I used to use salted for everything, and now I use unsalted for everything, and I never change anything else or never notice it in taste, except when eating it plain on a piece of bread.  And then I love unsalted best.

 

ETA:  I don't do a lot of baking and certainly don't consider myself a great baker at all.

Edited December 10, 2016 by J-rap

[bibiche]

Professional kitchens always use unsalted butter, if that helps you decide. This goes for baking as well as cooking. If you use salted, omit the salt in the recipe.

[Rachel]

If I am buttering bread, I use salted butter. For baking, I use unsalted. I can always tell when people bake with salted butter, their food tastes really salty. I would never tell someone that unless they ask though. I do admit to having a sensitive palate, I would be very successful as a quality control taster.

 

If you have to bake with salted butter, reduce the added salt in the recipe.

[AnnE-girl]

We do use salted butter for spreading on bread or a little butter on vegetables. My kitchen staples are salted Kerrygold for eating when you can really taste it and unsalted Costco organic butter for baking.

[kiana]

You know, that is probably why I assume the default is salted.  That is when I was growing up, seeing my mother cook,taking Home Ec in school.  Salted butter was the norm, unless we were using margarine.    

 

And, I have noticed that Martha Stewart's recipes always specify unsalted butter, which I'm sure added to that impression.   Because, why would the recipe bother to specify, if unsalted was the standard?

 

I've continued to cook this way all these years (assuming a recipe meant salted butter unless unsalted was specified) and things have always worked out, so I never had reason to think differently.   Till this thread.  Now I'm questioning everything I've ever known, or thought I've known, about cooking.   :lol:  :lol:

 

ETA: I think I once knew what a number two can was, but I've since lost that bit of knowledge.

 

Yep. All my cookbooks where I learned to cook are of an age where "butter" means "salted". 

 

And since I salt to taste anyway (even in baking I eat the dough/batter) it's never made much of a difference. 

[Pawz4me]

We do use salted butter for spreading on bread or a little butter on vegetables. My kitchen staples are salted Kerrygold for eating when you can really taste it and unsalted Costco organic butter for baking.

 

This is pretty much what we do, too (except we aren't members at Costco, so our baking butter is some other brand).

[Farrar]

Another vote that unsalted is the default for baking. That said, many times I've been out of unsalted and subbed in salted and I've never seen a marked difference. I understand the purpose - needing to control the salt - but it's just not a critical thing. Maybe if you're a bread baker? Or maybe in cakes? I make a lot of cookies and quick breads and seriously cannot tell much of a difference.

 

I strongly prefer salted for spreading on bread. Adding salt simply doesn't work that well for this. No matter how little I add, it just makes the bread taste salty, which is not the goal. When the salt is incorporated in the butter, it brings out something about the butter.

Edited December 10, 2016 by Farrar

[heartlikealion]

When people say they use salted and just don't use salt in the rest of the recipe, that make sense but doesn't work if you're doing a box mix. I was going to make pumpkin bars and it called for a stick of butter and an egg. I didn't want to risk doing it with salted as that sounded like potentially terrible.

[gardenmom5]

I am trying some new cookie recipes this weekend. One recipe calls for unsalted butter, but normally I just use the salted. Will there be a huge difference in the taste of a cookie? For example, imagine a Nestle Toll House chocolate chip cookie using unsalted vs. salted? I have only ever used salted. I am not a baker except at this time of year LOl.

 

does the cookie recipe call for salt?  if there is salt, I would leave it out, then taste the dough and add salt to taste and mix it in (which will be less.)

 

if it does NOT have salt in the recipe - you can end up with something quite salty.

 

I use both unsalted and salted.  my unsalted recipes do not call for salt.  I can always tell if they were made with salted butter.  conversely - I can tell when salted recipes are made with unsalted butter (it's happened) and no extra salt was added.

[kewb]

This thread has been enlightening.  I hate salted butter.  My mother never bought salted butter and I don't either.  I can taste the difference.  Most people probably can't.

 

I was also taught that baking defaults to unsalted unless stated otherwise.

[maize]

I use salted because that is what I prefer on bread and I have no interest in trying to keep two different types of butter in the fridge.

 

My family actually tends towards too-low blood sodium levels, so extra dietary salt is generally a good thing around here.

Edited December 10, 2016 by maize

[ktgrok]

I use salted unless it specifies, and even then half the time use it. But...I like salt in sweet stuff. Like chocolate covered pretzels and such, I think the salt helps enhance the sweet. So far no one has complained. 

[cintinative]

I use unsalted for all baking unless specified otherwise.

For cooking I use salted unless specified otherwise.

[Guest]

I used unsalted because you can't take salt out but you can put it in.  

 

I've become allergic to all dairy; butter is ok for sauteeing and so on, and it's nice when unsalted is the medium as the salt seems to intensify in the sauteing part.  

 

That said, I like a lot of salt anyway, so it doesn't matter much to me...

[JFSinIL]

Grew up only using salted butter for everything.  But once grown, for some reason switched to unsalted only.  Use what you have. 

[Tanaqui]

I often find that my cookies taste better with a little more salt, so I usually just use the salted butter and don't reduce the salt content. I shouldn't be eating enough cookies for that to matter anyway :)

[Ali in OR]

We follow a lower sodium diet (actually just try to hit or stay under recommended daily allowance of 2300 mg.) I've used only unsalted butter in baked goods for years and now I can really notice when baked goods have "too much" salt, but probably because we actively try to avoid over-salted foods (processed foods, lots of restaurant foods). Our palates have changed and stuff that I would have enjoyed before is too salty for me now.

[mlktwins]

Wow! Thanks for all the responses. I have never had this many views or responses to a thread I've started before -- LOL.

 

I ended up getting both salted and unsalted at the store today. I'm going to try unsalted with my new recipe since it calls for unsalted and I've not had this recipe with salted. We shall see. After the holidays, I'm going to try one of my usual recipes with unsalted instead of salted to see what the difference is.

 

Thanks to a recommendation from the boards last year, I'm also getting ready to make my first ever batch of Christmas Crack.

 

Thanks again!

[Tap]

I use salted for everything unless it is a finicky recipe that really depends on the leavening.  ie Puff pastry etc.

 

When I measure any ingredient, it is often a lose measurement anyways....a pile of salt in my hand for a teaspoon and a scoop of flour for a cup.   Trying to cut out a quarter-teaspoonful wouldn't even be worth consideration in my house LOL

[Rosie_0801]

After mistakenly using salted butter in an apple crumble, I am always very careful to use unsalted butter when I'm baking. It was so nasty.  :crying:

[Tanaqui]

After mistakenly using salted butter in an apple crumble, I am always very careful to use unsalted butter when I'm baking. It was so nasty.  :crying:

 

You and I must have very different tastes - if I'm making crumble and I don't have salted butter, I add a pinch!

[xixstar]

I feel the need to make duplicates of every recipe this month to test for taste differences.

 

 

I prefer salted butter and I generally prefer more salt in foods than others. The only thing I bake is peanutbutter cookies which I also prefer to have a slightly saltier flavor profile - I notice when other people do not have enough salt to properly accent and balance the flavor, maybe it was the butter.

[1GirlTwinBoys]

I always use unsalted butter unless the recipe calls for salted butter.

[LMD]

I know that for baking unsalted is the standard, but I generally use whatever is on hand which is usually salted. Never noticed the difference or had complaints, though I do tend to leave out the 'pinch of salt' if it's in the recipe.

[Melissa in Australia]

I always use salted and never put salt in any baking that has butter in it. Works fine for me.

[RegGuheert]

Just a note on unsalted butter. Unsalted butter is almost never simply butter with no salt added. Rather, it is butter with SOMETHING ELSE ADDED in place of the salt in order to cut the fatty aftertaste that you would get with just plain butter.

 

The question, then, is "What is that something else?" In many cases, it is some sort of processed vegetable product designed to give an umami flavor. (This, BTW, is why we ONLY purchase salted butter, since several of us are very sensitive to MSG.)

 

Perhaps that "something else" in unsalted butter has a flavor close enough to salt that it makes very little difference in the overall flavor of baked goods.

[LuvToRead]

Just a note on unsalted butter. Unsalted butter is almost never simply butter with no salt added. Rather, it is butter with SOMETHING ELSE ADDED in place of the salt in order to cut the fatty aftertaste that you would get with just plain butter.

 

The question, then, is "What is that something else?" In many cases, it is some sort of processed vegetable product designed to give an umami flavor. (This, BTW, is why we ONLY purchase salted butter, since several of us are very sensitive to MSG.)

 

Perhaps that "something else" in unsalted butter has a flavor close enough to salt that it makes very little difference in the overall flavor of baked goods.

 

I just checked and the Kerrygold in my fridge has one ingredient:  Cultured pasteurized cream.  

 

After a quick google search, I did notice some brands have "natural flavoring" as an ingredient.  Interesting.  So, if I can't get Kerrygold, I may just buy salted butter instead.

Edited December 11, 2016 by LuvToRead

[lailasmum]

I nearly always use salted butter in everything and just leave the added salt out of the recipe. I dont find the salted butter we use overtly salty so i wonder if brands vary.

 

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