Editing Butter (section)

{{Short description|Dairy product}}
{{Other uses}}
{{pp-vandalism|small=yes}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2021}}
[[File:Švédský koláč naruby 904 (cropped).JPG|thumb|upright=1.35|Solid and melted butter]]
'''Butter''' is a [[dairy product]] made from the fat and protein components of [[Churning (butter)|churned]] [[cream]]. It is a semi-solid [[emulsion]] at [[room temperature]], consisting of approximately 80% [[butterfat]]. It is used at room temperature as a [[spread (food)|spread]], melted as a [[condiment]], and used as a [[Cooking fat|fat]] in baking, sauce-making, [[pan frying]], and other cooking procedures.

Most frequently made from [[cow's milk]], butter can also be manufactured from the milk of other mammals, including [[Sheep milk|sheep]], [[Goat milk|goats]], [[Buffalo milk|buffalo]], and [[Yak milk|yaks]]. It is made by churning milk or cream to separate the fat globules from the [[buttermilk]]. [[Dairy salt|Salt]] has been added to butter since antiquity to help [[Food preservation|preserve]] it, particularly when being transported; salt may still play a preservation role but is less important today as the entire supply chain is usually refrigerated. In modern times, salt may be added for taste<ref>{{cite book | author=Institute of Medicine. Committee on Strategies to Reduce Sodium Intake | editor-last1=Henney | editor-first1=Jane E. | editor-last2=Taylor | editor-first2=Christine Lewis | editor-last3=Boon | editor-first3=Caitlin S. | title=Strategies to reduce sodium intake in the United States | chapter=4: Preservation and Physical Property Roles of Sodium in Foods | url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK50952/ | publisher=National Academies Press | publication-place=Washington, D.C. | date=2010 | isbn=978-0-309-14805-4 | oclc=676698420 | archive-date=9 May 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220509180020/https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK50952/ | url-status=live }}</ref> and [[food coloring]] added for color.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Butter coloring |url=https://www.ocemuseum.nl/oce-technologies/butter-coloring/?lang=en |access-date=2 January 2023 |archive-date=2 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230102123254/https://www.ocemuseum.nl/oce-technologies/butter-coloring/?lang=en |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Kitchen rendering|Rendering]] butter, removing the water and [[milk solids]], produces [[clarified butter]] (including ''[[ghee]]''), which is almost entirely butterfat.

Butter is a water-in-oil [[emulsion]] resulting from an inversion of the cream, where the milk proteins are the emulsifiers. Butter remains a firm solid when [[refrigerated]] but softens to a spreadable consistency at [[room temperature]] and melts to a thin liquid consistency at {{Convert|32|to|35|C}}. The density of butter is {{convert|911|g/L|oz/USpt|abbr=on|frac=4}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://physics.info/density/|work=The Physics Hypertextbook|title=Density|last=Elert|first=Glenn|access-date=26 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180819083024/https://physics.info/density/|archive-date=19 August 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> It generally has a pale yellow color but varies from deep yellow to nearly white. Its natural, unmodified color is dependent on the source animal's feed and genetics, but the commercial manufacturing process sometimes alters this with food colorings like [[annatto]]<ref>{{cite journal |title=A Substitute for 'Annatto' in Butter |journal=Nature |year=1946 |doi=10.1038/157232a0 |last1=Saïd |first1=Husein |last2=Nada |first2=I. A. A. |volume=157 |issue=3982 |page=232 |pmid=21017927 |bibcode=1946Natur.157..232S |s2cid=4131974 |doi-access=free }}</ref> or [[carotene]].