You know the story: The day is new and full of hope. You go to butter a slice of toast, only to crush and mutilate it with a fridge-cold slice of fat. Destroyed. Just like your dreams. We’ve suffered too long and there’s absolutely no need for it. There’s a special device out there with the sole purpose of keeping your butter perfectly spreadable: the butter bell.
The butter bell, also called a butter crock or butter keeper, has contested origins for which town created it, but it’s generally accepted to be of French design. This simple stoneware device consists of two pieces: the base, which is the outer container, and the butter-holding bell, which sits inside the base.
A small amount of clean water goes into the base. Butter is pressed into the bell’s cavity, inverted, and placed inside of the outer container. The entire butter bell is kept on the counter at room temperature. When butter is required, you grab the lid (which is attached to the inner container) and flip it over so the butter is accessible. Scoop some out and flip the bell back over and into the housing.
At this point you might be wondering why butter in a butter bell doesn’t get weird at room temperature when the stick of butter in my mom’s clear plastic holder might develop a rind on the outside during the summer months. (We still eat it, but the texture can be… different.) It’s because a butter bell protects the precious, golden fat from its three enemies: light, oxygen, and heat. These three things can cause oxidation in butter, resulting in off-flavors, and the butter bell slows oxidation down.
Butter bells are generally made from stoneware material, or even marble, which helps on two fronts. It’s completely opaque, so that prevents light oxidation, and the thick walls of the ceramic container don’t conduct heat very well, keeping the dark interior cool compared to what your kitchen might be like on an especially hot day.
I think the most impressive part of the butter bell’s design is the airtight seal—the third line of defense against oxidation. When the cup that holds the butter is inverted and the rim makes contact with the small amount of water in the bottom of the container, it forms an airtight seal. Yes, there will be a small bit of trapped air where the butter is being held, but it’s hardly anything compared to constant air flow. The bell doesn’t completely halt oxidation, but it significantly slows it down, keeping your butter soft at room temperature for you to enjoy perfectly buttered bread, muffins, pancakes, or waffles every morning.
Many kitchen stores sell butter bells (you can buy them online too) and they’re all perfectly functional. Choose one that you think holds enough butter for you. My dad made mine in his ceramics class and it holds a little more than half a stick of butter (sorry, he's not taking orders for the coveted fly butter bell). I usually go through it in a week. Give the whole apparatus a wash and dry before filling it. You’ll only need a half-inch or less of clean water to put in the base. A good way to check is to add a little too much water at first, then the excess will flow out the top when you put the butter chamber in.
Hold the lid flipped over so the butter cup side is facing up. I use a rubber spatula or small teaspoon to push room temperature butter down into the cup part. I advise doing a tablespoon or two at a time. Really smear the butter up against the sides. This provides suction, so the butter doesn’t fall out, and eliminates air pockets. Keep cramming and smearing butter in there until it’s just shy of the edge. You don’t want butter bulging out past the edge because that’ll mess up the whole air-tight seal thing. Wipe off any butter that might have gotten on the rim.
Over the sink (for any spillage), flip the lid over and set it inside the container with water in it. Now your butter bell is ready to be used. Anytime you need butter, just lift the lid and scoop out some butter. There will be a few drips, that’s normal, but you’ll be surprised how much it doesn’t make a difference to have a drop of water on your butter. Be sure to change the water in your butter bell every couple days—just dump it out and put new water in there. Once you’ve used all the butter give the whole bell a good wash and dry before refilling.
