Sage Brown Butter Recipe

Different flavored butters are a good way to change up recipes.

I’ve done several butters here and here on this website and have plenty of other butter recipes in my book, Basic Training For Everyday Grilling. I do so many butter recipes because there are just so many angles to take with this delicious treat, it really is a blank canvas.

This sage brown butter is an excellent addition to over easy eggs. I love it with mashed potatoes, lobster or crab, any number of pasta dishes, and it’s amazing when used for a grilled cheese. The uses are endless. As with many of my recipes, this one gets bonus points for being just so simple and easy to make.

Sage Brown Butter Recipe

Prep time: ~5 mins. | Cook time: 10-12 mins.

Ingredients
1/4 cup, loosely packed fresh sage
2 sticks of unsalted butter

Special Equipment
Parchment Paper

Step-by-Step

Step 1: Start with a nice bunch of fresh sage.

Remove stems and finely chop about 1/4 cup of sage leaves. You can chop them with a sharp knife like I do, or use herb scissors to get the fine chop. Discard stems.

Step 2: In a large skillet, melt butter over medium heat for 7 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. I prefer to use a stainless skillet for this, so I can see the brown crispy deliciousness forming at the bottom of the pan, that’s not possible with cast iron or nonstick surfaces.

The butter will start to foam, bubble, and pop, this is normal. Eventually these bubbles will just sort of sink to the bottom of the pan and start to brown, this is the good stuff!

Step 3: Drop sage in butter. Butter will start to talk to you when the sage is dropped in and it’s going to smell amazing.

Step 4: After 30 seconds, remove pan from heat and pour butter into bowl being sure to scrape the bottom of the pan for any of the crunchy goodness you left behind. This browned milk fat is the key to the flavor of this butter.

Step 5: Keeping the bowl of butter on the counter at room temperature, stir every three to four minutes as butter cools to ensure the browned chunks and sage stay incorporated throughout, and don’t all sink to the bottom.

Step 6: When butter is back to mostly a solid form (about 20 minutes), use a rubber spatula and scrape onto 12 inch x 18 inch piece of parchment paper. You can use plastic wrap as well but I find the parchment paper a bit easier to work with, personally.

Step 7: Using the parchment paper, form butter into a 1.5 inch diameter log, twisting the ends to seal.

Step 8: Refrigerate, it will keep for as long as the butter is within its expiration date.

Make this Sage Brown Butter Recipe: