The Truth About Brown Butter Sauce
If you've been searching for brown butter in a wax paper wrapper, don't. It doesn't exist. Brown butter is one of the simplest sauces you can make, and yes it is in fact a sauce consisting of one ingredient and about five minutes of effort on your part. Here's how to do it, and what do to with it.
Heat a pan over medium-low heat, then add in as much butter as you want to use. It won't reduce in volume, so go tablespoon-for-tablespoon depending on how much you want. Once the butter is all melted and foamy, start whisking. Do not stop whisking. Don't go see what's on TV. This stuff will turn from brown butter to "unusable butter that was fine two seconds ago" in...well, you know.
After a few minutes the butter will start bubbling (you'll definitely want to keep whisking) and you'll experience one of the greatest odors on earth: butter beginning to brown. You'll see dark specks begin to form in the liquid — those are the milk solids getting nice and toasty, which is what gives brown butter its signature nutty flavor and scent. When you see them, turn off the heat, add fresh herbs if you're using them and continue whisking.
You can either use the brown butter right away or pour it into a container to use later — it'll keep for about a week in the fridge tightly sealed. Your pasta, fish, chicken, you name it, will thank you over and over again. Oh, and if you neeeeeeed a recipe, here's one for sage and brown butter sauce.
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