BUTTER
BUTTER. Butter is made by churning milk fat. It has a solid, waxy texture and varies in color from almost white to deep yellow. It is mostly made from cow's milk, but water buffalo milk is used in the Indian subcontinent, yak milk in the Himalayas, and sheep milk in centra Asial. Butter is an important food in North America, Europe and western and central Asia but is of lesser importance in the rest of the world.
A little butter goes a long way. For thousands of years, it’s been the natural way to bring out the best in food. It enhances, tenderizes, glazes and adds moisture to everything it touches. With no more calories and fat than margarine or vegetable oil, a pat of butter makes everything you prepare taste better. That’s why butter is a versatile ingredient prized by discerning chefs and home cooks alike. It boasts a rich flavour, sublime smoothness and a unique ability to boost and harmonize tastes. There’s no getting around it: nothing pleases the palate like butter!
ASIA
ASIA. Three centuries separate the missions of Vasco da Gama to India in 1498 and George Macartney to China in 1793. Da Gama opened a new sea route to the Orient; Lord Macartney, ambassador of Great Britain, sought to renegotiate the terms of trade with the Qing (Manchu) empire. During the course of the intervening centuries, successive waves of Europeans sailed into Asia—after the Portuguese came the Dutch, English, Spanish, and French. Their experiences taught them that there was more than one Asia. In south and east Asia, there were the powerful and expansive continental empires of the Mughals and the Manchus. In northeast Asia, there were the secluded kingdoms of Korea and Japan. But initially, for the Europeans, there was above all the Asia of the Indian Ocean trading network.
History of Butter
Although butter is viewed as a food by today's standards, it has been used for many things, from a cosmetic to a medicine. Historically, those who used butter were seen as wealthy and successful.
The first documented mention of butter making was in the sacred songs of the dwellers of Asiatic India, dating back to 1,500-2,000 years before Christ. The ancient Hebrews referred to butter in the Old Testament, and as a result, they have been credited as the first developers of the art of butter making.
Butter's unique history has led to creameries all around the world producing large quantities of butter every day. Let's see how butter is made today.
We have record of its use as early as 2,000 years before Christ. The Bible is interspersed with references to butter, the product of milk from the cow. Not only has it been regarded from time immemorial as a food fit for the gods, but its use appears to have been divinely recommended and its users promised certain immunities against evil. Butter was the only food ever defined by an Act of the U.S. Congress prior to the enactment of the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act of 1938.
The word butter comes from bou-tyron, which seems to mean "cowcheese" in Greek. Some scholars think, however, that the word was borrowed from the language of the northern and butterophagous Scythians, who herded cattle; Greeks lived mostly from sheep and goats whose milk, which they consumed mainly as cheese, was relatively low in butter (or butyric) fat.
Naturally, it is presumed that in four thousand years there has been considerable improvement in the manufacture of butter although we, of course, know little more of the method by which Sarah produced butter for the angels than we know of the means employed in the construction of the pyramids. The earliest details of method of manufacture are derived from the Arabs and Syrians, who appear to be as well satisfied with the original process of making butter as they are with other habits, since they have remained unchanged for centuries. The original practice of the Arabs and Syrians, so far as is known, was to use vessel made from goatskin for a churn. The animal was skinned, the skin sewed up tight, leaving an opening only at the left foreleg, where the cream was poured in. The "churn" was then suspended from the tent poles and swung until the "butter comes." This, incidentally, is the earliest known process of making butter.
Production of Butter
The first step in the production of butter involves separating the cream from the milk.
In the past, milk was simply left standing until the cream rose to the surface, from where it was skimmed.
This happens because fat is lighter than the other milk components.
Modern production of cream involves a more efficient method called centrifugation.
In the next step, butter is produced from cream in a process called churning.
Churning involves shaking the cream until the milk fat (butter) clumps together and separates from the liquid portion (buttermilk).
When the buttermilk has been drained off, the butter is churned further until it becomes ready for packaging.
Butter Making
Until the late nineteenth century, butter was ma