Is Leaving Butter on the Counter Safe?

Everybody has experienced this: Trying to put butter on some bread, only to find that it’s too chilly. This causes your knife to rip the bread, leaving you with butter clumps rather than a smooth spread. Softened butter that has been kept at room temperature might be useful in this situation as well as many others.

In order to help you spread successfully, we’ll address these and other queries as well as offer storage advice for butter.

Is Butter Safe to Keep on the Counter?

The Department of Agriculture says that you can store butter on the counter. You can store butter and margarine at room temperature, but there are a few things to keep in mind. Only butter that may be consumed in two days or less should be left out, according to USDA recommendations. The butter may taste rancid after two days. You won’t have to worry about food waste if you leave out a small amount at a time.

However, unlike butter, which is formed of cream, margarine is comprised of oil, therefore it might separate at room temperature. Despite the USDA’s statement that it is still safe to eat, you should store margarine in the refrigerator.

Guidelines for Room Temperature Butter Storage

Here are some useful guidelines to remember when storing butter at room temperature:

Keep butter in a dish that is covered:

Use a covered butter dish and place the wrapped stick on it instead on the counter. The butter will be shielded from light and air in this protective container, two things that might hasten its deterioration. As an alternative, you might use a butter bell or keeper, which preserves butter fresh by sealing it with water.

Room temperature butter works best when it’s salted rather than unsalted.

Generally speaking, salt preserves food. Since salted butter deteriorates more quickly than unsalted butter, it’s preferable to leave the former in the refrigerator and keep the latter at room temperature.

Butter is safe to eat at room temperature, per the USDA. However, if it’s kept at room temperature for a few days, it may go rancid and develop strange flavors. It should not be left out for longer than one or two days, according to the USDA

Keep butter refrigerated if the temperature in your kitchen is higher than 70°F.

Butter can be kept on the counter, but if the temperature in your kitchen is higher than 70°F, you shouldn’t. The best course of action is to leave the butter in the refrigerator and take it out to soften somewhat before you intend to use it, as heated temperatures might promote the growth of bacteria.

You may confidently store butter on the counter if you keep these pointers in mind. Learn more about whether butter spoils.