How to Soften Butter

We’ve all been there. You’re ready to make a recipe, have all your ingredients out and bam! Your butter is cold. You forgot to leave out your butter ahead of time so it could come to room temperature!

Today I’m sharing two of my favorite fool-proof hacks to soften butter quickly without accidentally melting it!

If you want more tips to become a better baker, check out my tutorial for How to Melt Chocolate Chips! It has all my favorite tips!

Why Softened Butter is Important

Since recipe creators don’t just specify butter temperature for fun reading flair, it’s best practices to make the recipe as written to ensure it turns out as intended. If the butter is too hot it could cook other ingredients in the recipe (like egg) and change the consistency of the recipe.

Melted Butter v. Softened Butter

Ah a few minutes (or seconds) with the wrong method can make all the difference! Usually a recipe will specify what temperature the butter should be, chilled, softened, room temperature, melted, browned… so many ways!

Since we’re trying to get this butter softened quick, let’s go over melted butter b. softened butter.

Melted butter can be warmed in the microwave or in a pot on the stove until it’s liquid-y and warm. If the butter is too hot it could cook other ingredients in the recipe (like egg) and change the consistency of the recipe.

Softened butter is butter that has been set out at room temperature an hour or two before the recipe is made. The soft consistency makes sure it’s incorporated properly into the other ingredients. If you forget to set out your butter ahead of time or if you’re in a time pinch, check out my two quick methods to soften butter in under 10 minutes.

How to Soften Butter in under 10 minutes

The process is the same for both methods: 1) heat water in a vessel; 2) pour water out and turn the vessel upside down to cover the butter; 3) let sit for 10 minutes. Voila! Softened butter 🙂

The Glass Method

Warm a glass of water in the microwave for 2 minutes until the water is hot. Alternatively, if you want to do this on the stovetop, you can pour boiling water into the cup and let it sit for 30 seconds.

Pour the water into the sink to discard and place the glass upside down over a wrapped stick of butter. The heat from the cup will soften the butter in under 10 minutes!

The Bowl Method

Add 1 cup of water to a bowl and microwave for 2 minutes. Alternatively, if you want to do this on the stovetop, you can pour boiling water into the bowl and let it sit for 30 seconds.

While the water is sitting in the bowl, but the butter into slices and put them in a single layer on a plate that is smaller than the bowl.

Pour the water down the drain to discard the water. Turn the bowl upside down over the plate and allow it to sit for 10 minutes. The heat from the bowl will soften the butter in under 10 minutes!

Any Downside to Softening Butter Quickly?

Not really! Softened butter is softened butter! Wether you think ahead and pop the butter out of the fridge hours before you start your recipe, or use this special glass trick, the end result is the same – melted butter!

Is it OK to Soften Butter in the Microwave?

Yes, it’s okay to soften butter in the microwave but it can get really tricky! I can’t tell you how many times I put butter in a microwave for “just a few seconds” only to get distracted with something else in the recipe, turn around to realize I missed the window for softened butter and am now stuck with melted butter.

Depending on the recipe, it may be still be usable, but it’s best to follow recipes exactly as written to ensure best results.