Old head showed me a butter trick that changed how I finish sauces

Been at this 22 years, started in a French kitchen in Philly where we did everything by the book. Last month a retired chef stopping by my station watched me whisk cold butter into a pan sauce and said I was wasting my time. He showed me to keep the butter at room temp and smash it into the sauce with a wooden spoon off the heat, no whisking at all. Has anyone else tried this method or am I the only one who never learned this in culinary school?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_pat14d ago

See if the butter was actually emulsifying or just sitting in the sauce as melted fat. I tried that spoon method once and ended up with greasy pools floating on top. Did his sauce look tight and glossy the next day or did it break apart when you reheated it?

piperwhite14d ago

Right, because what every busy line cook needs is a third technique for butter that's "definitely the one true way" and not just another opinion from someone who's been retired for a decade. At least the old head didn't try to sell me on using a sous vide for it, so I guess that's a win. I'll trade you my whisk for your wooden spoon and we can both stare at our greasy puddles of sauce together.