How to check butter for quality. How to test butter for naturalness at home? Why buy butter at all?

The development of new technologies has not left unattended butter. Now there are many other products on store shelves that are actively fighting with oil for a place in the sun. Spreads and some special margarines appeared with extraordinary qualities and, supposedly, were much healthier than the natural product. What do they contain - big question. But the fact that the composition of these new products differs significantly from the composition of real butter is an indisputable fact.

Why buy butter at all?

It includes a lot useful vitamins and compounds, for example, A, D, E. Eating 20 g of natural butter every day can improve the condition of the skin, nervous system, vision and become more concentrated. Substitutes do not provide any benefit, so you only need to buy a natural product.

FIND 10 DIFFERENCES

If you are not ready to sacrifice your health for the sake of newfangled products, find out how to distinguish real oil from its advertised substitutes:

1. Name- the word “butter” should be written on the oil. If you cannot find this inscription, then it is better to leave this pack in the store

2. Compound- no one has yet managed to break the chain “cow - milk - cream - butter”. It is impossible to detect vegetable fats in cow's milk, which means they should not be in butter either - it contains only milk and cream. All other ingredients turn the oil into something else

3. Color- when it is not possible to see the composition of the product, pay attention to its color. Bright yellow or white is a sign that this is a fake

4. Texture- natural solid oil. It does not stay on the wrapper or stick to the knife. Its surface is smooth, shiny and even

You can always see butter on the shelves of every grocery store. It is sold in packages with beautiful pictures. But is it easy to buy a real one? useful product, and not a harmful fake? Let's find out how to test butter for naturalness at home, and what to look for when buying it. Useful life hacks for the kitchen and health.

The product's name

Nowadays, manufacturers have learned all sorts of tricks. For example: It is forbidden to call the spread butter. Some manufacturers call it “Maselko” or “Maslitse” and sell it at the price of oil. Similar stories occur in the markets. Palm oil can be found in butter, which can cause cancer. How to choose the right product so as not to become a victim of scammers?

Real oil: what to look for

Recently, the number of large animals in the country has decreased significantly. cattle. Therefore, often on farms, and then at processing plants, various impurities are added to milk and sour cream, cream and cheese, which increase the amount of product. Only heavy cream is used to produce high-quality butter. The manufacturing process is quite long. High-quality oil has an excellent taste and contains many vitamins and calcium.. To extend shelf life, stabilizers are forced to be added to it.

Butter containing palm oil, peanut oil or canola oil has completely different physical characteristics. The yellowness of the oil does not mean anything. Sandwich butter should have a fat content of 61-63%. This indicator is approved by GOST. The packaging of real butter should bear the designation GOST R52969-2008. If the packaging bears the TU designation, it is better not to take such a product. At best, this will not be butter, but margarine or spread.

Related video: 5 ways to check oil quality

Watch the video, which clearly shows 5 surefire ways to check butter. do not buy harmful fakes that destroy your health!

Checking in the store

It is safer to buy oil in the supermarket. There you can carefully read all the inscriptions on the packaging in a calm atmosphere, but you cannot print it. Its composition will tell you about the quality of the product. There should not be anything extra in the oil. It consists only of cow's milk and cream. The longer the shelf life of a product, the more preservatives it contains, which can have a harmful effect on our body. Next, you can press on the packaging. Real butter is always hard. The dent will remain in the spread..

We check on the market

When purchasing oil on the market, there are several more opportunities for quality control. You can clearly see the color and consistency of the product, smell it and even taste it (if the seller allows, of course). High-quality oil does not smell of anything, melts quickly on the tongue and leaves no trace. Real butter tastes like cream and is a little like sour cream. The color should not be bright yellow. Fat content – ​​82.5%. A shine should be visible on the cut. The spread has a matte cut color. It is difficult to talk about the price of the product, but it should be remembered that approximately 15 liters of milk are used to make a kilogram of butter. This is the cost of real oil.

Testing butter at home

We bought and brought the product home. You can check it again here. If you unpack a pack of butter, there will be no traces on the surface of the material. The spread will smear the entire package. Let's cut a piece with a knife. The knife will remain almost clean after oiling. If you leave a piece of butter on a saucer (not in the refrigerator), then after an hour it will melt, but will not lose its shape. The spread spreads along the bottom. If you freeze butter in the refrigerator, it will crumble when you cut it with a knife. Spread or margarine is cut without chipping.

It remains to check the product for solubility. To do this, you need to throw a piece into a glass of boiling water. Natural oil dissolves immediately. Only golden grains remain on the surface. The spread melts in boiling water, settles at the bottom of the glass and acquires a darkish color. But when cold it can easily be spread on bread. In a hot frying pan, natural butter foams and splatters.

Now you know how to test butter in the store and at home. Remember these signs and don’t make the wrong choice! Doctors recommend taking 10 to 30 grams of oil orally daily.

The diversity of the assortment of dairy products in stores and on the market, on the one hand, makes it possible to enrich the diet with new tastes, and on the other hand, attracts unscrupulous manufacturers seeking to sell a product under the guise of butter that is not butter. According to experts, every second stick of oil can be considered a fake, so today we will talk about how to choose high-quality natural oil that is tasty, aromatic and healthy. Good oil natural source vitamins, minerals and trace elements, necessary for brain function, moisturizing and nourishing the skin, strengthening blood vessels, preventing arthritis and increasing immunity. Our ancestors treated butter with respect and repeated: “You can’t spoil porridge with butter” or “Eat butter for your health!” However, in order not to actually spoil the porridge with oil, you should buy only high-quality products!

How to choose the right butter in the store

Since it is not possible to taste the products in the store, we can only deal with the information provided on the packaging. In this case, we trust the manufacturer, and the final “testing” of the product is carried out at home.

Be sure to pay attention to GOST - in this case, the inscription “made according to GOST” is not enough, since spreads and margarines can also be produced according to state standards. GOST butter - R 52969-2008, but you can see other numbers, for example R 52253-2004. The last number indicates that you are holding in your hands real Vologda oil, which is produced by only three factories in the Vologda region. In addition, by order of the Federal Agency for Technical Regulation and Metrology dated November 22, 2013 N 2134-st, another interstate standard GOST 32261-2013 was put into effect as a national standard Russian Federation from July 1, 2015 (editor's note: 02/02/2016).

Remember that GOST margarine is R 52178-2003, and even if the packaging says “butter”, don’t believe your eyes! However, some types of high-quality butter are produced not according to GOST, but according to technical specifications, so you should pay attention to the composition.

Make sure that the package contains the abbreviation CTP - “compliance with technical regulations”. Study the composition of the butter - it should contain only whole milk and cream, and sometimes salt. If the packaging indicates vegetable oils (peanut, palm, coconut) or some ingredient with the mysterious name “dairy fat substitute,” you can rest assured that it is margarine, even if the manufacturer tries to convince you otherwise.

The packaging must directly and unambiguously say: “butter,” “peasant butter,” or “amateur butter.” At the same time, keep in mind that the fat content of butter starts from 82.2%, amateur - from 78%, and peasant oil - from 72.5%. All other types of “butter” - sandwich butter (from 61.5%) and tea butter (from 50%) - are not natural, and somewhere on the packaging you can find the inscription “sandwich mass” written in small print. Typically, a sandwich product includes all kinds of flavorings, emulsifiers, stabilizers and preservatives.

The cost of a pack of good butter is never less than 75 rubles, since preparing 1 kg of butter requires at least 20 liters of milk. If you see suspiciously inexpensive oil on the counter, most likely it contains cheap vegetable fats.

Try to choose oil not in paper, but in foil packaging, since paper does not protect such a delicate product from exposure to sunlight, which destroys vitamins.

Another criterion for the naturalness of creamy products is the shelf life, which usually does not exceed a month. If preservatives or vegetable fats are used in the production of oil, the shelf life increases to a year or more. Which butter to choose: natural, perishable or unnatural, but “long-lasting”, it’s up to you!

How to choose real butter on the market

An undoubted advantage of the market is the opportunity to taste the product and evaluate its quality right on the spot, although it will not be possible to make a final verdict right away, since many of the characteristics of the oil appear only after some time. So, you've come to the market - what should you pay attention to?

Try the oil, hold it in your mouth, listen to how you feel. Natural oil has no odor, it is pleasant, tender and quickly melts in the mouth, leaving a milky and creamy aftertaste. Margarine, on the contrary, can take a long time to melt, sticking to your teeth. If you categorically do not like the taste of the oil, it means that low-quality products or vegetable oils were used in production.

The color of natural butter is light yellow, not bright yellow or white - in the first case, most likely, dyes have been added to the product, and in the second case, the composition may contain vegetable fats. When choosing butter on the market, also remember that summer butter lasts longer than winter butter.

Checking the oil at home

High-quality butter spreads well on a sandwich, and if it crumbles, it means there is too much water in it. Butter also does not leave any traces of grease on the paper, unlike vegetable oils.

Place a piece of butter in hot water- the natural product will dissolve evenly, and the margarine will break up into separate pieces. If you leave a piece of butter on the table while room temperature, then drops of water appearing on its surface are considered strong evidence that this is an ordinary spread. By the way, natural butter slowly defrosts after being frozen and remains solid for at least half an hour, and margarine and spread can be spread on bread after just five minutes.

Due to the high whey content in the product, the manufacturer has to subject it to intensive freezing, so ice crystals form on the cut of the butter. If you see drops of water on the cut, this indicates that the oil contains margarine impurities. Also observe how butter behaves when heated: the natural product will melt without foaming or releasing water.

Natural butter can be sweet cream (made from pasteurized cream) and sour cream (made from fermented cream). The second type of oil is distinguished by a slight piquant sourness and more long term storage How to choose good butter? You need to be careful when purchasing and not skimp on your health!

The importance of butter in cooking cannot be overestimated - it is used as an independent product, added to dough, salads, side dishes, desserts, and custard. There are also medical indications for its use, for example in the treatment of candidiasis and other fungal diseases, to improve the condition of the skin and hair. However, this popularity also has a downside, which is large quantities counterfeit and low-quality product containing foreign impurities. According to statistics from Rospotrebnadzor, butter is counterfeited more often than other dairy products, and in this sad indicator it is not inferior to vodka and counterfeit video products. In order not to consume such a product, you need to be able to determine the quality and naturalness of butter at home.

The dangers of consuming low-quality oil

Butter adulteration is a global problem. The main danger of such counterfeits is the high (more than 8%) concentration of trans isomers of fatty acids (trans fats). These compounds, according to WHO research, increase the likelihood of developing heart and vascular diseases, diabetes, cancer, liver pathologies, and early dementia. Consumption of trans fats by women during pregnancy increases the risk of fetal macrosomia.

Another danger posed by low-quality oil is food poisoning caused by violation of production and storage technology. Buyers often choose goods contaminated with pathogenic bacteria and fungi in warehouses where the necessary conditions are not met (for example, the temperature is too high). The consequences of consuming spoiled oil can vary from mild illness to severe intoxication, including fatal. This risk is especially great for children and people with reduced immunity (AIDS patients undergoing treatment for cancer).

Naturalness check

Real butter is a product made exclusively from milk fats (cream) that have been pasteurized and separated. However, stores also sell its substitutes, in particular:

• Margarine is an emulsion of hardened vegetable oils (sunflower, palm, cottonseed, etc.) with the addition of thickeners, flavors, preservatives, dyes;
• Spread is a mixture of milk fat and solid vegetable oils with a limited mass fraction of the latter.

They are not a fake of butter, but its surrogate (imitation). Dairy cream is an expensive and rare raw material compared to vegetable fats, which determines the high price of the final product. Because of this, it is unprofitable to use it, for example, in baking and confectionery. In order to replace butter in this niche, as well as to meet customer demand for an inexpensive fat product for everyday use, margarine with a spread was developed. Other reasons for their release include:

• lack of cholesterol in their composition;
• lower content of saturated fatty acids;
• increased concentration of unsaturated fatty acids;
• less stringent storage requirements;
• improved ability to spread when cold (natural butter crumbles).

High-quality spread or margarine is no more dangerous than natural butter. Some surrogates additionally contain useful components, such as vitamins and polyunsaturated fatty acids. In Russia, it is legally prohibited to call these products “butter” and use this word on their packaging. If a substitute meets this requirement, it is not a counterfeit, since the buyer is aware of its composition in advance.

At the same time, on the shelves of markets and shops there are also counterfeits, which are the same spread, but labeled as “natural butter.” They can be distinguished by a number of characteristics:

• when frozen, cut off without forming pieces or crumbs, easily spread on bread;
• when chilled, they have greater density and hardness compared to butter;
• They are distinguished by a heterogeneous yellow color in the mass; when stored in the open air, they do not change shade;
• in a frying pan, the vegetable fat surrogate quickly evaporates with a characteristic crackling sound and the appearance of a sharp unpleasant odor;
• It melts in the mouth for a long time, has a pronounced taste of vegetable oil and a mealy texture, sticks to the mucous membranes and teeth.

High-quality fakes are practically no different in taste and consistency from natural oil, so it can be difficult to identify them in a store. You can identify a counterfeit in the following ways:

• place under ultraviolet light - vegetable fat will appear white or bluish;
• place in vodka - a change in the color of the liquid indicates the presence of dyes in the product.

A detected counterfeit product is not necessarily harmful to the body. However, such a product is sold at the price of natural oil, while its real cost is much lower. In this case, the buyer has every right to present his claims to the store or manufacturer.

Quality checking

The naturalness of butter does not always mean that it is safe and beneficial for the body. Such a product must be manufactured and stored under special conditions; its shelf life is no more than 30 days. Signs of a high-quality, non-expired product:

• shiny and dry cut surface;
• whitish or slightly yellowish uniform tint;
• neutral or slightly creamy odor;
• delicate taste without bitterness.

If the purchased product has obvious deviations from these signs, you must immediately return it to the store for a refund or exchange. A delay of even a day will allow the seller and manufacturer to accuse you of violating storage conditions and refuse compensation.

It is necessary to store butter in the refrigerator, first placing it in a container with a lid or a plastic bag. In the freezer, the shelf life of the product increases to 50-60 days, but it is better to consume it within a week after purchase - during this period it is guaranteed not to lose its beneficial qualities.

Roskontrol and Roskachestvo

The Russian quality system tested butter with a fat content of 82.5% from 64 brands according to more than 60 quality and safety indicators. The results of the study dated 10.26.16 can be found on the official website: https://roskachestvo.gov.ru/researches/maslo-slivochnoe-82-5-zhirnosti/.

Roskontrol has also repeatedly tested this product. One of the latest studies (dated 05/10/17), in which 6 samples were tested, can be found on the official website:

You won't believe how many of our store shelves contain products labeled "Oil" that actually aren't! Unscrupulous manufacturers go to great lengths to lure buyers. The law prohibits calling the spread butter. But this stops few people. Names such as “Maslitse”, “Maselko” and the like appear.

Even more fakes in the markets. We go for farm oil, but it’s unclear what we bring home. And it would be nice if there was water in the cream. But it often happens that the product contains palm oil. And it, according to nutritionists, can provoke the development of cancer.

This article is devoted to how to determine the quality of butter. We will tell you how to choose the right one in the store, at the market, and how to check at home whether we really bought a real creamy product.

How to make the right butter

The number of cows has now decreased. It is difficult to imagine that such a huge amount of milk, sour cream, cream, cheese and butter does not contain at least some impurities designed to increase the volume of production and reduce its high cost. And even the GOST mark does not guarantee the quality of the product. At a minimum, it must contain stabilizers to extend the shelf life of perishable goods.

Well, let's go to the market to buy homemade butter. How to determine the quality of a product, how not to be deceived by a fake? Real butter is made from heavy cream and nothing else. They are collected in a cylindrical container and churned using a spatula with holes. This process is long, but the oil turns out to be excellent in taste and healthy. The milk fats are separated and the butter is collected with a wooden spatula. This product contains useful substances: calcium, vitamins. But it doesn't last long. Therefore, stabilizers are added even to oil according to GOST. But how can you distinguish a quality product?

GOST, TU and myths about quality butter

This product must contain only milk fats. They have a certain freezing and melting point. But vegetable fats (palm, rapeseed and peanut) have different physical characteristics. Different freezing and melting temperatures will be the main clues in how to determine the quality of butter. Some people believe that the higher quality the product, the yellower its color. But this is a myth.

Even GOST allows manufacturers to add beta-carotene to butter - a harmless food coloring that gives the product a sunny color. In fact, when churned, milk fats come out light creamy, almost white. GOST also allows for a reduction energy value oils The so-called sandwich butter has a fat content of only 61-63 percent due to the admixture of whey. But this product is also approved by GOST. However, there is an even worse option. These are TU - “technical conditions”. If you see these two letters on the packaging, it is better to put the product back on the shelf. In ninety-nine percent of cases it is spread or margarine.

Choosing oil in the store

It is best to go to the supermarket to buy the product, where you can examine the product without any hassle and read all the interesting labels on the packaging. But the bars are already packed in opaque foil. You will not be allowed to taste, open or examine the color of the product. How to determine the quality of butter in this case?

First of all, read the packaging. We have already said above that GOST is not a guarantee of high-quality oil. But there are other markers. For example, composition. The product must have cow's milk and cream. Nothing else! Check the shelf life of the product. The longer it is, the more preservatives the butter contains and the less healthy it is.

In the Russian Federation, the requirements for this food product are regulated by GOST R52969-2008. These are the numbers that should appear on the packaging. In supermarkets, dairy products are kept chilled. Press your finger on the packaged block. Real butter is hard. And on the surface of the spread, even at a temperature of + 5 0 C, a dent forms.

How to determine the quality of butter when buying at the market

In this case, we are given the opportunity to evaluate the color and smell of the product, and even taste it. Let's start with a tasting. Firstly, high-quality butter has no odor. Place a small piece on your tongue. Good butter will melt in your mouth without leaving a residue. The vegetable fats in the spread will continue to smear across the palate for some time. U good oil taste of cream with a faint hint of sour cream. Pay attention to the color of the product. Bright yellow should alert the buyer. The fat content of the oil should start at seventy-two percent. The highest quality product has 82.5%. If the seller cuts a large piece of butter, look at the cut. A good product has a uniform consistency, without spots or streaks. It is slightly shiny when cut. The spread is more matte.

Is price an indicator of quality?

Of course, in the modern market, you can expect anything from manufacturers, as well as from unscrupulous sellers. They can also set a high price for the spread. Is it the other way around - high-quality but cheap butter? In order to answer this question, you need to know at least superficially the production technology of the product. How to determine the quality of butter based on its price? Yes, very simple. To chaff a kilogram of butter, you need about fifteen liters of milk. It is unlikely that any manufacturer will operate at a loss. So figure out for yourself what the cost of natural oil is. It is better not to save money in this matter.

Let's say we bought a pack in a store or a block at the market. But we are not entirely sure about the quality of the oil. How can we check if it's a spread? The fat content of butter, as well as the presence of vegetable fats in its composition, can only be determined in the laboratory. But even at home, we can conduct several tests to find out whether it is a genuine product or a counterfeit.

If the butter has not yet melted, transfer it immediately to a plate. Are there any greasy marks on the wrapper? Real oil may get trapped in the folds of the packaging foil or paper. But the flat surface of the wrapper should remain clean. The spread, due to the penetrating ability of vegetable fats, will stain the packaging. Now let's cut two small pieces from the block. By the way, chilled natural butter hardly stains the knife.

Temperature check

We have already said that the physical parameters of freezing and melting of vegetable and milk fats differ. Temperature is what will help us determine the quality of butter at home. Have you already cut two pieces? Leave one of them on a saucer at room temperature. We put the second one in the freezer of the refrigerator. We'll wait about an hour. Milk fats retain their structure. A piece of butter will soften at room temperature, but will not lose its shape. And the spread will spread over the saucer like melted ice cream. Take the second piece out of the refrigerator. It practically doesn't stain your fingers. Let's try to cut it. Natural butter crumbles, while margarine spread can be separated almost without chipping.

Water test

Solubility is another criterion for milk fats. Let's cut another piece from our block and throw it this time into a glass of boiling water. How to determine the quality of butter in water? If the product is natural, it will immediately dissolve in boiling water. And then golden grains will sparkle on the surface of the water, like in a broth. The spread will melt gradually, and when we try to stir it with a spoon, it will separate into pieces. Let's follow the water. If natural oil has dissolved in it, it will turn slightly white. And the herbal additives will sink to the bottom of the glass as a slightly darkish sediment.

A few more secrets

The spread has only one advantage over butter. When cold, it spreads easily onto bread. The butter should contain from seventy-two to eighty-three percent milk fat. The rest is scrap, a by-product of buttermilk. And if you put a piece of natural butter on a hot frying pan, it will splash and foam. The spread will behave differently. There is another way to check the quality of butter. Let's spread a thin layer of the test sample on the cardboard. Click on the surface. If we have high-quality butter in front of us, droplets of liquid will appear. If they are not observed, then the manufacturer has added emulsifiers to the product. They make the consistency of the oil more plastic.