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See why.Butter Storage Containers
Butter can pick up odors from nearby foods. Which containers offer the best protection to keep it tasting fresh?
Top Picks
What You Need To Know
We’ve long advocated for storing butter in airtight containers. We especially like two models. The LocknLock Rectangular Food Container can be used to store butter in the refrigerator or at room temperature. It resembles a standard food storage container, but it’s cleverly designed to be used upside down—the “lid” doubles as a tray with a flat cutting surface. If you like having softened butter on hand and want a more elegant storage container that’s intended exclusively for use at room temperature, we suggest a butter bell. Most models are quite similar in size and shape, but we had a slight preference for the Original Butter Bell Crock because it’s spacious and the knob on its lid is large and easy to grasp.
What You Need to Know
In the test kitchen, we fly through cases of butter. But at home, when we’re cutting off a tablespoon here and there, a single stick can last days or even weeks. During that time, butter can absorb flavors and odors from nearby foods if it’s not stored properly.
Butter storage containers come in two main styles—dishes and bells—and we tested both. The dishes had a surprising number of extra features, including measurement markings, flip-top lids, matching butter knives, and special walls (sometimes called ramps) for wiping knives clean. Butter bells, which originated in France, are intended for use only at room temperature. You pack softened butter into the bell-shaped dish before inserting it upside down into a crock filled with a small amount of water, forming an airtight seal. The water must be changed every few days to keep the butter fresh and prevent mold growth.
To compare the advantages of the two styles and to see which models kept butter freshest for longest, we ran two storage tests. First, we tested a copy of every model at room temperature. Then we tested a second copy of each of the butter dishes in the refrigerator (the bells are not meant for refrigerator use). For each test, we outfitted the containers with freshly unwrapped sticks of butter. At the same time, as a control, we monitored the freshness of two sticks of butter wrapped in the parchment they came in, one refrigerated and one at room temperature. Over several weeks, we checked all the butters daily, looking for signs of spoilage and sampling for rancidity; funky off-flavors acquired from nearby food; and a stale, “fridge-y” taste.
Every container protected butter better than the original parchment wrappers did; the wrappers tore and became impossible to reseal tightly, causing the butter to pick up off-flavors. At room temperature, the best storage dishes and bells kept butter fresh for about two ...
Everything We Tested
Highly Recommended
- Ease of Use: 3 stars out of 3.
- Performance: 3 stars out of 3.
The flaps on this plastic container sealed it tightly, keeping butter fresh-tasting and a uniform pale-yellow color for two weeks at room temperature and a month in the refrigerator. The design is simple but smart: It’s meant to be used upside down, so the lid doubles as a flat surface for cutting the butter. It even has measurement markings.
- Ease of Use: 2.5 stars out of 3.
- Performance: 3 stars out of 3.
The large, easy-to-grasp knob on the lid of this model gave it an edge over other butter bells. The water formed an airtight seal, so butter remained a uniform and sunny color throughout testing. The butter also remained free of off-flavors and was soft and easy to spread.
Recommended
- Ease of Use: 3 stars out of 3.
- Performance: 2 stars out of 3.
The three sizable handles on this one-piece model make it easy to carry and open. There’s a wall at the back of the dish for scraping off your knife and a groove to hold the matching spreader. The lid pops off for easy cleaning, and it’s one of the few dishes we tested that’s wide enough for European-style blocks of butter. When used at room temperature, butter stored in it darkened slightly at the exterior after two weeks. In the refrigerator, butter was nearly like new after three weeks and remained acceptable for an entire month.
- Ease of Use: 3 stars out of 3.
- Performance: NaN stars out of 3.
The lid of this container doesn’t latch or lock; it simply lifts off. Butter still tasted good after a week at room temperature, but it had darkened on the exterior. When used in the refrigerator, it kept butter tasting and looking fresh for three weeks. It holds East Coast and West Coast sticks of butter—and it has measurement markings for both sizes—but it’s too narrow for wide European-style blocks of butter.
- Ease of Use: 3 stars out of 3.
- Performance: 2 stars out of 3.
This slim model sports some special features: a magnet on the lid that holds the included butter knife in place, ramps on either end on the dish for scraping excess butter off that knife, and feet on either end of the lid that lift it up slightly so that your counter stays clean. Because the lid doesn’t lock into place and form an airtight seal, butter stored at room temperature discolored after about a week. It still tasted fine, however. It kept butter fresh for three weeks in the refrigerator.
- Ease of Use: 2 stars out of 3.
- Performance: 3 stars out of 3.
This ceramic white-and-blue crock is charming. Because the knob on its lid is fairly narrow and short, it’s a little difficult to grasp and lift. The bell is sized just right for a ¼-pound stick of butter. We were careful to change the water regularly, and we found that it formed an airtight seal that kept butter from discoloring and developing off-flavors.
- Ease of Use: 2 stars out of 3.
- Performance: 3 stars out of 3.
This marble butter bell is attractive but very heavy. The knob on its lid has fairly straight, smooth sides and is a little difficult to grasp, particularly because the bell weighs more than a pound when empty. It comfortably holds ¼-pound sticks of butter. In terms of butter storage, it performed similarly to other butter bells we tested, keeping butter fresh at room temperature for two weeks.
Recommended with reservations
- Ease of Use: 1.5 stars out of 3.
- Performance: 3 stars out of 3.
The rectangular shape is unusual for butter bells. Packing the softened butter into the long, narrow container required more finesse, especially around the edges and corners. It worked well, keeping butter a uniform color and fresh-tasting for two weeks. The knob on its lid is large and easy to grasp.
- Ease of Use: 2.5 stars out of 3.
- Performance: 2 stars out of 3.
This attractive porcelain butter dish is significantly larger than even wide, European-style sticks of butter, and it was awkward to reach into the dish to slice off a bit of butter. Though the company suggests overturning the butter onto the lid and using it as a cutting board, that wasn’t feasible with room-temperature butter because it clings to the container. The dish performed best in the refrigerator; at room temperature, butter stored in it discolored slightly on the exterior.
Reviews you can trust
Reviews you can trust
The mission of America’s Test Kitchen Reviews is to find the best equipment and ingredients for the home cook through rigorous, hands-on testing. We stand behind our winners so much that we even put our seal of approval on them.
Kate Shannon
Kate is a deputy editor for ATK Reviews. She's a culinary school graduate and former line cook and cheesemonger.