Cooks seasoning sauces and sides
An unsalted block lets you add salt separately, particularly when stock, cheese or cured ingredients already contribute to a dish.
Who is each option for?
Hosts serving butter at the table
A salted block can suit bread, potatoes or vegetables when its salt fits the rest of the menu. Compare labels if you are using it in a recipe too.
Hosts prioritising easy spreading
A spreadable butter-and-rapeseed-oil blend is an option for bread service, but its ingredients differ from those of block butter.
What should you check before choosing?
Decide whether the butter is going into a recipe or being served directly, then compare the relevant labels before planning how to store and serve it.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Salt control | Compare salt per 100g. Lurpak lists 0.01g for its unsalted block; Anchor lists 1.7g for its Original Block. | If my sauce or sides already contain salty ingredients, I want to season them to taste rather than account for salt in the butter. |
| Cooking or serving | Check whether the recipe calls for block butter. Anchor’s spreadable blend contains 50% butter and 29% rapeseed oil, according to its Asda product listing, so it has a different composition. | For bread at the table, spreading matters to me; for a recipe specifying butter, I need the right format. |
| Ingredients and allergens | Read the current ingredient and allergen label. The cited Lurpak and Anchor block products and Anchor spreadable blend contain milk. | Before serving guests, I need to check whether the butter and any butter-based sauce contain an ingredient they cannot eat. |
| Saturates | Compare like-for-like figures per 100g. Anchor lists 52g saturates for its salted block and its Asda spreadable listing gives 28g for the blend; the NHS identifies more than 5g per 100g as high. | If the menu includes other foods with substantial saturated fat, I want to see how the butter I use contributes to it. |
What can complicate the dinner?
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Adding salted butter before tasting the dish
Salt in the butter contributes to the finished recipe: Anchor lists 1.7g salt per 100g for its Original Block, while Lurpak lists 0.01g for its unsalted block.
For sauces or dishes containing stock, cheese or cured ingredients, use unsalted butter if you want to add salt gradually after tasting.
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Treating a spreadable blend as block butter
Anchor’s spreadable product contains butter, rapeseed oil and water; its Original Block contains butter and salt. That difference matters when a recipe specifies butter.
Check the recipe before substituting a spreadable blend. Choose the format separately for cooking and for bread service if those tasks differ.
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Relying on an older ingredient listing
The cited Lurpak and Anchor products contain milk, which matters when serving someone with a milk allergy.
Read the current pack’s ingredients and allergen information before preparing butter-based food for guests.
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Overlooking the amount used in the meal
Lurpak lists 53g saturates per 100g for its unsalted block and Anchor lists 52g for its salted block. Both exceed the NHS threshold of 5g per 100g for a high-saturates label.
Check the per-100g figure and consider the quantity the recipe uses alongside the rest of the menu.
Relevant butter brands and ranges
Lurpak
Its unsalted block is an option when a dinner recipe needs separately controlled seasoning.
- Lurpak lists butter and lactic culture from milk, with 0.01g salt per 100g.
- Its label lists 53g saturates per 100g; check the amount your recipe uses.
Anchor
The cited range includes block butter and a spreadable butter-and-rapeseed-oil blend for different cooking and serving tasks.
- Anchor lists butter and salt in its Original Block; the Asda listing identifies 50% butter and 29% rapeseed oil in its spreadable blend.
- The blend is not compositionally the same as the block. Anchor says its unsalted block and spreadable products should be refrigerated.
Kerrygold
Kerrygold describes its 200g Pure Irish Salted Butter block for cooking, baking and direct serving.
- A salted block is an option where its seasoning suits the dish or table service.
- Check the current pack’s ingredients and nutrition panel before comparing it with another butter.
Tesco Finest
Tesco describes its West Country Butter & Sea Salt as salted butter made using British milk by Wyke Farms in Somerset.
- A retailer-own-label salted block to consider for cooking or table service when its seasoning fits the menu.
- Use the current pack label to compare its ingredients, salt and saturates with other options.
Joybuy option for dinner cooking
The Joybuy option below is ghee for cooking. It is a different format from the block butters and spreadable blend discussed above, so check that it suits your recipe.
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Laila Pure Butter Ghee 500G
Consider this ghee for a dinner recipe that calls for, or can use, ghee rather than block butter. Its product information identifies milk and instructs refrigeration after opening; check the current pack before serving guests with a milk allergy.
Questions about choosing butter
Should I buy salted or unsalted butter for an anniversary dinner?
Choose unsalted block butter for sauces, baking or sides when you want to add salt to taste. Salted block butter can suit bread or a finishing use if its salt fits the rest of the menu; compare the pack labels before using it in a recipe.
Can I use spreadable butter in place of block butter for cooking?
Check the recipe rather than assuming the two formats are interchangeable. Anchor’s spreadable blend contains 50% butter, 29% rapeseed oil and water according to its Asda listing, whereas Anchor Original Block contains butter and salt.
How should I store butter before the dinner?
Follow the instructions on the specific pack. Anchor says its unsalted block butter and spreadable butter should be kept refrigerated, so account for their storage instructions when planning table service.
What should I check if a guest has a milk allergy?
Read the current ingredient and allergen label before cooking or serving. The cited Lurpak unsalted block, Anchor Original Block and Anchor spreadable blend all identify milk in their ingredients.