This Cowboy Butter recipe is a flavorful homemade butter packed with so much flavor. You can make it as a creamy butter to melt over steak, chicken, seafood, and vegetables, or turn it into a warm cowboy butter dipping sauce for an easy, flavor-packed addition to dinner.
Why This Recipe is the Best
This Cowboy Butter is the best because it combines that rich butter taste with fresh herbs, Dijon mustard, and lemon! But don't forget that just enough spicy to make every bite delicious. Best of all, you can use the same recipe two different ways: as a compound butter to melt over your favorite foods or as a warm dipping sauce for steak bites, chicken, shrimp, and more.
Try our other tasty butter recipes like Texas Roadhouse Butter.
Jump to:
Key Ingredients
Whether you're grilling, roasting, or making a quick weeknight dinner, this perfect butter adds a ton of flavor with very little effort!
- Butter- Make sure the butter is softened so you can easily mix in the ingredients.
- Herbs- We highly recommend using fresh herbs. If you need to use dried parsley and chives, use 1 teaspoon of each instead of 1 tablespoon; use ½ teaspoon of dried thyme.
How to make Cowboy Butter
Use these step-by-step instructions as a guide to get the best results. You'll love this easy butter recipe.
- Prepare the fresh herbs by chopping them up and gathering the spices.
- Smash the softened butter to make a smooth mixture.
- Add the chopped herbs, Dijon mustard, and seasonings to the smooth butter.
- Mix the butter until well combined. Serve chilled or softened.
Helpful Hint: The secret to smooth cowboy butter is starting with very soft butter. Beat it until there are no lumps before adding the remaining ingredients. This makes it much easier to evenly distribute the mustard, lemon juice, herbs, and seasonings throughout the butter.
Common Mistakes
Adding too much lemon juice can make the compound butter harder to blend smoothly, so measure it carefully. You really want this butter to be smooth, or the herbs won't be throughout the butter.
Top tip
Don't skip tasting the finished butter before serving. Depending on your mustard and herbs, you may want a little more salt, lemon, or red pepper flakes to get the flavor just right.
Recipe
Cowboy Butter
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter quite soft, at room temperature
- 1 Tablespoon dijon mustard or spicy brown
- 1 Tablespoon lemon juice fresh squeezed
- 1 Tablespoon fresh parsley or 1 tsp. dried
- 1 Tablespoon fresh chives or 1 teaspoon dried
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme or scant ½ teaspoon dried
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Finely chop parsley, chives and thyme and juice lemon. Beat softened butter until no lumps remain, either by hand or with a mixer. Add dijon, lemon juice, parsley, chives, thyme, paprika, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Blend until well combined.
- For a compound butter, roll into a log and refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving.
- For a cowboy butter dipping sauce, instead of beating softened butter, place in a saucepan adn melt then add the ingredients. Remove from heat and use immedately.
Notes
- This works so much better with softened butter that is quite soft! You want the butter to be completely smooth with no lumps before adding the other ingredients to ensure a smooth completely well-mixed butter.
- Fresh spices are always going to taste better than dried, but feel free to use dried if that's what you have on hand. Also, if you use dried, it'll last in the refrigerator 2 weeks.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Nutrition
Variations and Substitutions
Try these fun variations for bolder flavors!
- Spicy Brown Mustard- Use spicy brown mustard instead of Dijon for a bolder mustard flavor.
- Spicy- Adjust the red pepper flakes to make the butter milder or spicier.
Storing
Store leftover cowboy butter in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. You can also shape compound butter into a log, wrap it tightly, and refrigerate it until ready to slice and serve. If using dried herbs, the butter may keep for up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator, if it has been handled and stored safely.
For the warm dipping sauce version, refrigerate leftovers promptly and reheat before serving.
What to Serve With Cowboy Butter
Cowboy butter is especially delicious with steak bites, grilled steak, chicken thighs, grilled chicken, shrimp, salmon, and scallops. It's also a great way to add flavor to roasted potatoes, corn on the cob, pasta, noodles, and roasted vegetables. Serve the melted version as a dipping sauce with crusty bread or alongside dinner when you want an extra boost of buttery, herby flavor.
FAQ
Cowboy butter is a seasoned butter made with herbs, mustard, lemon juice, and spices. It can be served as a chilled compound butter that melts over hot food or as a warm dipping sauce for steak, chicken, seafood, and vegetables.
This recipe includes unsalted butter, Dijon mustard, fresh lemon juice, parsley, chives, thyme, smoked paprika, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. These ingredients create a rich, tangy, herby butter with a little heat.
Cowboy butter is rich and buttery, with bright lemon, tangy mustard, savory herbs, and a subtle smoky flavor. The red pepper flakes add a little heat, making it especially delicious with grilled meats and seafood.
Leave a Reply