Michael Symon's Top Tip To Avoid Burning Your Brown Butter Sauce

It's that time of year – brown butter season. Okay, brown butter is definitely delicious in any season, but with the holidays upon us, this rich, toasty, nutty goodness will be flowing as we seek out those flavors that warm us inside and out. We'll find it in the sauce of a ravioli or gnocchi, drizzled over roasted butternut squash, or not-so-secretly hiding in that chocolate chip cookie or pecan pie.

Brown butter makes everything better — unless you burn it. We've all been there. One second the butter is perfectly bubbly and starting to darken in the pan, the next it's escalated to a burnt mess filled with inedible debris. There's a trickiness to making brown butter because there's such a fine line between browning and burning.

Luckily, chef and restaurateur Michael Symon has a hack to combat that trickiness so all of our holiday (recipe) wishes can come true.

Ready for the trick to making sure your brown butter sauce doesn't cross over from a delightful golden brown to a dreadful black? Michael Symon's top tip, as he explains in a Food Network video demonstrating how to make brown butter, is twofold.

First, you'll want to remove the pan from the heat as soon as you see the butter begin to transition from its signature yellowish-white to light brown. Watch it closely as you continuously stir and swirl; that browning will happen once your butter is bubbling and has a foaminess to it, and the milk solids begin to darken at the bottom of the pan. You'll see those heavenly brown bits (the ones that give brown butter its dimension and nuttiness) start to appear, and that's when you cut the heat to prevent any burning.

Once you take the pan off the heat, Symon recommends adding a splash of liquid to it and he uses something with acidity, like lemon juice, wine, or stock, to keep the butter in its current state and prevent any further browning.

Now that you have a surefire way to make a perfect brown butter sauce, it's time to put this magic ingredient into action. Brown butter can truly elevate any kind of dish, and it's a great way to take a classic recipe to the next level; its quintessential rich, nutty flavor will add some depth and warmth to your meal, whether savory or sweet. 

Want some ideas for brown butter goodies to dole out this season? For something savory, try a brown butter sage sauce on your favorite pasta or roasted vegetable, or drizzle some brown butter over a pan-seared pork chop or a baked white fish. For the sweet tooth fiends out there, you can level up your blondies with a butterscotch-like flavor, or make the best brown butter banana bread to be enjoyed morning, day, or night.  

With endless possibilities and the tools you need to ensure brown butter success, any recipe you make this season will be golden.