What can I substitute for cultured butter?
Running low on cultured butter? Here are the best verified substitutes, including how to adjust your measurements.
About cultured butter
Cultured butter is made from cream that has been fermented with live bacterial cultures before churning, giving it a tangy, complex, slightly nutty flavour compared to sweet cream butter. It has a higher fat content (typically 84–85%) and lower water content than standard butter, which contributes to flakier pastry and richer sauces. Popular in European baking traditions, it is prized for its depth of flavour in both sweet and savoury applications.
Best substitute
unsalted butter with a splash of yoghurt
Blending unsalted butter with a small amount of plain full-fat yoghurt mimics the lactic tang of cultured butter. Mix thoroughly until smooth before using in your recipe.
Use 1 cup unsalted butter mixed with 1–2 tsp plain yoghurt for every 1 cup cultured butter
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Alternative
unsalted butter
Standard unsalted sweet cream butter is the most accessible substitute and works seamlessly in virtually all recipes, though it lacks the tangy complexity and slight nuttiness of cultured butter. The flavour difference is subtle in most baked goods but more noticeable in simple sauces or on bread.
Use 1 cup for every 1 cup of cultured butter
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Alternative
European-style butter
European-style butter shares the higher fat content (82–84%) of cultured butter and produces similarly flaky, tender pastry, though it generally lacks the fermented tang. It is an excellent structural substitute where the fat percentage matters most.
What is cultured butter called in other countries?
| Country | Name |
|---|---|
| Australia | cultured butter |
| FR | beurre de culture |
| United Kingdom | cultured butter |
| United States | cultured butter |
Common names for cultured butter
fermented butterEuropean butterlactic buttersoured cream butter