Life
Here's a quick way to make your experience with butter even better: Give it a new home. Storing butter in one of the best butter dishes can go a surprisingly long way in improving your day-to-day, whether you prefer to keep butter at room temperature or in the refrigerator. That's because many of today's dishes come with smart design features, like measurement markings for serving or baking, and non-slip bases to keep the butter firmly in place, instead of smashed on the floor.
In pursuit of the best butter dish, only those with lids were considered to keep dust and hair at bay (a necessity if pets are around). Size was also a determining factor. You might not even know it, but there are three types of butter — East Coast, West Coast, and European-style. The difference between East Coast and West Coast butter comes down to height and width. A 4-ounce stick of butter in New York City holds the same amount of butter as 4-ounce stick in Los Angeles, but an East Coast stick of butter is longer and leaner, whereas a West Coast stick has a shorter, squatter shape. The best butter dishes will be wide and tall enough to accommodate either.
European-style butter is known stateside for its richer taste due to a higher butterfat content, but in terms of finding the right butter dish, keep in mind this type of butter often comes wrapped in a wide, 8-ounce rectangular slab, double the size of American sticks of butter.
With all that in mind, it's time to shop. Here are the best butter dishes, no matter how or where you butter your toast.
1The Overall Best, All Things Considered
With more than 2,000 reviews and a 4.6-star rating, the dishwasher-safe OXO Good Grips Butter Dish is a clear favorite for people who enjoy butter every day. Made of BPA-free plastic with a clear lid with no handle and a non-slip grip bottom, this butter dish also features stoppers on either side to keep butter from sliding around while you're slicing into it. Tablespoon measurements are marked for both East Coast and West Coast butter sticks, and a wide butter dish for European-style butter is also available. OXO guarantees the product and also offers this butter dish with a stainless steel base (also in a wide version) for a different look.
Fans say: “My husband and I have been joking for years that our lives would be so much better if we just had a butter dish, but actually we were somewhat serious… This butter dish does everything it is supposed to do, you can easily see how much butter you have left and you can clean it very easily. Love it!”
2The Best Ceramic Butter Dish
This ceramic butter dish comes in several cheery colors and has a functional, vintage-looking design and easy-to-grab handle. The dishwasher-safe porcelain dish comes with a 30-day "no-chip warranty," and the lid is tall enough to fit West Coast or East Coast butter. It's also wide enough to store an 8-ounce stick of European-style butter. Curved edges on the base of the butter dish keep the butter in place, and the piece adds some charming vintage flair if you have it sitting on a kitchen counter or dining table.
Fans say: “I love this butter dish. It's nice and wide enough to hold a stick of butter. I love the lid and the color. This color was popular in the 1960s when I was a kid. It's heavy made out of superior quality material. Washes very easily. Love this product.”
3The Best Glass Butter Dish
Welcomingly free of harsh chemicals (it's BPA-, phthalate-, PVC-, and lead-free), this sturdy glass butter dish fits East Coast, West Coast, or European-Style butter, and the lip on its base keeps any type of stick in place. While glass dishes are known for their more substantial weight, it's worth pointing out that this one is on the heavier side, weighing over a pound. Users have found it to be dishwasher-safe.
Fans say: "This product is exact what is described and pictured. I've been using this product for a couple of months or so, It does what I expected it [to] do. It appears to be made of high quality materials and craftsmanship. It is wide and high and will accommodate these off sizes of butter sticks, perfect for a block of cream cheese. I guess the only draw back, is no handle."
4The Best Butter Bell
For serious European vibes in your kitchen, the best butter dish is a butter bell, aka a butter crock or butter keeper. With "Beurre" cast on one side, this French butter dish maintains butter at a spreadable consistency ready to top toast or pancakes. However, setting up it up does require a bit more than simply unwrapping butter. You'll need to take one stick of softened butter, cube it, and place it into the lid. Then fill the butter crock partially with cold water, which helps create an airtight seal to preserve freshness. Simply grab the handle and flip over the lid to expose the crock storing soft, ready-to-serve butter. To leave butter out at room temperature in this dishwasher-safe butter bell, just change the water every few days.
Fans say: "We've always liked to keep our butter on the counter for spreadability, but used to use the standard covered glass dish, which would get kinda gross by the end of the stick. We are LOVING our butter crock because it's a cute little spot of color in our kitchen when not in use AND the butter doesn't melt and spread on hot days. Such a wonderful little item."
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