The Food & Wine Test Kitchen’s Go-To Butter Might Surprise You

The Food & Wine test kitchen uses a whole lot of butter: about 1,500 pounds a year, to be exact. You may think we exclusively use an assortment of high-end, expensive European butters, but there is in fact only one brand that we rely on for recipe development, testing, and photography. And it’s one of the most recognizable, widely available butters in the country.

Why we use Land O’Lakes Butter

Whether we’re testing buttery cookies or creamy pasta, our stick of choice is unsalted butter from Land O’Lakes. The company was formed in 1921 in Minnesota when 320 dairy farmers joined together to create a cooperative. Today it is one of the largest co-ops in America and includes more than 1,000 dairy farmers across the country, along with agricultural producers and retail owners.

Here’s why it’s our butter of choice, according to test kitchen staff.

Consistency is key 

Land O’Lakes is available to home cooks across the country, who know what they’re buying every time. “[Land o Lakes] somehow cracked the code on how to make their butter consistent from stick to stick,” says Julia Levy, a senior recipe tester and developer at People Inc., the parent company of Food & Wine. 

“The fat percentage in butter can vary by brand, so it’s important to standardize variables, especially in baking recipes,” adds Callie Nash, the test kitchen director of People Inc. At 80%, Land O’Lakes has a standard fat content for American-style butter.

That consistency is incredibly important for creating recipes that are tested numerous times by multiple testers and developers. Using a brand with a slightly different fat content, salt level, and even flavor can impact the intensive recipe testing process. From compound butters to chewy cookies, the quality and consistency of the butter makes a large difference to the final result. 

Anna Theoktisto, portfolio manager and recipe developer of People Inc., adds that Land O’Lakes has a relatively low water content compared to some generic brands, which means less popping or exploding when melting.

If you want test-kitchen consistency at home, Land O’Lakes will give you similar results each time you bake a cake or make a pan sauce. 

High quality at a low price point

A consistent product would mean little if it was, well, consistently mediocre. But that is not the case with Land O’Lakes, especially considering you can find it for $5 at almost any grocery store. It tastes exactly like what you’d expect good butter to taste like: milky, rich and slightly sweet without the tangy or earthy flavors that you may find in some other brands. It’s delicious on its own, spread on your breakfast toast or pancakes, and doesn’t overpower the other flavors when incorporated into baked goods or frostings. 

Don’t just take our word for it — it’s Jacques Pépin’s favorite butter for baking.