“Cowboy Butter” Is So Good, I Find Excuses to Put It on Everything (and You Will Too)

We’re in our cowboy era at The Kitchn. Cowboy candy! Cowboy pasta salad! Cowboy margaritas! (Yes, you definitely need one.) And, oh my word, cowboy beans. What makes something “cowboy” is hard to articulate. While there’s often a little heat, it’s more of a general vibe — one that started, for us at least, with cowboy butter. 

Cowboy butter took TikTok by storm last summer. It’s essentially an easier, more “rustic” version of a compound butter. Instead of adding a bunch of ingredients to softened butter and letting it re-harden to cut into slices, you mix herbs and spices into melted butter and use it as a dippable sauce. It makes steak taste restaurant-worthy, grilled chicken infinitely more exciting, and veggies ridiculously delicious. 

Get the recipe: Cowboy Butter

Cowboy butter can transform just about any dinner into something that tastes really special. I’ve served it with grilled shrimp for dipping and drizzled it over roasted potatoes. But my all-time favorite way to enjoy it is with a thick, juicy pan-seared steak. Because the recipe uses a full stick of butter, I usually save it for when we’re having people over; any time I make it, I’m showered with compliments. 

In our recipe, we use lemon, fresh herbs, garlic, some Dijon, a scoop of prepared horseradish, smoked paprika, and a little cayenne. The freshness of the lemon balances out the richness of the butter, while horseradish, garlic, and paprika add a big punch of bold flavor. While this specific flavor combo is a 10/10, don’t stress over running to the store for ingredients. The beauty of cowboy butter is that it’s blissfully unfussy. Add whatever herbs you want (or don’t!). Make it mild or spicy. Double the garlic. Ball out on fancy European butter or use your go-to unsalted stick. There really isn’t a way to go wrong. 

• Avoid chopping all together and use dried herbs (oregano is great!) and garlic powder. 
• Instead of (or in addition to) lemon juice, use hot sauce for a touch of acid. 
• Swap in chili powder or taco seasoning for the paprika. 

Get the recipe: Cowboy Butter