This roundup is all about my favorite thing to take steak, seafood, vegetables — basically anything you grill — to the next level: flavored butter recipes! Whether you’re making herb butter, cowboy butter or smoked butter, know that homemade butter is your best friend in boosting flavor. I’m stoked to share all my techniques in my favorite recipes for butter! 

Grilled steak with cowboy butter sliced and ready to serve.

Why You’ll Love Butter Recipes

If you’ve ever taken a bite of your dinner and thought it needed a little oomph to make it so freakin’ delicious, you’ve come to the right place. Flavored butter recipes — also often known as compound butter recipes — are an easy way to inject a kick into grilled meats and veggies. Because you mix butter with fresh herbs, spices, roasted garlic and more, the possibilities are endless. Once you make your own compound butter, you won’t want to stop! 

A cowboy butter steak taco being held up to the camera.

Butter Recipe Basics

  • Start with clarified butter. Clarified butter is definitely better in high-heat cooking and grilling recipes. This is because the savory butter also has a higher smoke point. You could use regular unsalted butter for our compound butters too, but just keep in mind that the milk solids and water in regular butter can burn during smoking. That can leave you with some odd flavors, which no one wants! Don’t stress, though. I’ve got a tip on the best way to make your own clarified butter below. You can also find clarified butter at your local grocery store if you’d rather go that route.
  • Be ready with fresh ingredients. Depending on your recipe, you’ll want basic ingredients like garlic, a combination of herbs like parsley or cilantro, lemon zest, lime zest or even orange zest. We’ll mix those ingredients in a small bowl with our butter.
  • Give it a twist with pantry ingredients. My FYR Hot Sauces, honey, black pepper and kosher salt are all a great way to make a better butter. 
  • If you’re making smoked butter, do NOT use a briquette. Since we’re infusing our butter with flavor from a smoking-hot coal, you want high-quality charcoal here. Please only use real wood or natural lump charcoal. Do not use briquettes or any charcoal that has been treated with chemicals. I always reach for Cowboy Charcoal because it burns super hot and super clean. That’s exactly what we need in these recipes.
A mason jar of herb butter with smoke billowing out of the top.

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How to Make Clarified Butter

First, grab your unsalted butter — you’ll want about four sticks. Melt the sticks of butter slowly over direct heat (low setting) in a small saucepan. The goal is to let the butter melt gradually and completely without boiling it. As it melts, you’ll notice the milk solids start to separate from the butter “oil.” Next, pour the liquified butter into a clear glass container and let cool for two minutes. As it cools, the milk solids will sink to the bottom of the jar. Then, pour the top portion of the butter into a new jar. That is the golden, pure yellow portion of the butter, aka the clarified butter. Try to keep any of the white, milk solids from getting poured into the new jar. That’s all there is to it! Now, you have your very own clarified butter.

The Best Herb Butter Recipes

​Garlic herb butter is classic here, but there are as many herbed butter recipes are there are plants in an herb garden! Let me know your favorite in the comments below!

Venison Rack with Wild Herb Butter

Venison Rack with Herb Butter

Venison Rack with Wild Herb Butter for something unique. Low and slow is the perfect game for a smoker, so that’s exactly what we did!
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Herb Butter American Lamb Steaks

Herb Butter American Lamb Steaks

Grab some leg of lamb steaks and grill them over the fire with some herb butter sauce in this recipe!
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Stuffed Lobster Tails with garlic butter as they finish cooking on the grill.

Stuffed Lobster Tail with Garlic Butter

Lobster tails stuffed with crab and all doused in a savory garlic butter. Yes, please!
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Grilled Steak and Shrimp with BLK Garlic Butter assembled on a cutting board and ready to serve.

Grilled Steak and Shrimp with BLK Garlic Butter

Grilled Steak and Shrimp with BLK Garlic Butter for a spicy surf and turf dinner!
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Garlic butter shrimp with crusty bread

Garlic Butter Shrimp

Garlic butter shrimp is a tangy twist on Hawaiian-style garlic butter shrimp, with great garlic-citrus flavor and a crispy crunch.
herb butter ny strip

Herb Butter NY Strip

Prime cut NY Strips basted in herb butter sauce for the win!
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grilled picanha topped with garlic butter held next to a fire pit

Grilled Garlic Butter Picanha

This Grilled Garlic Butter Picanha is perfect for a backyard dinner! It's made with golden-brown picanha steaks and spicy garlic butter. 
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Garlic Parmesan Mussels

Parmesan Garlic Butter Mussels

Make something unique yet quick over the fire with these Garlic Parmesan Mussels. They are simple seafood steamed over the fire in cast iron perfect for an appetizer or dinner!
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Close up of Reverse Seared Ribeyes.

Reverse Seared Ribeyes with Black Garlic Butter

These Reverse Seared Ribeyes with Black Garlic Butter are savory, sweet and everything you need to make right now!
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Chipotle Garlic butter Shrimp

Chipotle Garlic Butter Shrimp

Nothing better to warm you up than this Chipotle Garlic Butter Shrimp on a snowy day! A quick cook for a delicious meal!
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Garlic Butter Steak and Shrimp Recipe

Grilled Steak & Shrimp with Garlic Herb Butter

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Grilled Garlic Butter Lobster Recipe

Grilled Lobster With Garlic Butter

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The Best Smoked Butter Recipes

I’ve been on a kick of infusing butters, chimichurri and salsa verde with extra smoke flavor from a white-hot coal off the grill. It’s a simple technique, but make sure you follow the directions to get the best results. That hot honey butter is one of my favorite ways to dress up a steak right now!

Smoked Butter

As crazy as it sounds, we're dropping hot charcoal into a savory and spicy butter sauce that levels up ANY dish!
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Smoke billowing out of the butter sauce.

Smoked Steak Butter

Smoked Steak Butter will not only elevate your grilled steak, but will make almost anything taste incredible!
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Hot honey butter

Hot Honey Butter

Hot honey butter combines sweet, spicy and smoky flavors, and it's so freakin' delicious on steak, seafood and more.
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The Best Cowboy Butter Recipes

Cowboy butter is really just a catch-all term for a spicy herb and garlic butter. It’s a pretty versatile butter because it’s a delicious topping that can be served melted or as classic cold butter.

The Cowboy Butter Burger is the ultimate bite.

Cowboy Butter Burgers

Cowboy Butter Burgers bring the best of beef and butter together for one epic bite!
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Cowboy butter steak taco

Cowboy Butter Steak Tacos

Cowboy butter steak tacos are another way to use this spicy garlic herb butter, which is freakin' delicious on everything.
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Cowboy Butter Sliders

Cowboy Butter Sliders

Cowboy Butter Sliders are the ultimate comfort food. Tender sliced filets are slathered in the zesty spicy butter and paired with caramelized onions and gooey mozzarella cheese.
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One sliced and one whole Grilled Ribeye with Cowboy Butter.

Grilled Ribeye with Cowboy Butter

Grilled Ribeye with Cowboy Butter
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The coffee crusted venison rack sitting with potatoes and bacon wrapped asparagus.

Coffee Crusted Venison Rack with Cowboy Butter

Coffee Crusted Venison Rack for a perfectly cooked venison dinner.
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Chili Butters & Other Spicy Butters

For those of you that like something with a kick. Remember, you can also turn the heat up or down, and adding chilis, hot sauces and cajun seasoning can be just the thing a butter needs!

Chili Butter Steak and Shrimp plated and served.

Chili Butter Steak and Shrimp

Chili Butter Steak and Shrimp for a spicy, savory surf and turf experience.
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Sliced steaks ready to eat.

Coffee Crusted Ribeyes with Honey Chili Butter

These Coffee Crusted Ribeyes are coated in a smoky coffee spice rub and topped with a sweet and spicy homemade honey chili butter.
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Smoked Lobster Tails

Smoked Lobster Tails with Spicy Garlic Butter

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grilled lobster tails

Grilled Lobster Tails with Honey Cajun Butter

Simple and easy grilled lobster tails basted with a honey cajun butter sauce. This is the ideal backyard cook for those that need some sweet and spicyness!
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dirty lobster tails

Dirty Lobster Tails with Hatch Chile Butter Sauce

Delicious dirty lobster tails cooked right on top of some hot Cowboy Charcoal. Then, these Lobster Tails are then finished with a Hatch Chile Butter Sauce for extra flavor.
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Grilled Lobster with Hot Honey Butter placed together on a serving platter.

Grilled Lobster with Hot Honey Butter

Grilled Lobster with Hot Honey Butter for a sweet, spicy lobster treat.
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delicious sriracha butter lobster tails

Sriracha Butter Lobster Tails

These Sriracha Butter Lobster Tails are the ticket to amp up any backyard barbecue. Spicy and tangy with delicious cold water lobster.
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Surf and Turf Butter Burger

Surf and Turf Burger with Sriracha Chive Compound Butter

Surf and Turf Butter Burger Recipe for a fist full of deliciousness!
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Smoked Citrus Chile Chicken Wings

Steakhouse Ribeyes with Horseradish Butter

We can all use a really good steak every once in a while. This Steakhouse Ribeye is loaded with garlic salt and paired with king oyster mushrooms, charred asparagus, horseradish butter and BUSH’S® Steakhouse Recipe Grillin’ Beans.
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Steak Frites with Garlic Chili Butter displayed on a serving platter.

Steak Frites with Garlic Chili Butter

Steak Frites with Garlic Chili Butter for your elevated steak and fries dish.
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Other Buttery Ideas

Cilantro Lime Butter Scallops

Cilantro Lime Butter Scallops

These Cilantro Lime Butter Scallops are perfectly seared then topped off with a zesty citrus butter over top. A great seafood dinner!
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Smoked Tequila Butter Shrimp

Smoked Tequila Butter Shrimp

Another seafood recipe swimming in butter? Heck yes! Today we have a Smoked Tequila Butter Shrimp Recipe cooked over fire.
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What to Serve with the Best Butter Recipes

As I like to say, the better question is what NOT to serve with these butter recipes. They take steaksseafoodburgers and other meats to the next level. I also think it’s a great dipping sauce for cornbread, dinner rolls, or a slice of fresh bread. 

Dipping meats with a fork in butter

Another favorite sauce of mine is chimichurri. If you want another sauce to add to your meals that’s fresh and herby, then make sure to check out my Best Chimichurri Recipes!

Leftovers and Reheating

Once you’ve crafted your delicious butter mixture, proper storage is key to maintaining its rich flavor and quality. After you’ve prepared it, let the butter cool to room temperature (no longer than a couple of hours) before placing it in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. You can also freeze the butter in ice cube trays for up to 6 months.

FAQs

​What kind of butter should I use? 

For best results in these butter recipes, go for unsalted butter, since you can season to your favorite flavor more so than with salted butter. There’s a lot of good quality butter in grocery stores! Sample a few store-bought butter brands and see what you like best. I’d love to hear what you find out in your butter taste-testing journey. 

Should I brown my butter? 

Brown butter works great in lots of other settings, but I try not to do it here. That’s because I don’t want the bold flavor to overpower the other ingredients in our beautiful butter.

Can I swap the herbs or other ingredients?

Definitely! Just keep an eye on the recipe, because you don’t want to create conflicting flavors. For Tex-Mex style dishes, I like to stick with cilantro and parsley. Those two herbs are super versatile, since cilantro is great with Thai and Indian flavors too. Parsley really goes with pretty much anything. For Italian-inspired dishes, rosemary, fresh thyme and oregano are great options too. There are so many different ways to make the perfect spread, I could go on and on!

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