A French butter dish — also called a butter crock, butter bell or butter keeper — holds butter upside down in a lidded cup that sits in a little water. The water seals the butter away from the air, so it stays fresh and spreadable on the table instead of hardening in the fridge. Ours are thrown on the potter's wheel in our own Werkstatt, in stoneware fired to 1300 °C, and hold about 250 g of butter. Every glaze below is a different Dekor; each piece is one of a kind.
How a water-cooled butter dish works
Press soft — not hard — butter firmly into the lid, so it cannot drop out into the water.
Fill the base with cold water, so that it almost overflows when the lid is set in place.
The butter hangs upside down in the water, sealed away from the air, which is what stops it turning rancid.
At normal room temperature, 20–27 °C, it needs no refrigeration. Above about 27 °C, put the dish back in the fridge.
Change the water every one to three days and wipe the base clean. In summer, add a little crushed ice for the table outdoors.
