The great butter debate: cold vs room temp in laminated doughs

I used to always use cold butter straight from the fridge for my croissants and danishes, like I was taught 5 years ago in a class. But about 3 months ago I switched to letting it sit out for maybe 10-15 minutes before incorporating it into the dough. The difference in how evenly it layers and how much less it tears during folding is pretty wild. For the bakers here who make laminated stuff regularly, do you stick with firm cold butter or let it soften a touch before starting?

3 comments

3 Comments

finleym431mo ago

I used to be in the cold butter camp too, but after a few batches of torn dough I started letting it warm up just a little and it made a huge difference.

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terryk101mo ago

Hmm, @finleym43, is torn dough really that big of a deal though? A little tearing has never ruined a batch of biscuits in my kitchen, just press it back together and move on. Maybe I'm just not picky enough, but I really don't think a few seconds of butter temperature makes or breaks the final product.

mary_foster921mo ago

Three batches last week and I finally gave in and let the butter sit out for 10 minutes. @finleym43 is right, it really does help with the tearing. I used to think it was all about keeping everything ice cold but a tiny bit of room temp makes handling way easier.