If you enjoy eating or cooking with vegan butter, know that there are better brands on the market that are free from palm oil, and sold in plastic-free packaging. These vegan butters are ideal to spread on toast, pasta or baked potatoes, or use in plant-based baked recipes. All are available as wholesale orders, for restaurants and hotels. Our Paula’s Butta is made in Lancashire.
Keep vegan butters away from pets, as some contain toxic nuts, garlic, chives. Never give birds ‘fatty foods’ like buttered sandwiches/fat as this affects waterproofing/insulation of feathers (dry stale bread can choke). See how to help our garden birds on what to safely (occasionally) feed feathered friends.
The Flower Farm margarine is sold in Waitrose
The term ‘sustainable palm oil’ is widely used in the food industry, but is just a self-policed term that means big business oversee things, never a good idea (some forests that have been certified have been found to have forests burned to the ground). Greenpeace says the term is ‘as useful as a chocolate teapot’. Palm oil is only used because it’s cheap (it also is not locally grown unlike rapeseed oil), so creates climate emissions from importing the oil. And there is simply not enough land to grow ‘certified organic palm oil’ (the only trustworthy source) in the numbers that it is used in the western world.
Naturli (UK) is the main one found in UK supermarkets, and is in a block or spreadable version (recycle the plastic tub). Made with quality oils, it has a mild taste of almonds and is good on toast, or for sauces, baking or melting on warm vegetables. Once open, keep in the fridge below 8°C and consume within 14 days. Can be frozen for up to 3 months. Ask your wholesaler for trade The butter is wholesale for chefs.
I Am Nut OK Truffle-Infused Cultured Nut Butter is a gourmet offering from an Italian/American couple, in glass jars. Made with nutritional yeast for a cheesy flavour. Eat within 5 days of opening, can be frozen up to 2 months. Also in rosemary sea salt version.
Mouse’s Favourite Vegan Gold Butter is made by an artisan vegan cheese company, to spread straight from the fridge. It’s rich and creamy, sold in compostable packaging and can be used to make ‘butter curls’. Spread it on thick bread or use for cucumber sandwiches, mashed potatoes, crumpets or warm scones with strawberry jam. It’s also great with beans on toast or to bake a vegan pie crust. You can even use it to make butter curls (like it’s 1973!)
Mergulo Nut Butters are rich and cream in original, garlic herb or dark salt flavours. Founded by a professional chef who used to use real butter for private events, this is also in plastic-free packaging. Made in Warwickshire with buttery cashews. Also in a garlic herb version.
Plant-Based Artisan Honea Butter is made with cashew nuts and cocoa butter, ideal with sourdough bread and crumpets. It has a sweet and savoury profile with a honey-like flavour, keep chilled once opened.
Veurre Hemp Butter has a smooth texture and mild olive, hemp and coconut flavour. Solid from the fridge, you can spread, melt, cook and bake with it.
No Udder Butter is an artisan utter with oat milk. Ideal for baking or spreading thickly on toast, this tastes just like its dairy counterpart. Also in unsalted and garlic herb varieties.
Be Better Plant-Based Butter Alternative is the new darling of professional pastry chefs. Made with organic plant oils (no palm oil), It has an unopened shelf life of 270 days, and is good on bread, or to make brioche, croissants and puff pastry.
Our Paula’s Butta Company (Lancashire) is in unsalted or garlic chilli versions. Made with coconut and olive oil with soy milk, once opened, use within 14 days. Made in a facility that handles milk, nuts and soy.
Make Your Own Vegan Butter
Vegan Butter (So Vegan) is made with soy milk and coconut oil, and uses carrot juice for the colour (less overpowering than turmeric for taste). You can use other plant milks, but these guys say soy milk words better for a creamy butter (lasts up to 2 weeks in the fridge, or freeze and defrost in smaller blocks).
Garlic & Herb Compound Butter (So Vegan) is made with fresh dill, but you can alternatively use other herbs like parsley, thyme or chives. You can also add more garlic or lemon juice, or less of each. It’s up to you!
Homemade Coconut Butter (Lazy Cat Kitchen) is a simple recipe that just uses dessicated coconut and a food process or blender. Ideal for making desserts, cookies an truffles, instead of a vegan block butter or drizzled on pancakes or waffles.
Vegan Butter Inspiration from Abroad
Culcherd (US) is a gourmet plant-based butter in four delicious flavours. Choose from original, garlic, turmeric black pepper or cinnamon swirl. Made with cheesy-tasting nutritional yeast, this butter is made with cashews, and ideal on toast or in all your favourite recipes, also good melted on popcorn.
Miyoko’s Creamery (US) offers oat milk and other kinds of vegan butters, developed by a Japanese-American vegan chef. Choose from European-style unsalted or salted butter. The wrappers even come with baking measurements on the side, for ease of use. Also in an oat version.
The Vegan Dairy (AU) sells 3 types of vegan butter, in glass jars. Made with organic cashew nuts and coconut oil, the European style butter is lightly salted and tastes, spreads, melts and bakes like the real thing. It has a minimum shelf life of 1 to 2 months, and can also be frozen. The company also makes Garlic Sage & Truffle Butter.
