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Home » Recipes » Cowboy Butter

Cowboy Butter

by Mike Hultquist · May 16, 2024 · 24 Comments

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Cowboy Butter Recipe

This cowboy butter recipe is the perfect topping or dipping sauce for grilled steak, chicken, shrimp, or veggies, loaded with fresh herbs and spices!

Cowboy Butter Recipe

Cowboy Butter Recipe

Cowboy butter is sweeping the nation! Everywhere I look, I see people making cowboy butter and sharing their photos.

It's totally understandable, considering how delicious it is! If you've never tried it, this is a recipe you'll want to try, perfect for the spicy food lover.

What is Cowboy Butter?

Cowboy butter is a compound butter made with butter, fresh herbs, and spices. Its ingredients are ideal for pairing with steak, though you can use it on chicken, fish, shrimp, vegetables, pretty much anything off the grill.

You can serve it like regular butter, sliced and added to the top of your dish to melt, or softened or melted then served as a dipping sauce.

I've seen it referred to as cowboy butter sauce as well.

It's a very customizable recipe, easily adapted to your favorite flavors. This is how I like to make mine, perfect for those who love it zesty and bold.

Let's talk about how to make cowboy butter, shall we?

Cowboy Butter Ingredients

  • Butter. Use your favorite brand of salted butter or unsalted butter. This recipe calls for 1 stick, though you can easily scale it up.
  • Garlic. I love lots of fresh minced garlic, though you can use garlic powder.
  • Mustard. I prefer a good spicy brown mustard, though it's really good with Dijon mustard.
  • Lemon. Both lemon juice and lemon zest.
  • Fresh Herbs. I'm using fresh parsley, fresh chives, and fresh thyme from our herb garden.
  • Spices. Smoked paprika, cayenne pepper, crushed red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. I like a lot of black pepper. I also like a few dashes of hot sauce.

How to Make Cowboy Butter - the Recipe Method

AS A SERVING SAUCE

  • Melt the Butter. Melt the butter slowly in a pan, or soften it gently in the microwave. You can also use ghee (clarified butter) for this recipe.
  • Mix the Ingredients. Gently stir in the remaining ingredients until well combined.
  • Serve. Serve as a dipping sauce or spooned over your dish.

AS A COMPOUND BUTTER

  • Mix and Form a Log. Mix all of the ingredients together in a small bowl, then transfer to a layer of plastic wrap. Form the softened butter mixture into the shape of a log about 1 inch in diameter, then wrap in the plastic.
  • Refrigerate. Refrigerate until hardened, then slice and serve over grilled meats or veggies.

Boom! Done! Your cowboy butter is ready to serve. Easy enough to make, isn't it? Fire up the grill! Get those steaks or veggies ready!

Recipe Tips & Notes

  • Customize your cowboy butter with other flavorful ingredients, like Worcestershire sauce, pungent horseradish, fresh shallot, rosemary, or your favorite hot sauce.
  • How to Soften the Butter. Leave your butter out overnight to soften, or use your microwave setting. A good technique is to slice the butter into pieces, then microwave it on the defrost setting a few seconds at a time to soften. Another technique is to fill a bowl or cup with very hot water, dump the water, then use it to cover the butter. This will soften the butter in minutes.
  • Can You Make Cowboy Butter Ahead? Yes, you can make it several days ahead of time and either freeze it or keep it in the refrigerator, covered, until ready to use.

How to Serve Cowboy Butter

Cowboy butter for steak is perfection, though it also shines with anything off the grill, like grilled chicken, shrimp, or vegetables. Serve it melted, cold, or room temperature.

Try it over my grilled London boil recipe, this ancho crusted porterhouse steak, or blackened chicken.

You'll enjoy it on anything you normally enjoy with flavorful butter, like jalapeno cornbread or a slice of jalapeno cheddar Dutch oven bread.

Spooning rich cowboy butter over a grilled steak

Storage

Cowboy butter will last up to 5 days in the refrigerator in a sealed container. It will harden up and you can use it like any compound butter.

You can also freeze it for 2-3 months.

How to Freeze Cowboy Butter

Freezing it is super easy. Roll your cowboy butter into a log using plastic wrap and twist the ends together.

For extra protection, pop it into a freezer bag or container. Don't forget to date it!

It will last 3 months or longer this way. When you're ready to use it, thaw it overnight in the refrigerator for best results, or let sit at room temperature for about 1 hour to soften.

That's it, my friends. I hope you enjoy this cowboy butter recipe. Let me know if you make it. I'd love to hear how it turned out for you, and if you decided to spice it up!

Cookbook Recommendation

If you enjoy spicy cooking, I hope you'll check out my cookbook! 75 easy recipes with big, bold flavor.

  • The Spicy Food Lovers' Cookbook, by Mike Hultquist (affiliate link, my friends!)
The Spicy Food Lovers' Cookbook - Fiery, No-Fuss Meals, by Michael Hultquist

Try Some of My Other Popular "Cowboy" Recipes

  • Cowboy Beans
  • Homemade Cowboy Candy (Candied Jalapenos)
  • Cowboy Caviar
  • Garlic Parmesan Sauce

Try Some My Other Steak Toppings

  • Horseradish Sauce
  • Blue Cheese Dressing
  • Steak Seasoning
  • Peppercorn Sauce
Dipping a piece of steak into a bowl of delicious cowboy butter

Got any questions? Ask away! I’m happy to help. If you enjoy this recipe, I hope you’ll leave a comment with some STARS. Also, please share it on social media. Don’t forget to tag us at #ChiliPepperMadness. I’ll be sure to share! Thanks! — Mike H.

Cowboy Butter Recipe
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Cowboy Butter Recipe

This cowboy butter recipe is the perfect topping or dipping sauce for grilled steak, chicken, shrimp, or veggies, loaded with fresh herbs and spices!
Save Recipe Saved!
Course: Condiment, sauce
Cuisine: American
Keyword: butter, cayenne
Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes minutes
Calories: 107kcal
Author: Mike Hultquist
Servings: 8 tablespoons
Tap or hover to scale
5 from 8 votes
Leave a Review

Ingredients

  • 1 stick unsalted butter (8 tablespoons, softened)
  • 4 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 tablespoon spicy brown mustard Dijon can be used
  • Juice from ½ a lemon + zest
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
  • 1 teaspoon chopped fresh chives
  • 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
  • 1 teaspoon paprika I love smoked paprika or hot paprika
  • ½ teaspoon cayenne
  • ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes or use hot sauce, or both!
  • Salt and black pepper to taste

Instructions

AS A SERVING SAUCE

  • Melt the butter slowly in a pan.
  • Gently stir in the remaining ingredients until well combined.
  • Serve as a dipping sauce or spooned over your dish.

AS A COMPOUND BUTTER

  • Mix all of the ingredients together in a small bowl, then transfer to a layer of plastic wrap. Form the butter mixture into the shape of a log about 1 inch in diameter, then wrap in the plastic.
  • Refrigerate until hardened, then slice and serve over grilled meats or veggies.

Video

Nutrition Information

Calories: 107kcal   Carbohydrates: 1g   Protein: 0.4g   Fat: 12g   Saturated Fat: 7g   Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.5g   Monounsaturated Fat: 3g   Trans Fat: 0.5g   Cholesterol: 30mg   Sodium: 25mg   Potassium: 28mg   Fiber: 0.3g   Sugar: 0.1g   Vitamin A: 626IU   Vitamin C: 2mg   Calcium: 10mg   Iron: 0.2mg
Cowboy Butter Recipe
Did You Enjoy This Recipe?I love hearing how you like it and how you made it your own. Leave a comment below and tag @ChiliPepperMadness on social media.

NOTE: This recipe was updated on 5/17/25 to include new information, photos, and video. It was originally published on 5/23/23.

Reader Interactions

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    Recipe Rating




  1. Jenny says

    January 10, 2025 at 9:22 pm

    5 stars
    Mike, your recipe rocks!

    I just came by your recipe - heard someone talking about Cowboy Butter. Of course I had to google it first to find out what it was. Had never heard of it before. Saw a few other recipes- but yours was the one that caught my attention. Your video was good too!

    Made it tonight for the first time to go with grilled steaks. Absolutely delicious. Before everyone finished I was asked- when are you making this again!? Haha.

    Can’t wait to try some of your other recipes.

    Reply
    • Mike Hultquist says

      January 11, 2025 at 7:45 am

      Boom!! Glad you like it, Jenny! I love this stuff. Making some tonight for steaks!! Thanks!

      Reply
  2. BillF says

    September 08, 2024 at 9:41 am

    5 stars
    This butter is really awesome on grilled asparagus and corn.
    Thanks for sharing.

    Reply
    • Mike Hultquist says

      September 08, 2024 at 9:45 am

      I agree. Thanks, Bill!

      Reply
  3. Pieter says

    May 17, 2024 at 6:25 am

    5 stars
    Mike what a great one I had it with a A Gade Rump it is a must and have made enough for the Refrigerator Thanks for all your Chili Pepper Madness Recipes

    Reply
    • Mike H. says

      May 17, 2024 at 8:30 am

      Thank you, Pieter. I am really happy that you are enjoying my recipes!

      Reply
  4. Mark Cromika says

    May 17, 2024 at 6:18 am

    5 stars
    Outstanding Recipe! I should have found it a long time ago. Great eats await!

    Reply
    • Mike H. says

      May 17, 2024 at 8:31 am

      Thanks, Mark. Everything happens in its own time. Glad that you've found it after all!

      Reply
  5. Sara Bloomer says

    April 02, 2024 at 1:38 am

    A question … in your picture of the Cowboy butter log it appears there are large white chunks of something. What are those please? I can’t see anything in the ingredients list that would present like that

    Reply
    • Mike H. says

      April 02, 2024 at 3:27 am

      Hi Sara, thank you for your question. That is butter, refrigerated. 😉

      Reply
    • Figgyy says

      July 03, 2024 at 10:56 am

      garlic....

      Reply
      • Mike H. says

        July 04, 2024 at 4:46 am

        Yes, lots of it! Mmmmm....

        Reply
  6. Paulette Kay Salisbury says

    March 03, 2024 at 5:28 pm

    5 stars
    Yum! Froze some in dots to use later.

    Reply
    • Mike Hultquist says

      March 03, 2024 at 6:13 pm

      Perfect! Great for freezing!

      Reply
  7. Leigha Porter says

    January 02, 2024 at 3:23 pm

    Can't wait to try thus tonight.

    I was wondering though, if I don't have fresh parsley and thyme can I use dried?

    thanks

    Reply
    • Mike H. says

      January 02, 2024 at 4:07 pm

      Yes, you can, Leigha - you will just need to experiment with adjusting the quantities, because dried herbs are usually more concentrated in flavor. Let me know how it goes 😉

      Reply
  8. Julie says

    October 19, 2023 at 7:15 pm

    5 stars
    this recipe was soooo good! my husband has asked me to make a lot so he can put on everything including hamburgers. really good recipe!

    Reply
    • Mike Hultquist says

      October 20, 2023 at 6:36 am

      Great way to use it! Thanks, Julie!

      Reply
    • Thomas says

      May 17, 2024 at 8:35 am

      5 stars
      would yellow mustard be okay to use?

      Reply
      • Mike Hultquist says

        May 17, 2024 at 11:47 am

        Absolutely, Thomas. Enjoy!

        Reply
  9. Halima says

    May 29, 2023 at 4:00 am

    5 stars
    "AND ITS KETO,"...she squeals like a school girl.

    Thanks Mike. am definitely trying this on my chicken tonight...Yuummoooooo

    Reply
    • Mike Hultquist says

      May 29, 2023 at 6:03 am

      Great, Halima! Enjoy!

      Reply
  10. Ramya says

    May 24, 2023 at 6:15 am

    Cant wait to make this soon for me can i use vegan butter i never had cowboy butter before perfect for with snacks loe your recipes as always brightens up my day everyday after work

    Reply
    • Mike Hultquist says

      May 24, 2023 at 6:18 am

      Enjoy, Ramya.

      Reply

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