12 Ways You Didn’t Know You Could Use Butter

Keep mold off cheese

Why waste good cheese by letting the cut edges get hard or moldy? Give semi-hard cheeses a light coat of butter to keep them fresh and free of mold. Each time you use the cheese, coat the cut edge with butter before you rewrap it and put it back in the fridge.

Plus: Is it safe to leave butter on the counter? Find out here.

Remove sap from skin

You’ve just gotten home from a pleasant walk in the woods, but your hand is still covered with sticky tree sap that feels like it will never come off. Don’t worry. Just rub butter on your hand and the gunky black sap will wash right off with soap and water.

Zap ink stain on doll’s face

Uh-oh, one of the kids used a pen to draw a new smile on that favorite doll’s face. Try eliminating the marks by rubbing butter on them and leaving the doll’s face-up in the sun for a few days. Wash it off with soap and water. Check out these other weird things that can remove stains.

Cut sticky foods with ease

Rub butter on your knife or scissor blades before cutting sticky foods like dates, figs, or marshmallows. The butter will act as a lubricant and keep the food from sticking to the blades. Did you know you can use this other common cooking ingredient for other stuff around your house?

Prevent pots from boiling over

You take your eye off the pasta for two seconds, and the next thing you know, the pot is boiling over onto the stovetop. Keep the boiling water in the pot next time by adding half a tablespoon of butter or rubbing the butter around the top of the pot.

Help the medicine go down

If you have a hard time swallowing pills, especially large ones, coat them lightly with butter first. This should help the pill slide down your throat.

Fix a squeaky door

Butter makes a surprising but effective substitute for WD-40 when you’re looking to take the squeak out of a noisy door. Simply rub the butter on the door hinge. This lubricates the metal to stop the squeak.

Get gum out of hair

You’ve undoubtedly heard that peanut butter can get sticky gum out of hair, and its peanut-less cousin can work the same magic. Rub the butter over the gum, letting it absorb into the hair before trying to slide the gum out.

Remove stubborn rings

Whether your fingers have swelled up from the heat or you just wanted to wear a cute ring that you know doesn’t quite fit, you’re now stuck—literally—with a ring that won’t budge. Cover the ring with butter before carefully sliding it off your finger.

Treat dry hair

If your hair has turned dry and brittle, a small amount of butter can return it to its glossy shine. Massage the butter into your hair, then cover your hair with a shower cap for about a half hour. Shampoo as usual, and rinse all the butter out. Next, check out all of the unique uses for coconut oil around your house.

Make ghee

Ghee is butter that has been clarified, so only the pure butterfat remains. Since the milk solids have been removed, you don’t need to refrigerate it. Try this Test Kitchen-approved recipe for ghee, and you can use it as a butter substitute in slow-cooking recipes and high-heat dishes, since it has a higher smoke point than regular butter or cooking oils. Some even use ghee as a skin moisturizer and lip balm.

Upgrade your coffee

Odd as it may sound, some coffee drinkers add butter to their coffee instead of milk or cream. It’s particularly popular with people on the keto diet, which stresses high-fat, low-carb meals. Some nutritionists are skeptical, but others say the fats in the butter can actually help keep you fuller longer.