School: Newcastle
- Location:
- Newcastle, Co. Wicklow
- Teacher: Máire Ní Fhotharta
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0927, Page 204
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- XML School: Newcastle
- XML Page 204
- XML “Churning”
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- We have a churn at home. It is about 4 feet in height and is about 2 feet wide at top and bottom, but is wider at the centre, and the sides are round. It is about 20 years old. The different parts are, the lid, the lid, the handle, the stopper and the stand. There is no mark on the side or the bottom of the churn.
Butter is made once a week in winter and twice a week in Summer. The workmen do the churning and strangers who come in give a hand with it because it is an old superstition that if they did not do so, they would take the butter with them. Churning takes the best part of an hour. The churning is done by hand as its is an "end-over-end" one.
People know when the butter is made when small particles of butter remain on the lid. Water is put into it when the butter is nearly made to bring it to the correct temperature. Before the butter is lifted out the butter-milk is first taken out and salted many times, first to remove the remaining butter-milk and then to flavour the butter.
- Collector
- Séamus Burke
- Gender
- Male
- Address
- Kilmullin, Co. Wicklow
