What is cutting in butter?

When you read a recipe, you might come to an instruction of “cutting in butter”. But what exactly does this mean? It is actually quite simple.

Generally, you have your dry ingredients in a mixing bowl, then you cut in the butter. First, cut the butter into small pieces. Then add it to the dry ingredients. Now, use a pastry cutter, or if you don’t have one, chill two non-serated knives and then cut them crossways into the butter and dry ingredients. Continue until the butter is in tiny pieces and fully coated in butter.