Buttered toast, a simple and unassuming breakfast staple, right?

Just slap on some butter and you’re good to go – or so we thought. Domestic goddess Nigella Lawson has stirred up a debate by revealing her “correct” way of buttering toast, leaving fans torn over her method.

In a 2020 clip for BBC Two’s ‘Cook Eat Repeat’, Nigella advocates a “two-stage buttering approach”. Cosied up in her garden with a slice of toast, she shares: “I favour the two-stage buttering approach and so far, only stage one has taken place.”

She elaborates: “That is to say, the moment this came out of the toaster and was lovely and hot, I spread it with butter, so the butter has melted down into it and it’ll give it a fabulous, crumpety bite” For most of us, that’s where the story ends, maybe with a dollop of jam or a smear of Marmite to spice things up.

But Nigella insists there’s more. She reveals the second act: “Stage two now, ready for it, I need a little more butter and it will stay in some golden patches on the surface. It is unsalted butter, which I always prefer to use, but what I need to do is sprinkle some sea salt flakes over. This is the platonic ideal of toast.”

Nigella Lawson’s “double buttered toast” has sparked debate among her fans on social media, with some hailing it as genius and others finding it excessively indulgent. One fan tweeted: “Nigella telling people to double butter and salt their toast is the kind of public service announcement I’ve waited MONTHS for.”

Another shared: “I once saw Nigella make toast on the telly. Buttered it when hot. Then allowed it to cool, and buttered it again. It’s a game changer. Probably not the healthiest option mind”.

However, not everyone was convinced, with one user questioning her use of unsalted butter, saying: “I still don’t understand why she used unsalted butter and then sprinkled salt on it instead of just using salted butter.”

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