Ghee (Clarified Butter)

by Cat, July 2008 (Photo, right, from Wikimedia Commons)

Jar of Ghee

See also: Butter & Buttermilk

Recipes using ghee: Search all. Here are a few examples: Cauliflower Curry;  Chicken Curry with Mangoes or with Pearl Onions; Coconut Salmon Curry; Naan (East-Indian Flatbread)

Ghee, a form of clarified butter, is available in most Natural food stores; but you can easily make your own.  It will keep well up to 5 or 6 weeks without refrigeration, and even longer in the refrigerator.  Ghee is essential for most Indian recipes, such as Naan.  Of course, you can always use melted butter, but the real thing is so much better, because it can tolerate a higher heat than regular butter, and also offers some unique health benefits.

Mercola has an excellent article on why ghee is better for your health than regular butter (3)

I recommend using Organic butter from grass-fed cows.  In my part of Montana, an excellent local brand is Lifeline (a bio-dynamic dairy in Victor, MT).  Kerry Gold Butter (imported from Ireland) is another excellent brand.  Or, you can make your own butter from raw or good quality pasteurized milk (see Butter & Buttermilk).

Homemade Ghee

Ingredients & Equipment:

• 1 pound unsalted butter (or more)
• slotted spoon for skimming
• heavy-bottomed 1 or 2 quart saucepan
• cheesecloth

Method:

1. Melt butter in a heavy bottomed saucepan over medium heat.
2. When it is entirely melted, carefully skim off the foam from the top and discard it.  Heat butter again until it foams, and skim once more.
3. Repeat the warming and skimming twice more, until all the foam is gone.
4. Carefully decant the melted ghee into a container, pouring if off until only the fine sediment at the bottom of the pan is left (Or pour through a cheesecloth-lined strainer). Discard (compost) the sediment.

See What’s Cooking America (2) for more about clarified butter and ghee.

References:

1. The Vegetarian Epicure, by Anna Thomas
2. whatscookingamerica.net/Q-A/ButterGhee.htm
3. articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2018/05/14/is-ghee-better-than-butter.aspx