How to Make Ghee - How We Flourish (2024)

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When I started GAPS Intro, one of the many things I had to do was learn how to make ghee.

I had never used it before, as I love me some butter. But part of the GAPS Intro process is introducing ghee in Stage Two. And later when I learned that dairy – even butter – was triggering acne, ghee became a staple in my diet.

Even a little bit of milk solids left in the bottom of my ghee could make me break out if I accidentally ate them, so my ghee needed to be clean. Bought from the store, this is guaranteed. But that stuff is expensive! Rule #1 of real food on a budget is to make it myself.

I struggled with this, however. I just couldn’t get it to separate properly, and I couldn’t figure out what I was doing wrong! Soon I learned: there is a difference between clarified butter and ghee.

They are very similar, as both involve heating butter to remove water, casein, and lactose. Ghee, however, cooks for longer and has a more toasted flavor. Not only is the flavor slightly different, but it is also easier to get everything out. It leaves you with pure dairy fat that most people can tolerate, even if sensitive to dairy.

Oh, and it tastes so good.

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How to Make Ghee

Choosing your butter: Quality of butter is most important. Ideally, you will want organic butter from grass-fed cows. Cultured butter is also amazing, but not necessary. If you have the choice between salted and unsalted, go with unsalted. I find that most of the salt stays with the milk solids, so it is not a big deal if you plan on throwing those out. But if you feed them to someone, like I do to my husband, unsalted butter makes them better.

You can start your butter from frozen, refrigerated, or softened. Whichever you choose will affect your cooking time. I use refrigerated butter unless I forget to pull some out of the freezer. I find it is easiest to get the wrappers off when refrigerated.

Many methods for making ghee use a cast iron pan and the stove. I have tried this method and failed almost every time. I either do not cook the ghee enough, or I burn it terribly and waste an entire pound of butter. It is a problem. Luckily, there is a fool proof method that will give you perfect ghee every time: the oven!

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With this method, simply preheat your oven to 250°F, place your butter into a casserole dish or cast iron pan, and place in the oven for about an hour. No muss, no fuss. You can just forget it until the timer goes off with no chance of it burning! See below for more detailed instructions and what to look for to ensure the ghee is done.

The biggest trick is ensuring that the ghee is obtained without bringing any of the milk solids with. I employ a few different transfer techniques for this, including a fine mesh strainer, a spoon, and decanting. Your sensitivity to dairy will affect how careful you have to be.

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Halfway through my separation process

Ghee is shelf stable and can be stored in a glass mason jar at room temperature. I always keep mine in the refrigerator just to be safe, but take it out half an hour before meals (if I remember) to let it soften a bit. It is hard as a rock in the fridge!

Garlic Infused Ghee

Before we get to the detailed recipe, I want to share my favorite way to make ghee: garlic-infused ghee! I discovered this when I decided to eliminate FODMAPS for a couple weeks and couldn’t bear the idea of no garlic. Since FODMAPS are water soluble, oils and fats can be infused with the flavor of the garlic without taking on any of the FODMAPS some people with digestive issues need to avoid. Try frying salmon in garlic infused ghee or pouring it over green beans. WOW! Whether you need to avoid FODMAPS or not, that will change your life.

To make garlic infused ghee, chop or crush 6-10 cloves of garlic. 6 is what is generally recommended, but I really like garlic. I use a lot. Put the garlic in the oven-safe dish with the butter and let them bake together the whole hour that you are making your ghee. When the ghee is finished, strain the garlic out with the milk solids. Simple, and amazing.

Both regular and garlic-infused ghee are safe for Stage Two of GAPS Intro.

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How to Make Ghee (plus garlic infused ghee)

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Yield: 10 oz

Serving Size: 1 tbsp

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Ghee is a healthy fat that can be enjoyed during GAPS Intro and by many people with dairy sensitivities.

Ingredients

  • 1 pound organic, grass-fed butter
  • (optional) 6-10 cloves of garlic

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 250°F.
  2. Add butter and garlic (if using) to an oven safe dish or cast iron pan.
  3. Place dish in the oven.
  4. Cook for one hour.
  5. Remove pan from oven. The butter should be separated into three layers: a milk layer on the top, a golden ghee layer in the center, and some milk solids stuck to the bottom.
  6. Allow to cool for 20-30 minutes, allowing the top layer to harden.
  7. Pour everything through a fine mesh strainer or cheese cloth into a container with a spout (such as a measuring cup), separating out most of the milk solids.
  8. Skim any milk solids off of the top and wipe the spout clean. You may have some fine milk solids sink to the bottom.
  9. Decant the ghee into a pint sized mason jar, ensuring that no milk solids go with.
  10. Store in the refrigerator or on the counter.

Notes

The milk solids can be discarded, or eaten by a dairy-tolerant family member. My husband loves my garlic and milk solid scraps stirred into soup or spread on a slice of bread.

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How to Make Ghee - How We Flourish (2024)

FAQs

How can we improve the quality of ghee? ›

1. Higher the quality of the milk, better the ghee : Like with any food item, the source of it makes all the difference. Ghee is a dairy product and the best quality ghee comes from the best quality of milk.

How to make granular ghee? ›

To make a grainy ghee—instead of refrigeration, cool your ghee more slowly by placing the melted ghee on the countertop and covering with a kitchen towel to cool overnight. The result should be a ghee with a more grainy texture, which you can then close with a lid and leave at room temperature.

What are the steps of making ghee? ›

Put butter in then let it melt over medium-low heat. Leave to simmer for 10 minutes - it will start to foam at about 5 minutes, then at 7 minutes most of the foam will be gone, and by the end the foam should be almost all gone. The ghee is ready when the milk solids that settle on the base of the pan turn golden.

Is ghee healthier than butter? ›

Ghee is a natural food with a long history of medicinal and culinary uses. It provides certain cooking advantages over butter and is certainly preferable if you have a dairy intolerance. Both can be enjoyed in moderation as part of a healthy diet. However, no evidence suggests that it's healthier than butter overall.

How to increase the aroma of ghee? ›

In order to defuse the strong smell of boiling butter, just tear a few tulsi leaves and add them to the boiling butter. This will not only reduce the foul smell but will also make the final resultant, that is ghee, smell much nicer. Tulsi will add a unique herby essence to the ghee.

How to make ghee according to Ayurveda? ›

Churning the curd bi-directionally — Clockwise and Anti-Clockwise — is to be done. As the churning process ends, the ayurvedic butter is produced and separated. The butter is now melted and boiled. At the end of this process, the ghee is almost ready and will start emitting the divine aroma.

What is the best butter for ghee? ›

In ghee, most of the lactose sugar and proteins are removed. * This results in a final product that can be easier for some to digest! When making ghee, it's best to use organic, grass-fed unsalted butter.

Which method is most energy efficient for making ghee? ›

Energy consumption during ghee boiling step in the three methods was significantly different from each other. Highest energy was consumed in direct cream method of ghee preparation, followed by creamery butter method and least energy was consumed in pre-stratification method of ghee preparation.

Which ghee making process is best? ›

But best and traditional method is to churn curds or Indian yoghurt. The taste and flavor of ghee made from cultured butter is much superior than the one made with regular butter churned from cream. So most traditional Indian households make ghee from scratch without any shortcuts.

Should ghee be refrigerated? ›

As the milk solids have been removed, ghee doesn't go rancid as rapidly as ordinary butter does, so refrigeration is not so essential. However, it will extend its life, so it's worth keeping opened shop-bought ghee or homemade ghee in the fridge.

Is ghee inflammatory? ›

As we know, cow ghee has various properties like antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, wound healing, etc., so in this study, it is used as an ointment base and other ointment bases and evaluated for its compatibility with other ointment bases.

Is olive oil or ghee healthier? ›

Conclusion. Both olive oil and ghee have important health advantages and belong in a diet that is well-balanced. Your decision should be based on your food preferences, cooking techniques, and health objectives.

How to make ghee taste better? ›

If you cook ghee for too long, you'll end up with delicious brown butter! That just means the milk solids on the bottom became caramelized, giving it a delicious toffee or butterscotch flavor. Brown butter is great for making desserts like brown butter cookies, banana bread, or even brownies.

What are the factors affecting ghee quality? ›

The quality of ghee depends on milk, cream, dahi or butter, methods of preparation, tem- perature of clarification, storage conditions, and type of animal feed. These factors in turn will determine the physicochemical characteristics of ghee.

What are the qualities of good ghee? ›

A. Identifying pure desi ghee involves looking for characteristics such as a pleasant aroma, a bright golden to pale yellow colour depending on the milk source, and a grainy texture, which is a sign of high quality. A good quality desi cow ghee will also tend to separate in layers with changes in temperature.

How do I know what ghee is best? ›

Place a spoonful of ghee against a well-lit background, such as a white plate. Pure ghee should appear transparent, allowing light to pass through. Any cloudiness or opaqueness might suggest impurities or low quality. The ability of ghee to transmit light is a good indicator of its purity.

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