What is ghee? It is clarified butter. Yup, you make it out of butter. It tastes different though. If you are lactose intolerant, you can easily digest ghee. That’s because the lactose and the casein from the butter is removed while clarifying it.

Ayurveda has used this for thousands of years in cooking and external application.

It is one of the few oils that can be heated safely without oxidising. It has a very high smoke point (which means it doesn’t burn at high temperatures or lose important nutrients), making it a very safe oil to cook with.

There are numerous benefits of using ghee in your everyday cooking or baking.

It helps to reduce the risk of cancer due to its high CLA (conjugated linoleic acid) content. It could help with weight loss, fighting inflammation and improving the health of your gut.

Ghee also contains vitamins A, D and E. These vitamins help maintain bone strength, is good for the heart and brain, eyes, skin and balances hormones (among many other benefits).

It has also been proven to heal wounds fast and very effectively if applied topically.

Be mindful though and choose organic grass fed butter to make the ghee as this will have a higher CLA level. It will also ensure that it is free from hormones and antibiotics.

I use it everyday in my cooking and baking. I keep it stored in a glass jar with a cork top (as you can see in the images) and it keeps for weeks. It usually disappears before it spoils.

I don’t keep it in the fridge, but you can. It will harden in cooler temperatures and melt in warmer temperatures.

You can use the milk solids (after straining the ghee) to make an Indian sweet. Heat it in a pan on low heat till it thickens, then add some honey to it and stir. Cool and enjoy. It tastes wonderful.

As with everything, don’t use an excessive amount. Everything in moderation.

REFERENCES

Lee KW, Lee HJ, Cho HY, Kim YJ. Role of the conjugated linoleic acid in the prevention of cancer. Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr. 2005;45(2):135–144. doi:10.1080/10408690490911800

Kotian S, Bhat K, Pai S, et al. The Role of Natural Medicines on Wound Healing: A Biomechanical, Histological, Biochemical and Molecular Study. Ethiop J Health Sci. 2018;28(6):759–770. doi:10.4314/ejhs.v28i6.11

Effects of cow ghee (clarified butter oil) & soybean oil on carcinogen-metabolizing enzymes in rats

Rita Rani and Vinod K. Kansal* Indian J Med Res. 2012 Sep; 136(3): 460–465. PMCID: PMC3510893 PMID: 23041740

0 Comments

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *