If there is one thing that Ayurvedic cooking cannot do without, it is definitely ghee! The clarified butter has great advantages over other fats and can be used not only for frying and deep-frying, but also for all health purposes. But: What exactly is ghee? You can find out everything about the use of ghee, whether the pure fat is healthy or unhealthy and much more here. Of course, we also have a recipe for you to make your own g hee.
Ghee in German: What is actually ghee butter?
Ghee is nothing other than clarified butter. Clarified butter has almost 100 percent fat content, a rich yellow colour and a somewhat firmer consistency. The smell is more intense than that of unclarified butter. During production, the water content evaporates completely and animal protein and lactose settle out. But wait - pure fat? Can that be healthy?
Is ghee healthy or unhealthy?
In fact, ghee is the healthiest of all the types of fat we can use in everyday life. This is because the end result of the manufacturing process contains 70 percent saturated fatty acids. Contrary to the long-held belief that saturated fatty acids are unhealthy, we now know that the exact opposite is true.
Ghee is also healthy because it contains vitamins D, E and A. However, we have to say that you would have to eat a good amount of ghee to cover your entire daily requirement. Moreover, not all ghee is the same: the quality of the butter plays a major role.
Is ghee vegan?
Making clarified butter without butter - that's where even Ayurvedic cooking reaches its limits. Ghee according to the traditional recipe is therefore not vegan, as it is necessarily made from animal fat. However, more and more health food shops now sell vegan ghee. Alternatively, you can use high-quality coconut fat instead of ghee - vegan Ayurvedic cooking likes to help itself with alternatives of this kind.
Effect and possibilities for ghee application
In Ayurveda, ghee is highly valued, and for good reason! Because you can use the golden yellow fat wonderfully for various purposes, be it for cooking, as a medicinal measure or for the Skin care.
Ghee as clarified butter for cooking
One of the main reasons why ghee is so perfect for cooking is that, unlike other fats, you can easily heat it up.
The fatty acids remain stable up to temperatures of 180°C, so that you can fry meat, fish or vegetables with ghee. No dangerous trans fatty acids are produced, which can cause cardiovascular diseases, among other things.
What's more, ghee is easy to digest and gives your food a pleasant, mild buttery taste. This is exactly why ghee is also good for baking.
However, ghee is still pure fat, so you should not overdo it - just as Ayurveda teaches for every area of life anyway.
Ghee for health
When you cook with ghee, your digestive fire, the agni, is happy. It is promoted by the Ayurvedic clarified butter, and ghee also helps to regenerate the stomach after gastrointestinal inflammation, for example.
Overall, ghee has a purifying effect and detoxifies the body, as it binds and eliminates toxins in the body. There is even medicinal ghee: the butter is mixed with medicinal herbs and simmered for up to 4 days. This is said to intensify the effect of the herbs. Incidentally, it is said that ghee can even lower cholesterol levels.
By the way: You can even use ghee against dry eyes. Simply heat 2-3 tablespoons in a water bath and use a thermometer to make sure that the temperature does not exceed 33°C. Bathe your eyes in the liquid ghee twice a week for 10 minutes each time and the annoying itching and scratching should soon be a thing of the past.
Ghee for skin and face care
Whether internal or external inflammation: You can do a lot with ghee. The anti-inflammatory effect of the clarified butter helps, for example, to prevent scars and blistering or to reduce redness. You can also use ghee to care for psoriasis.
Ghee can also be used in normal skin care routines, for example, it is good for removing make-up in the evening. And ghee can be used for a little wellness before going to bed. Massage the soles of your feet with ghee. This is said to improve sleep. You can find more massage oils in our online shop.
In the morning, you can try oil pulling. Put some ghee in your mouth and swish it through your teeth for 20 minutes. It is very important that you spit out the ghee immediately afterwards and brush your teeth with a separate toothbrush. This is because the fat removes toxins from your mouth and throat, which you should logically not swallow again. Oil pulling prevents tooth decay and inflammation. In Ayurvedic hygiene, the use of mouth care oil is particularly recommended.
Ghee: Advantages of the Indian cooking fat for the kitchen
In principle, the advantages can be summarised in three main points:
- Ghee can be heated to a high temperature: While liquid butter or other oils burn protein when heated strongly, this does not happen with hot ghee. Even at well over 100 degrees, the fatty acids remain intact and do not oxidise. This prevents the formation of free radicals, which are generally considered unhealthy.
- Ghee lasts a very long time: while butter eventually goes rancid, ghee can even be kept unrefrigerated for weeks.
- Lactose intolerance? No problem with ghee: the lactose content in ghee is so low that it can be consumed by lactose-intolerant people.
Use ghee as a medicine?
The Ayurvedic purification therapy Pancha-Karma takes place in two phases: First, there is a so-called preliminary cure and then the main cure. During the preliminary cure, waste products and toxins are dissolved - the remedy for this is the pure butter fat ghee. After this preliminary cure, the first complaints may subside, and lightness and joie de vivre return. This shows that ghee does have an effect, because it binds toxins and the body can successfully eliminate them. This is good for the digestive tract, because ghee has a regenerative effect on the stomach in particular.
Where can I get ghee butter?
Are you curious and would like to find out for yourself what ghee is all about? Then you now have two options: You can buy the ghee or invest a little time to make ghee yourself.
Where can I buy ghee?
Making high-quality ghee takes time. If your schedule is already full enough or you don't quite dare to start the production process yet, you can buy the ready-made ghee quickly and easily in many health food shops. You can also get our original Ayurveda g hee from controlled organic farming at our Sonnhof shop.
Make your own ghee: the recipe
It's not that difficult to make your own ghee. For this you need:
- Organic pasture butter / sweet cream butter
- A wide pot, ideally made of stainless steel
- A sterile canning jar with a swing stopper or a screw jar
- A cotton cloth or alternatively coffee filter
Another important ingredient: patience! You should allow at least one hour for making ghee and not be distracted during this time. When making ghee, simply follow these step-by-step instructions and everything will work:
[su_carousel source="media: 4380,4381,4382,4383″ link="image" height="250″]
- Cut the butter into pieces and add it to the pot. It is important that it is not too high in the potwhen it is liquid.
- Let the butter melt over a low heat without browning.
- Increase the heat briefly until the butter comes to the boil.
- Reduce the heat again and let the butter simmer for about 30-40 minutes. Depending on the amount of butter, it may take longer - patience is needed here, just don't rush it!
- Keep skimming off the egg white foam that forms on the surface. The ghee is ready when there is no more foam and the fat has a clear colour.
- Take the pot off the cooker and let the ghee cool for a few seconds. Meanwhile, place the cotton cloth over the opening of your preserving jar.
- Pour the ghee through the cloth into the glass. Alternatively, use a coffee filter for straining.
- Close the jar well. If you have a screw-top jar, you can turn it upside down briefly. This creates a vacuum, which makes the ghee last even longer.
You do not need to store the finished ghee in a jar in the refrigerator, just avoid direct sunlight. Be sure to stay on the cooker the whole time the fat is simmering so that you can take the pot off the cooker immediately if something burns. Do not stir the butter.
As you can see, making your own ghee is not magic. You may need one or two attempts until you are absolutely satisfied with the result, but practice makes perfect. And then all that remains is to try out all the positive effects of ghee on your own body - you certainly won't regret it!
Ghee use: Possible in every recipe!
Whenever a recipe says something about frying, roasting and baking, you can also use ghee instead of the different types of oil or butter. Just try it out to see if and when it tastes good.
Also in Ayurvedic breakfast ghee is used and can be integrated well. Simply stir a tablespoon into the oatmeal, which can give Vata types in particular an energetic start to the day. For those who like a light breakfast with fruit: It can be fried in a pan with a little ghee, so it is easier to digest. Good luck!
Cover photo: © colnihko - stock.adobe.com
