Ghee is a type of clarified butter used in Indian and other cuisines. It can be made at home by heating unsalted butter and straining out the milk solids. Ghee has a higher smoke point and can be used as a cooking oil. It can also be flavored with herbs.
Ghee, called ghee in Indian cooking, is a type of butter that is liquid in color and clear. It is butter from which much of the additional moisture and milk solids have been removed through a careful process of heating and straining, sometimes called rendering. Ghee can keep for several months in the refrigerator, tends to be slightly lower in calories, and is used in a variety of sauces, or simply as a dip. Lobster would never be the same without being dipped in the ghee it is normally served with.
While you can occasionally buy ghee in Asian or Indian markets, it’s also quite easy to make at home. You should start with unsalted butter, as salt can mess up the fining process. You can make ghee in small batches or large, with literally one cube at a time or several pounds at a time. Because the milk solids are removed, you’ll end up with less butter than you started with, so you may want to keep that in mind and make a slightly larger amount than you need. Plus, you can store unused ghee in the fridge for the next time you need it.
The recipes for making ghee differ slightly. All require the butter to be heated, so some suggest skimming off the foam that begins to form on top when the butter reaches a near boiling point. An easier method is to simply turn the heat down on the butter to a simmer when it begins to foam. This will cause the foam, which is actually small milk solids, to fall down to the bottom of the pot. Once the butter turns a golden color, simply pour the butter through a strainer to catch the milk solids. Paper coffee filters work very well if you don’t have a fine filter. Once filtered, the butter is considered clarified.
Many people like to use ghee as a cooking oil. This is how it is often used in India and many other cuisines. Unlike unghee, ghee has a much higher smoke point, so it can be used in dishes that require longer cooking or hot temperatures without worrying about browning too quickly or burning. Some chefs, however, find ghee to be less flavorful than butter that hasn’t been rendered. Others find the lighter taste of ghee very appealing.
Some national cuisines add herbs to ghee to make a herb flavored oil. In Ethiopia, ghee is often served with the addition of garlic and ginger. Similarly in French cuisine, dishes such as escargot are usually served or seasoned with garlic and parsley ghee.
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