Making Ghee

[scott123]

Today was my first stab at making ghee. The browning of the milk solids went without a hitch but the straining ended up being a huge hassle.

I thought I had a strainer with a fine enough mesh to do the trick. Alas I did not. My backup plan was a drip coffee filter, which ended up taking about 20 minutes of constant stirring/tapping to get the ghee to flow. Even after all that work I still ended up with a slight haze of milk solid particles floating in my ghee.

There has to be a better way.

The browned milk solids will always sink to the bottom of the ghee, right? I was thinking of freezing the block of unfiltered ghee and then scraping off the bottom layer of milk solids.

Sound good? Any other ideas?

[Modern Day Hermit]

Have you tried cheesecloth? That is what has worked for me. I place the cheesecloth over a fine wire strainer, over a large bowl (it has a hook and a long handle). It is very easy to pour, and stir/scrape along the bottom if necessary.

[Episure]

I just decant it.

[Monica Bhide]

I do the cheesecloth thing too.

[Big Bunny]

Decanting works fine, especially if you use a pan with a pour-out.

You may leave a few drops behind, but probably less than cheese cloth will soak up.

BB

[Monica Bhide]

I do the cheesecloth thing too.

To clarify... pour it out carefully... with out the cheese cloth.. and then use a small piece of cloth to capture the last few drops but not the pieces.

Pour outs are fine.. just need to be slow and steady

[Milagai]

I also decant it.

There is a little left in the pot / pan in which I made the ghee,

but then I cook something in that same vessel (e.g. aloos)

and it gives the dish a great flavour.

milagai

[easyguru]

Try a tea strainer.

What do you do with the solids?

At our place the solids and the remaining small quantity of ghee remaining is used to make a dhirda (maharashtrian style pan cake) using wheat flour, jaggery and yogurt. The solids and slurry left behind by the ghee making gives it a unique taste and flavour. It tastes yum and as kids we use to wait for the ghee dhirdas which was a rare treat.

[whippy]

an old pair of nylons.

if you can imagine.

[scott123]

Thanks, those are some great ideas.

[andiesenji]

I use butter muslin or superfine mesh cheesecloth. You can buy it at Williams-Sonoma on line.

I bought a roll of the stuff years ago from a friend who used to make cheese from her sheep's milk - she moved to northern California so is no longer local for me but I have enough for my own use to last a while.

I make my own cream cheese, cottage cheese and butter - also ghee and use this with excellent results. I also use it for making jellies.

I haven't searched for another source on the web, but unless you are going to be making it in large amounts the W-S stuff should serve you well. It can be washed (use Dawn dish detergent) and dried, it will shrink a bit. Stretch it if you can while it is drying.

[bobmac]

I have been using ghee in a very spicy recipe and wondering what was the point. Wouldn't any delicacy of its flavor be lost in the spices? I've been clarifying the butter in a Pyrex cup in the oven. Today I learned that true ghee comes from allowing the butter solids to brown a bit before removing them, which imparts a nutty flavor, something I suspect ain't gonna happen in the oven (or will it?). What's the best way to proceed?

[tryska]

wait..how are you making your ghee?

i always take a saucepan, drop a stick of salted butter in it, and boil it off on medium, until it get's brownish and nutty smelling (not melted butter smelling).

then i pour it into a cheesecloth covered pyrex measuring cup.

it takes all of 10 minutes, i think.

[morda]

i always take a saucepan, drop a stick of salted butter in it, and boil it off on medium, until it get's brownish and nutty smelling (not melted butter smelling).

Madhur Jaffrey recommends using unsalted butter, rather than salted. The procedure is otherwise the same.

As for using ghee, one of the benefits is that there are no milk solids to burn. Perhaps that is the purpose of using ghee in your particular recipe?

[tryska]

mm...me and madhur have to disagree. My mom always used salted, and i prefer the wee bit of saltiness that stays, to plain unsalted. then it just tastes like grease.

then again i use it like a condiment too, not an ingredient.

Edited June 16, 2004 by tryska (log)

[chefdg]

then again i use it like a condiment too, not an ingredient.

Use ghee as a condiment? Like a spread? Dip?

To me, ghee has one purpose that follows its form; to be able to handle the high temperatures that are necessary in the cooking of Indian food. Ghee is highly clarified butter (unsalted) with a very high smoke point.

If its nutty its wrong, nutty is beurre noir or black butter, French not Indian.

[Monica Bhide]

People use Ghee as a condiment and for cooking. i like to add a spoonful to steamed rice before I eat it. The India forum has had many discussions on this very topic

[Edward]

then again i use it like a condiment too, not an ingredient.

Use ghee as a condiment? Like a spread? Dip?

To me, ghee has one purpose that follows its form; to be able to handle the high temperatures that are necessary in the cooking of Indian food. Ghee is highly clarified butter (unsalted) with a very high smoke point.

If its nutty its wrong, nutty is beurre noir or black butter, French not Indian.

In traditional Indian cooking ghee is very often used as a condiment. It is almost compulsory alongside any type of kitcheree.

In contrast to your opinion about ghee being wrong if it is nutty- I feel the exact opposite. The sugars really must be carmelized for it to be ghee, otherwise it is just clarified butter. In fact, Julie Sahni actually describes ghee as a clarified brown butter.

On another note, I know many cooks who don't even bother to strain their ghee. They just let the solids stick to the bottom of the pan. The ghee is cloudier, but works exactly the same.

[lorea]

Is it okay to use ghee as a replacement for clarified butter when cooking non-Indian food? I've been doing it this way out of laziness (ghee comes in a nice, packaged jar). Is there any time you wouldn't want to use ghee as a replacement?

[Monica Bhide]

If its nutty its wrong, nutty is beurre noir or black butter, French not Indian.

Hmm.. interesting perspective. I have always known Ghee to have a nutty flavor. Perhaps our description of nutty is different somehow?

[Edward]

Is it okay to use ghee as a replacement for clarified butter when cooking non-Indian food? I've been doing it this way out of laziness (ghee comes in a nice, packaged jar). Is there any time you wouldn't want to use ghee as a replacement?

I find that pre-packaged ghee has a lighter flavor than homemade ghee. So, it makes perfect sense to use it in place of clarified butter, but ghee can often have a much stronger flavor. There may be times where the strong flavor of ghee might be overpowering in a French type dish.

What do you think Monica?

[Monica Bhide]

Is it okay to use ghee as a replacement for clarified butter when cooking non-Indian food?  I've been doing it this way out of laziness (ghee comes in a nice, packaged jar).  Is there any time you wouldn't want to use ghee as a replacement?

I find that pre-packaged ghee has a lighter flavor than homemade ghee. So, it makes perfect sense to use it in place of clarified butter, but ghee can often have a much stronger flavor. There may be times where the strong flavor of ghee might be overpowering in a French type dish.

What do you think Monica?

I have only done French Indian so my opinion is biased. The store bought jars are milder so I am assuming it should be okay

[Suzanne F]

When butter is on sale, I buy extra and make a large batch of ghee -- from maybe 2 pounds of whole unsalted butter. Just drop it in a large saucepan over low heat, let it come to a boil, skim, and cook until it appears to be done (sediment dark brown but not burnt). I must say, I use ghee and clarified butter interchangeably. I only use it in place of clarified for sauteing, so I don't think any other flavors would be overpowered. And if I ever were to use if for, say, hollandaise, I think it would be all to the better for the sauce.

[tryska]

then again i use it like a condiment too, not an ingredient.

Use ghee as a condiment? Like a spread? Dip?

To me, ghee has one purpose that follows its form; to be able to handle the high temperatures that are necessary in the cooking of Indian food. Ghee is highly clarified butter (unsalted) with a very high smoke point.

If its nutty its wrong, nutty is beurre noir or black butter, French not Indian.

imo, ghee is a must have, if you are having rice and dal. or kidgeree as edward said.

and you can use it pretty much how you would use butter. spread it on bread (my mom used to top bread or roti with ghee and some sugar for breakfast). it's good over just plain rice too.

and i would have to disagree with you on the nuttiness. to me, any melted butter that hasn't had the milk solids browned is jsut melted butter. not quite cooked yet. it's one of the main reasons i don't like getting bottled, pre-fab ghee. it's smells funny because it hasn't been browned.

[tryska]

also just researched buerre noire:

Beurre Noir (F) [burr NWAR] = French for "black butter," referring to butter cooked over low heat until dark brown (not black).  Beurre noir is usually flavored with vinegar or lemon juice, capers and parsley and served with eggs, fish, brains and some vegetables.

Beurre Noisette (F) [burr nwahZEHT] = French for "brown butter," referring to butter cooked to a light hazelnut (noisette) color.  It is prepared in the same manner as buerre noire.

ghee is properly done when it's buerre noisette actually. if you took it to black it would taste charred. i think the main difference here is that with the french styles - it's not clarified (at least not according to the aforementioned definitions) so you don't just get the fat, you get the milk solids too, and it gets incorporated with other flavors to make a sauce.

ghee is just the oil separated out after you've gotten to buerre noisette.

Edited June 17, 2004 by tryska (log)