Ghee (Clarified Butter)

[g.johnson]

butter taken in moderation

Lightweight.

[Fat Guy]

Don't you want to hear my definition of moderation before you reach any conclusions?

[Suzanne F]

Oh, do you maybe mean moderation is not more than 1/4 pound per person per day?

Butter is wonderful. Of course, so is extra virgin olive oil, and duck fat. I don't wish to slight anyone else's tastes, but for me, butter holds a slight edge.

[Fat Guy]

Me too. Butter is definitely my favorite fat. I could get by in life without all the others, but not without butter. That being said there are specific applications in which butter is not the best tasting fat, and there are also applications where butter just doesn't perform. I mean, you can't make a vinaigrette with butter, at least I don't think you can. Duck fat is really superb for deep frying, another thing you can't do all that well with butter (though Charlie Palmer's sea scallop sandwiches from Aureole are deep fried in clarified butter and are lovely). And in many baking applications you do better with shortening, or a mix of shortening and butter. But I love butter most of all.

By the way, for those who have found this butter discussion interesting, I should mention that I'm trying to convince some publisher somewhere to let me write a book that is essentially a series of chapters just like this thread: A guide to the building blocks of cuisine, like butter and salt and eggs and such. It seems to me that most cookbooks ignore these basics, yet most home cooks don't really have the information on how to understand and get the most out of these ingredients, which are after all the foundations of most Western recipes.

[ruthcooks]

Yes, you can make brown butter vinagrette, or at least Ming Tsai does. He serves this with "Lomi" Salmon Tartare.

Brown Butter Vinaigrette

4 ounces butter

3 tablespoons passion fruit juice

1/4 cup fresh orange juice

1 tablespoon chopped shallots

1 teaspoon chopped ginger

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon sugar

Salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste

To make the vinaigrette, heat the butter in a small skillet over low heat until it browns, 15 to 20 minutes. Watch carefully as the butter can burn quickly. The butter should have a nutty aroma. In a blender, combine the passion fruit juice, orange juice, shallots, ginger, mustard, and sugar and blend until pureed. While the machine is running, slowly add the browned butter to make an emulsion. Be careful, as the mixture may foam up when the hot butter is added. Season with salt and pepper and set aside. The vinaigrette should be served slightly warm.

Recipe from Ming Tsai and Tom Berry

[Fat Guy]

Sounds nice. Do us a favor, though, Ruth: Can you post a link to that recipe instead of its full text? We probably don't have permission to reprint it here. Thanks!

[anm]

Resuscitating an old thread ..addition of drop of milk/curd when the ghee is almost ready [it causes a good amount spluttering so be careful] ,ensures that the ghee solidfies once it reaches room temperature . Can any one shed light on why ? If no dairy drops were added it would result in a half liquid or solidified mass at room temp .

[andiesenji]

There is some chemical reaction that acts similar to curd formation in milk and I don't have a clue as to the technical aspects but have some experience with the seemingly odd characteristics of dairy products.

I use a buttermilk/melted butter(cooled) mixture in some quick breads and it is amazing how quickly the buttermilk thickens as soon as the melted and cooled but still liquid butter is stirred into it.

I used to recommend the procedure in an online cookbook to people who wanted to try it but came across this site several months ago and think that the instructions and photos here are much clearer.

http://blog.asmartmouth.com/2008/10/10/homemade-indian-ghee-if-you-dare/

You might post a question in the blog and ask the same question.

[Dianabanana]

Whenever making ghee, the cook is entitled to a little dividend at the end: Add some jaggery or light brown sugar to the milk solid sediments left in the pan and stir over low heat. Eat with a spoon and swoon.

[andiesenji]

Whenever making ghee, the cook is entitled to a little dividend at the end: Add some jaggery or light brown sugar to the milk solid sediments left in the pan and stir over low heat. Eat with a spoon and swoon.

I just spoon it onto Holland Rusk (which I order by the case so as to always have a "sufficient" supply.

Although, I must say that your solution sounds good, however I am a diabetic and have to use discretion in the consumption of sugars.

Addendum: I have been using ghee for years, whenever I handle phyllo dough and have found it to be easier to get an even coating on the sheets.

[Jenni]

Whenever making ghee, the cook is entitled to a little dividend at the end: Add some jaggery or light brown sugar to the milk solid sediments left in the pan and stir over low heat. Eat with a spoon and swoon.

Or add the solids to some freshly cooked rice...

[anm]

There is some chemical reaction that acts similar to curd formation in milk and I don't have a clue as to the technical aspects but have some experience with the seemingly odd characteristics of dairy products.

I use a buttermilk/melted butter(cooled) mixture in some quick breads and it is amazing how quickly the buttermilk thickens as soon as the melted and cooled but still liquid butter is stirred into it.

I used to recommend the procedure in an online cookbook to people who wanted to try it but came across this site several months ago and think that the instructions and photos here are much clearer.

http://blog.asmartmouth.com/2008/10/10/homemade-indian-ghee-if-you-dare/

You might post a question in the blog and ask the same question.

Thank you ! The curd/milk tip came from my mom

[Bonnie Deahl]

I have made ghee using unsalted, organic butter. It turned out very nice and has a nice nutty flavor. I like using it in indian cooking when called for. As for the tadka discussion.. I totally agree that the tadka makes the dal. It seems like the adding of a signature to the dal. I have not encountered another cuisine that uses tadka as a flavor element except in indian cuisines. Ghee seems like a flavorful carrier for distributing the infused spices into an otherwise blank pallete such as a simple dal preparation. I would like to try Suvir's Panchkuti dal recipe. It looks like a complex dal that must be heavenly.

[andiesenji]

There is some chemical reaction that acts similar to curd formation in milk and I don't have a clue as to the technical aspects but have some experience with the seemingly odd characteristics of dairy products.

I use a buttermilk/melted butter(cooled) mixture in some quick breads and it is amazing how quickly the buttermilk thickens as soon as the melted and cooled but still liquid butter is stirred into it.

I used to recommend the procedure in an online cookbook to people who wanted to try it but came across this site several months ago and think that the instructions and photos here are much clearer.

http://blog.asmartmouth.com/2008/10/10/homemade-indian-ghee-if-you-dare/

You might post a question in the blog and ask the same question.

Thank you ! The curd/milk tip came from my mom

Apparently I didn't make my statement clear. The procedure I recommended was the "recipe" for making ghee that is in an online cookbook (not mine, I don't have one).

I saw the buttermilk/melted butter procedure on a Cook's Illustrated show in 2005 and happened to tape it.