Ghee Nutrition: Benefits of the Indian Clarified Butter

Ghee nutrition has a long history. Ghee nutrition has been used in Indian cooking for many thousands of years. Ghee is an essential (and nutritional) element in much of Indian cuisine, much the way butter or margarine is used in American cooking. Ghee nutrition transcends the cooking realm, as ghee is also often used in religious ceremonies and various healing arts in Indian culture. Ghee's nutrition and healthy properties are touted as ideal for anyone from athletes to simple dieters.

Ghee Nutrition

Ghee is in fact a form of clarified butter. If you've eaten lobster or crab before, you may be more familiar with the term "drawn butter", which is essentially the same thing, although often many people will simply melt some butter and call it drawn butter. The process of clarifying butter is a bit more complex. The butter is melted and simmered (this process is also called "rendered") in a pot or large saucepan until three layers form: a foamy, watery layer, which is skimmed off, a solid butter layer, and a milk solids layer. The separated butter is the clarified butter, a liquid mass of rich, golden butterfat.

Chefs often use clarified butter because it will not burn during frying (this is known as a high smoking point), and possesses a more buttery flavor. The longer the melted butter cooks, the more intense the resulting flavor of the clarified butter will be. 

Ghee lacks hydrogenated oils and is a popular choice for health-conscious cooks as well. Additionally, since all the milk proteins have been removed during the clarifying process, ghee gains further nutritional value because it's lactose free, making it a safer alternative for those who are lactose intolerant.