Ghee is a lovely fat, beloved in India and the sub-continennt. It is used for cooking basting, brushed on breads, drizzled on hot rice or lentils, fed to kids even used as a skin moisturizer. I love ghee for many of my recipes for its outstanding flavor, I always use it in small portion because it is pure saturated fat.

Ghee is a good choice of fat compared to refined oils because it has some nutritional benefits, however its predominantly saturated fat so portion control must be managed.

Making ghee the modern way is much easier than the traditional ghee making process. For this I highly recommend using cultured unsalted butter over standard sweet cream butter. Cultured butter has added bacterial cultures so it has probiotic benefits, however the bacterias are destroyed when cooking, but because its cultured there are some: (*extracted from various sources on the Internet)

Lactose tolerance: Lactic acid bacteria eats considerable amounts of the lactose sugars during fermentation, making it easier to tolerate for people with lactose sensitivities.
Higher butyrate: The fermentation process increases levels of butyrate, a short-chain fatty acid that nourishes the cells lining the colon and helps reduce inflammation.
Probiotic benefits : Live cultures used in traditional unheated preparations can introduce beneficial microbes to support a healthy microbiome. ( *though most of it is killed while cooking ghee)
Nutrients: Ghee made with cultured butter is a great source of fat-soluble Vitamins A, D, E, and K, as well as Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA), which may support healthy weight regulation and cardiovascular function when portion size is managed.

How To Make Ghee

Start with one pound of unsalted cultured butter. This would make about 1.5- 2 cups of ghee. (remember cooking will evaporate lots of moisture so you’ll will end up with less final product.
Add the butter to a large pot and turn on the heat. Allow the butter to melt then turn up the heat. In a few minutes the butter will start to sizzle and pop. This is the moisture evaporating(water cooking off) Stir so the evaporation happens evenly also you don’t want to milk solids to starting settling and caramelizing too soon.
The popping and sizzling will slow down after about 7-8 minutes (depending on the quantity of butter ) while the heat is still on medium-high sprinkle some water with just your finger tips. To do this dip the tips of you fingers in water and sprinkle on the bubbling ghee. The bubbling will intensify but will quickly calm done. We do this so the ghee will have a grainy texture, which we Indian love, also called (Da-nay-dar Ghee)grainy ghee.
Once the sizzling stops do not stir the ghee. Allow it to cook for another 1-3 minutes without disturbing( you want all the solids to settle at the bottom and caramelize. Maillard reaction!.
Turn the heat off and allow the ghee to cool. Transfer carefully so the brown bits don’t get transferred to your container.
The caramelized brown bits are delicious and can be eaten or used in any recipe or baking, or over toast or simply eaten as is!
Your ghee can be stored at room temperature or in the fridge for longer life if you’re not a regular ghee user. Only thing to remember it will be rock solid in the fridge and you may have to melt it in the microwave to use.