Ghee The Healthy Fat You Need To Try!
Newer research is shining a light on the benefits of healthy fats and positive effects they can have on our health. The word is spreading, individuals are now learning that fats shouldn’t be avoided. The next big question is, what fats should I be eating? Most people are starting with some more commonly known sources of fat, like avocados, nuts, and olive oil. One source that may not have been on your radar is ghee, also known as “liquid gold.” This form of butter is better known in other cultures but is becoming more popular in the United States.
Ghee taste like butter but has a more intense flavor, allowing you to use less. Ghee is unsalted butter that is heated causing the milk to separate into a solid and liquid. If you remove the solid, you are left with a clarified butter called Ghee.
These nutrition benefits include:
• Lactose and casein free, allowing lactose intolerant individuals to consume this butter.
• It has a higher smoke point. This is relevant because if you use an oil or butter and cook past its smoke point it starts to oxide creating free radicals, which is something that we would want to avoid. Free radicals do harm to the body. Ghee has a smoke point of 485 degrees Fahrenheit, which is significantly high, and much higher than regular butter which starts to smoke around 385 degrees.
• Ghee can help your digestive system. It is rich in butyric acid and short chain fatty acids, helping support your natural intestinal cells. Many digestive issues such as Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Crohn’s disease, and ulcerative colitis receive a positive effect from the butyric acid.
• It can also help reduce heart disease. This occurs because the conjugated linoleic acid contained in Ghee has anti-inflammatory properties that helps lower LDL (bad) cholesterol and blood pressure. This has also been shown to aid in weight loss.
• Ghee is rich in fat-soluble vitamins. These vitamins are A, D, E and K which are crucial for bone, brain, heart and immune system function.
Now that we know what Ghee is and what positive impact it has in our lives you are probably wondering, where can I buy this? Most are found at your local health food store, some grocery stores or you can make it yourself!
How to make it yourself:
1. Cut 16 oz. of unsalted butter into cubes and put in a saucepan.
2. Bring to a boil over medium heat then reduce to a simmer. This allows the milk proteins (white foam) to float to the top, this is what you want to skim off with a spoon. We are waiting for the butter to turn clear so remove all the solids that float to the top.
3. Continue to cook for 10-20 minutes or until the bubbling stops and the bits at the bottom of the pan start to brown. This lets the clarified butter (ghee) to be clear and transparent.
4. When Ghee is done you can turn off the heat and let it cool. Strain the ghee through a cheesecloth into a glass container.
5. You can store Ghee at room temperature and put in an airtight container, allowing ghee to last for 1 month.
http://www.morganton.com/community/ghee-a-healthy-fat-becoming-popular-in-us/article_a8ff3b3c-5d2f-11e8-a392-e39493762d3f.html
