I donāt know about the US, but in the UK, some brands use ethyl butyrate as a flavouring, which gives it an artificial buttery taste. I try and look for brands without, which often means forking out for ghee imported from India.
But, like homemade yogurt, more flavourful when made at home with good quality ingredients.
I canāt imagine Iād be able to tell the difference. Itās not like Iām spreading ghee on my toast. Itās a cooking fat.
Itās not always a cooking fat. It is used as a condiment in its own right in Indian cuisine. Having some ghee to add to hot rice elevates a home cooked Indian meal.
I donāt think Iāve ever come across that. But Iāve only had one home-cooked meal in India, and it was a really long time ago.
It may not be a familiar use outside of Indian homes. You mentioned toast. Iāve never had it on toast but a bit of homemade ghee spread on a warm fresh chapati is heavenly. Indian home meals can be quite simple - a tiny bit of ghee drizzled on top of a plain rice or dal just adds a touch of luxury and fragrance.
I will keep that in mind, thank you!
uh oh, I better stop doing that then - ghee on toast that is.
one of the things i found interesting in the article linked to in the OP is that even in India the north & the south think the otherās ghee doesnāt taste right due to ingredients & preparation.
One of my regrets in life is I never asked my maternal grandmother to teach me how to make ghee - her rendition was a family favourite and nobody elseās version was the same. I donāt know what she did differently. She also made a separate version for religious purposes, using utensils that had never touched meat and had only been washed by her. The lampblack from burning that ghee in her prayer lamps was used as a sterile safe kohl for babies or to mark their faces with a big black spot to ward off the evil eye. Sheās long gone now and all that stuff has gone with her. All her grandkids are using store-bought ghee for convenience.
Also on puraN poLi ā where it is almost essential.
I agree with the teaspoon on rice&dal, as well. It elevates an otherwise humble meal.
Also used for flavoring and finishing in Iranian, Turkish, Ethiopian(spiced) and Moroccan Cuisine just to name a few.
I saw ghee for sale recently at a farmerās market, and was astonished at how much (expensive!) the vendor was asking for it.
How much exactly?
Not aimed at you specifically, but I really wish people across this site would quote ruble amounts when they say they are astonished by prices. It is very difficult to assess posts that talk of prices if the posts donāt say what the prices were.
I can appreciate what youāre saying, but I donāt remember exactly (was either $50 or $100 for a large mason jar), and canāt go back to find out because of some mobility issues. The market was at the bottom of a steep hill from the parking lot; once was enough.
Late comment, but I agree with you. Ghee cost has come up in a few other threads, and I canāt figure how anyone thinks you can buy it cheaper than you can make it.
The bottom-barrel brands in Aldi (which frankly suck) or other US stores, are still quite a bit more expensive than making it at home from good butter. And thereās almost no work involved. Put it on low, skim a bit, then strain. Voila!
The End.
Edit to add - Iāve also made ghee from cream I cultured that I turned into butter first. That indeed was a bit more work, trying to smoodge out all the little bits of water/buttermilk that cling throughout the butter. But thatās different.
Does it seem at all āmessyā to you? I have made it a few times, but when I buy it, (usually when I see it on sale), it seems like the savings is at least partly on time and clean up.
Not like deep frying, but still oily.
I donāt find it messy at all. I just dump a pound of butter into a 3 quart sauce pan, put it on low, and let it go for an hour or so.
Half of the time (or more), I donāt even bother to scrape floaters off the top, although thatās usually recommended. You can just stir them in from time to time, and they end up sinking and browned in the bottom with the rest of the milk solids.
I pour off the bulk but save the milk solids (about 2 Tbs total, from a pound of butter) with an equal amount of the ghee and mix while it cools to make a mixup of toasted solids and ghee that is hella good tasting for eggs and also for sauteed veggies.
