Ghee-making time!

GrateEggspectations

Am about to make an Indian meal calling for ghee. Melted down a stick of butter, skimmed the milk solids and ran the residual through a coffee filter. Slow, but resulted in exceedingly clear clarified butter. 

Sea2Ski

Never did it, but all this talk has me thinking of trying it. 

That looks like a lot more than a stick of butter, did you mean a pound? 

Finally, Do you heat it just to the point it is all melted? Then skim and filter? 

GrateEggspectations

@Sea2Ski: Yes, one pound. Where I’m from, a pound is a single stick. 

Heat and let the butter boil a little. The milk solids will separate. Skim them from the pan. If you have the patience, pour the entirety through a strainer, or better yet, a coffee filter, as I did. Will reportedly keep up to 7 months. Much higher smoke point (almost 500 F) than regular butter. 

caliking

Nice!

Growing up, my mom always made ghee at home. Even ghee made from salted Land o'Lakes tastes better than most brands you can buy in the store.

Heat on a low simmer for 30-40mins or so, until you see the solids separate, and the ghee becomes clear. American-style butter may take a little longer, because of the higher water content. You're essentially heating to drive out all the water. Then strain and SAVE the solids - they are most excellent in all kinds of things. You can store it at room temp for a good while, but it will last longer if refrigerated. 

CtTOPGUN

 I thought the difference between Ghee and clarified/drawn butter was that Ghee was brought to a nutty brown state before removing from heat.


 Also, what are the removed solids best in?

HeavyG

I agree about clarified vs. ghee. Clarified is one step towards ghee. You need to cook the solids that do settle until they brown to get that nutty flavor. And that's the point where I screw up about 20% of the time - by pushing the browning just a little too far.

caliking

A low simmer for 30-45 mins should get you there. The liquid should pop or crackle just a bit, but not vigorously or splatter. The solids will usually brown a little when I do this. The browning can run away from you if the heat is too high. 

Some parts of India have a darker , kinda dark beige , ghee with a more pronounced nutty flavor, and it’s lovely too. Most parts have the pale yellow ghee. 

@CtTOPGUN we use the solids in Indian dishes. Stir some into lentils, veg, rice, etc. 

Gulfcoastguy

I just put in in the oven at 350 for an hour then strained it through a coffee filter.

caliking

Gulfcoastguy said:

I just put in in the oven at 350 for an hour then strained it through a coffee filter.

Now what fun is that??

That’s a great tip. I’ll try that next time. 

Toxarch

HeavyG said:

I agree about clarified vs. ghee. Clarified is one step towards ghee. You need to cook the solids that do settle until they brown to get that nutty flavor. And that's the point where I screw up about 20% of the time - by pushing the browning just a little too far.

When you go too far on ghee, you make brown butter. You are way too far if it turns black. Brown butter is right before it turns black. Leave the milk solids in and refrigerate it. Use the brown butter instead of regular butter when baking. Or use it at the very end of a cook for adding flavor. 

I think mom always called the milk solids "tupa" and it's used in various Indian dishes. It has different names in different regions.