Ghee

Ghee is high in butyric acid, a short-chain fatty acid that serves as the primary energy source for colonocytes (gut lining cells) and shows anti-inflammatory effects in the gut.

Research indicates that ghee's saturated fat content is predominantly shorter-chain fats that are metabolized differently from the long-chain saturates in most animal fats.

Some studies suggest that ghee, consumed in traditional quantities as part of a varied diet, does not raise cardiovascular risk the way industrially processed fats do.

Its lactose and casein removal makes it suitable for many with dairy sensitivities.

Ghee appears in the Rigveda (one of Hinduism's oldest texts) as a sacred substance used in fire rituals. It has been central to Ayurvedic medicine since the system's earliest texts, used both as a cooking fat and as a vehicle for medicinal herbs.

Throughout South Asia, ghee prepared at home from cultured butter is considered fundamentally different from commercially produced ghee — the process of making it is considered an act of care for the household.

Ghee is used everywhere butter would be used, with the added advantage of a higher smoke point (485°F / 250°C) that makes it suitable for high-heat cooking.

It forms the foundation of South Asian cooking — tadkas (spice blooms) begin with ghee.

It is stirred into khichdi, dal, and rice. In French cooking, clarified butter serves the same function in sautéing delicate proteins.

To make ghee: melt unsalted butter in a heavy saucepan over medium-low heat. Simmer until foam rises, then subsides, and the milk solids at the bottom turn golden and the fat runs clear — about 20 to 30 minutes.

Strain through cheesecloth into a jar. Store at room temperature for months.