Ghee - Ayurvedic healing butter |
|
Why use plain butter, when you can enjoy the benefits of ghee, which is its purified form?
Yoga teachers say that ghee protects joints, and Ayurvedic doctors recommend it for a variety of diseases - from indigestion to memory loss.
But what exactly is the golden liquid and how it differs from regular butter?
What is ghee
Ghee (rhymes with "see") is purified butter. It is produced by cooking butter at a low temperature. During cooking the water from the butter evaporates, while milk solids are separated and removed with a spoon.
In this way, a tasty and fragrant pure oil is obtained. Ghee does not need to be kept in the fridge - if you do it correctly, ghee will not go bad.
Ghee has an important role in Indian and Ayurvedic cooking food for a delicious flavor and beautiful yellow color. It is resistant to heat, so it is good for deep frying.
Interestingly, ghee is often considered as an exotic food from distant India, while in fact has been used all over the world since ancient times.
The healing properties of ghee
In Ayurveda, ghee is very appreciated for its medicinal properties.
Ayurveda places ghee, or purified butter, at the top of the list of foods that contain fat. Ghee is a pure and medicinal food. It contains no additives, which are normally present in the butter.
Ghee contains saturated and unsaturated fatty acids. Regardless of saturated fatty acids, ghee reduces levels of harmful cholesterol in the body.
Ghee does not contain casein and lactose, making it suitable for people allergic to milk. Furthermore, it contains no salt, sugar, flavorings or preservatives.
According to Ayurveda, ghee has the following properties:
- improves memory
- strengthen intelligence
- regulates digestion
- protects joints
- improves vision
- strengthens the immune system
- gives the body flexibility and vitality
- slows the aging process
- accelerates wound healing
- cleans blood vessels
- reduces the level of harmful cholesterol
- balances the pitta and vata dosha.
With time ghee's healing powers get stronger. The older the ghee, the more it is appreciated.
A hundred year old ghee is highly respected in India. It is kept in the temples in large containers and used exclusively as a medicine and for religious purposes.
Aged ghee balances all three doshas and is used to treat epilepsy, alcoholism, psychosis, fever and vaginal disease.
Application of ghee in Ayurveda
1. Taking pure ghee
For the purpose of healing and cleansing the body Ayurveda recommends taking 1-2 teaspoons of ghee in the morning on an empty stomach.
Ghee warms the organism, stimulates the digestive fire, rejuvenates the body and promotes the removal of toxins from the body.
2. Preparation of Ayurvedic medicines with ghee
In Ayurveda ghee is used as a base, or carrier, for the preparation of drugs. Ghee improves extraction, absorption and assimilation of herbs.
Ingredients:
- 1 part herbs
- 4 parts ghee
- 16 parts water
Preparation:
Put the herbs in ghee and water and cook over slow fire until the water evaporates and only ghee remains. When the ghee cools you can add a natural preservative - vitamin E.
When used with plants, ghee spreads its healing properties to all cells of the body.
3. External applications
Ghee can be used alone or in combination with honey to treat wounds, burns, skin inflammation and blisters.
4. Massage with ghee
Massage with ghee is used to treat disorders of pitta and vata doshas. The ancient Sushruta Samhita says that ghee is good for massage of the whole body, and that it is the best cure for inflammatory bowel disease.
According to Ayurveda, our skin literally “absorbs" ghee. During the massage it absorbs about 60% of ghee, which travels through the pores to all body tissues.
How to make ghee
Making ghee is easy. You need a pot of stainless steel with a thick-bottomed cylinder and a 5 l volume and 1-2 kg of unsalted butter (preferably homemade).
For the first time, take a small amount of butter (half a pound). When you have gained experience, you can prepare and larger amounts of ghee.
- Place the butter in a pan and heat it over a slow fire until all the butter is melted.
- Now you can turn up the fire. When butter boils again, reduce the heat to a minimum.
- Allow butter to cook on low heat from time to time and remove the white foam that collects on the surface with a spoon. No need to stir the butter.
- After 40-50 min. butter will become fully transparent. You will feel fine fragrance and at the bottom you will see a brown caramelized milk fat.
- Turn off the heat and allow the mixture to cool a bit.
- Strain it through cheesecloth or a tea towel into a jar. When the ghee has completely cooled, seal the jar.
- When cool, ghee should thicken and have a nice yellow color.
- Ghee can be stored at room temperature. Shelf life is unlimited.
When preparing dishes use ghee in the same way you would use butter, margarine or oil: for frying, baking, stews and salads. It is suitable for deep frying.
View from the 21st century
In our time, many people believe that ghee is unhealthy because it contains a lot of saturated fats, which increases cholesterol levels.
However, the theory of unhealthy saturated fats, which now prevails in the world of nutrition, is not correct.
Mankind has for many centuries depended on saturated fats, which feed the body and promote good health.
Saturated fat reduces risk of heart disease, reduces the levels of harmful cholesterol, prevents osteoporosis, strengthens the immune system, feeds the brain and nervous system, and regulates hormones.
But it is important to choose natural saturated fats like those in real butter, not margarine. It is necessary to avoid the hydrogenated oils and highly processed fats. It has been shown that it is them that cause the heart disease, cancer and high cholesterol.
Scientific research on ghee has confirmed that it does not increase but decreases the levels of harmful cholesterol in the blood.
This is one in a series of articles on the topic of "Ayurveda".
Liked the article?
Share it with your friends!
