In today’s world of fast consumerism, there are many distractions and fancy advertising is everywhere to sway us all.
Isn't it wonderful to realize that as consumers we have so much of power? The power to make a difference with our votes. Vote for (or pick) the right kind of products that deserve a place in your shopping bags and a special place on your kitchen shelves. Pick products that you'd be proud to own and recommend to your community.
As a consumer, we have the final say. This power mustn’t be taken lightly, combine this with reasoning and research and we can bring about positive change to the world of consumerism. Choices are offered to us on a platter and way more than we need, which is why we need to drown out the noise and open our minds and hearts when we make a choice to purchase goods.
Here are a few things you could be mindful of when buying your bottle of Ghee.
When buying Ghee especially if it is off the shelf, read the label carefully – what does it say and what does it not specify? If you have time and are not in a rush, use your handy smartphone and do a quick Google search about the brand.
The pandemic has forced most of us to shop from the comfort of our homes. Let’s use this to our advantage and do quick researches. Start with the source – the Cows!
Get to know what kind of cows are they; Desi cows are indigenous which makes them less susceptible to diseases and so their milk is of higher quality. Find out how they are treated. Are they treated and kept with love? Are they fed well or are hormones being injected to increase their milk output capacity? Are they kept in spacious sheds and not crammed up in unhygienic spaces? Are they allowed to graze freely? Learn about what methods are used to make your Ghee, is it mass-produced with short cuts taken to cut costs?
Ghee made using ancient Indian wisdom and tradition is slow and prepared by hand. Milk is first boiled on slow heat, then it is inoculated with curds and fermented overnight. The curd is slowly churned in a to-and-ro motion to get Makkhan or white butter. This white butter is then clarified and milk solids are removed to get Ghee. This way the nutrients are preserved and your Ghee will be made the right way. Ghee made using Dahi out of Milk and not Dahi out of cream feels lighter on the stomach, is more digestible and has many health benefits.
Get to know about the hands that prepare your Ghee, are they treated well? Do they work in a safe, healthy environment, and are they paid fair wages? Happy workers will add the most important ingredient in your ghee – LOVE.
Get to know the brand or company that owns this supply chain. What are their practices like, what are their values? We must stand behind companies that practice sustainability.
We were excited when we recently asked our followers on social media to share what it is that they look for in their bottle of Ghee - whether that was store-bought or made at home. The many stories shared were a clear indication that there is no dearth of like-minded people. What touched us most, is that there was so much love behind every story that was shared and that was the common thread that bonded us all. We share here some of the wonderful comments left on our page –
officialjk47
"I follow the Vedic bilona method (also called Valona in our traditional marwari households) to churn the curd. We make it using A2 milk of the Gir & Sahiwal Cows sourced from our local goshala. Whenever I buy Ghee from the farms, I check if their cows are Desi Indian breeds, are freely grazing on pastures, are happy & not under stress, no harmful hormones are injected & Calves are fed well. The Ghee prepared from their milk by Bilona method is ethical, traditional, sustainable, really aromatic & very medicinal. It generally has two or three layers & is granular."
"Whenever I buy ghee from outside I always check the agmark grade and ingredients used - not only for Ghee, but for each and everything thatI buy I always check the ingredients label first and while making it at home I follow slow cooking method❤️❤️💕💕"
"I have been making ghee since 4 years - for my daughter. I have always admired my grandmother making ghee with curd. This is one of the methods to make ghee and tastes out of the world and I try my best to follow the exact steps that my Ajji follows. As they get fresh milk immediately after milking from the country cows, the milk is so very thick and yields good cream once boiled. Ajji collects all the cream from the day's milk and mixes it with curd and allows it to ferment. Once the jar is full, which happens over a week or so, she hand churns the curd, collects the butter and makes ghee.
The whole house smells nothing less that divine😍 I relate this smell to visiting a temple. The left over butter milk is consumed as it is or with some tempering. The best part is that nothing is wasted till the end product is made. Butter tastes so good, melts in the mouth.
My fond memories are sitting in granny's kitchen while she makes piping hot dosas with a big chunk of ghee on it. I also remember eating ghee in a cup when I was a child😊😛😅 I mostly avoid store bought ghee because of that dalda-like smell and texture and I believe pure ghee doesn't take much time to melt when heated.
Though I am not an expert I am open to learning more about traditional methods of cooking and everything related to it. Also did I forget to mention that the churned butter from curd is used to make kajal for babies by my granny. I used it when I was small and I was lucky to get it done by Ajji for my children. Long live these simple pleasures of life. Glad to have come across the page @twobrothersorganicfarmsindia loads to acquire from you all😊!"
"Pure Ghee itself has a divine smell and when you hold ghee in your hand, it will naturally melt while adulterated ghee will be hard to melt at body temperature. Best ghee when melted and kept in the fridge, will have different layers in colors which is an indication of quality. Ghee or Ghritam is so satisfying for the body and is a good source of fat if consumed mindfully. Procedure to make homemade ghee - source best milk available, after boiling it start collecting the cream and collect for 15 days and store it in the fridge. Once done, add some curd and churn well to separate butter. The leftover liquid is buttermilk. The butter should be heated in a wok until sizzling, bubbling stops. Strain to collect the Ghee. We add Moringa and Curry leaves to impart extra flavour to the ghee."
"Since the last 6 months, I have started using Desi cow A2 ghee. I have heard that Gir cow ghee is superior but I go with Kankrej, Sahiwal and Rathi Cow ghee as well.
I look for the following things while buying the ghee - first and foremost it should be stored / sold in glass bottles, as ghee packed in plastic bottle will itself defy the ghee method prescribed in the ancient Vedas! Secondly, I look forward to seeing that it is made using ancient Vedic Bilona method using hand churning as prescribed in the Vedic Scriptures. Thirdly, it is made using full fat milk and not from skimmed milk or malai to ensure maximum fat and healthy contents, fourthly its texture and colour - it should be whitish yellow with more of white hint and it should be thick with a danedar texture but not too hard as available in the market by most of the commercial brands! Fifth, I look for the aroma - it should smell like a mixture of curd and ghee that is a slightly fermented smell. Sixth, I look for Made in India brands operating on their forefathers' tradition and ethics who are ready to disclose each and every ingredient on their packaging and website. Lastly, the cows should have been fed organic grass and organic feed only to ensure healthy milk output and all this should be disclosed on the label.
At home my mom made ghee using the malai collected over a month or 15 days from A2 milk. This malai is kept in the refrigerator and some curd is added to the malai one day prior to making Ghee. This Dahi mixture is churned with hand using a 'mathan' and the makkhan separated is slowly heated over the gas to make ghee. My mom put lot of efforts and love in making Ghee."
"As a working woman, I always used to buy ghee from a store. What I look for when I buy is color, texture and aroma. However, it never gave the same taste as home made ghee by my Granny. During the lockdown, to support the local farmers I bought milk from a local vendor and made Ghee. Although it wasn’t huge in quantity the taste was great. Unadulterated milk is the key to make the perfect Ghee. I put some curry leaves while boiling the ghee for extra aroma"
"There are certain things which I look for while buying ghee - firstly it should be made from Desi cow milk, it should be cultured, the cows must be fed organic food, the ghee must be made in brass or iron kadhai rather than aluminium ware which is not good for health, it should be hand churned and made as per bilona method, it should melt at human body temperature and it should be kept and stored in glass container rather than plastic. I have used @twobrothersorganicfarmsindia Gir cow Ghee and I must say it's a brand which meets all the above criteria, the ghee smells divine and tastes heavenly, it surely enhances the flavour and nutrient content of the food. I am really impressed by the effort they put in for making quality products like organic palm jaggery, jaggery, flour, cereals and ghee accessible to us. Rest assured they have surely found a permanent customer in me."
"My mother makes ghee at home using curd and Malai, but when we do buy it from market, we check for the aroma and the granules. I recently stumbled upon @twobrothersorganicfarmsindia and saw videos on how they prepare ghee and was so intrigued."
"I would choose from a local gaushala instead of large scale brands. The perfect ghee when cooled is whitish yellow and granular in texture (danedar). If its waxy, that means it is under-cooked. At home we make ghee from malai, however, I buy whole milk curd ghee from organic markets. So the procedure I follow at home is - skim cream from top of the milk daily, collect and store. After few days of collecting warm cream, add dahi (culture) and mix well and leave overnight or for few hours, allow the cream to set like dahi. Transfer to a big vessel, add some water, churn it with a wooden churner(ravi) in a to and fro motion - this churning motion retains moisture and doesn't break fragile fatty acid bonds. The Butter is separated from buttermilk and washed few times with water. This butter is then heated slowly in a copper kadhai to get ghee. My mother in law also adds lavang / laung (cloves) to it, by doing this, you can keep the ghee fresh for longer periods without any acquired smell."
"Home made ghee with organic milk. If buying from stores then I look for cultured ghee made from organic grass fed milk."
"We make Desi ghee at home, by using cream. Tip - the aroma can be felt everywhere in house! The color of the ghee is Pale Yellowish and it remains like that even if you put in the freezer for days. You can see the Granularity of the Desi ghee when you scoop it out using a spoon and spread it over a surface."
"I love the ghee that is very light on the stomach and has a faint, subtle aroma, the kind of ghee that is cooked slowly on low heat without destroying its nutrients. Also pure ghee always tastes fresh and there is no bad smell. The aroma is like makkan that we normally churn at home. And yes pure ghee has crystals too like suji when it solidifies and comes back to it's original state due to fatty acid content. 2-3 tsp of ghee everyday and you are ready to go. It makes your joints healthy and lubricates it well.
At home we normally collect the malai after boiling milk everyday and store it in the fridge. Once the container gets full ( it takes around 1-2 months ) then we cook it on medium heat and with continuous stirring it boils and ghee separates out leaving behind khoya."
"I make ghee from the brand of milk which is delivered daily.
There are two ways to make pure ghee (caution - milk quality not sure) but the end what we get is desi ghee.
When made using Curd - This requires the milk to be heated to the optimum temperature so that you can put your finger into the warm milk comfortably. At this stage, will come the culture (bacteria). The warm milk is mixed with a spoonful of curd. Next day you'll have fresh curd. This fresh curd is churned, you get lassi floating below and on it floats the white makhaan which is slowly heated. The white creamy ghee turns yellow into desi ghee. We can add salt or fenugreek seeds to this as per taste. This will take approx 1.5 hours."
"At my home, we usually prepare our own ghee. We collect the malaai (Paal aadai in Tamil) which forms on the top of the non-homogenized milk. Also we separately collect the butter (vennai in Tamil) after churning the curd. We refrigerate the aadai and vennai. When enough quantity of aadai or vennai is collected, we prepare ghee by heating the aadai or the vennai in the kadai. If I buy ghee, I ensure that I buy from a trusted manufacturer. The ghee must be fresh and also desi."
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1 comment
Chon
Loved the pure ghee idea ❤️
Loved the pure ghee idea ❤️