Ghee vs Clarified Butter: Difference and Comparison

Butter is an essential part of cooking – whether it’s frying, sautéing, or simply applying it to bread or other dishes to enhance their flavor. Every geographical region invented its kind of butter over the past.

Now that we are all well connected, these distinctive “butters” have traveled all over the world and have somehow started to be confused with each other.

Key Takeaways

1. Ghee is made by simmering butter to separate milk solids, water, and fat, producing a rich, golden liquid.
2. Clarified butter is created similarly but not cooked as long as ghee, maintaining a lighter color and milder flavor.
3. Ghee has a higher smoke point than clarified butter, making it more suitable for high-temperature cooking.

Ghee vs Clarified Butter

Ghee is a clarified butter with a rich nutty taste that is cooked longer to remove all its moisture, and its milk solids are caramelized in the fat before they are strained out. Clarified butter is butter fat rendered from butter by removing milk solids and water from it. It has a lower shelf life than ghee.

Ghee is prepared by heating butter till all the liquid inside it evaporates and milk solids settle down and turn dark brown. Then, the remaining liquid is strained into a container after it cools down.

Unlike traditional butter, Ghee is soft and fluid at room temperature which increases its shelf life. Originated in the Indian Subcontinent, Ghee has now traveled to the plates of people around the world.

Clarified butter is made by simmering the butter only till milk solids are golden and then it’s left to cool down a little. After that, it is transferred to a heatproof container and can be kept at room temperature as it doesn’t solidify.

Clarified Butter originated in the country of France and later made its way to the mainstream cuisines.

Comparison Table

Parameters of Comparison	Ghee	Clarified Butter
Taste	Nutty taste	Roasted taste
Origination	India	France
Availability	Widely available in grocery stores	Less available in grocery stores
Smoke Point	Around 260 C	Around 252 C
Preparation	Ghee is simmered more than clarified butter	Clarified Butter is simmered less than Ghee

What is Ghee?

Ghee, originated from the Sanskrit word Ghrita, is a type of butter. In order to make Ghee, we first need to heat traditional butter till all the liquid inside it evaporates and milk solids settle to the bottom.

Then, the liquid is roasted until the solids turn from golden to dark brown, and after that, it’s left to cool down a little till its mild warm. Now it is transferred to a container and kept at room temperature.

Traditionally, Ghee was used in Ayurveda and Indian Cuisines. It holds a higher point in the Indian culture and its cooking methods too.

Due to the reason that all the liquid is vaporized, it doesn’t start to burn when exposed to higher temperatures. That is the reason for its high smoke point.

Also because of the low levels of water, Ghee doesn’t solidify at room temperature but if kept in a refrigerator, it loses its fluid state.

Ghee contains Vitamin A, E and K. Other than that, it also has saturated and unsaturated fat, protein, carbohydrates, omega 3 & 6.

As known widely, Omega 3 & 6 are responsible for brain and heart health, and the fact that Ghee has them both makes it a healthy food item.

For those who are lactose intolerant, Ghee might be the only dairy-product they can consume as it contains less than 2 mg / 100 g of lactose.

What is Clarified Butter?

Traditional butter contains 80% butter fat and 20% water. So when it is simmered, it loses the 20% water and now the liquid contains 100% fat. This new liquid is called “Clarified Butter”.

The traditional butter is heated until the milk solids that settle to the bottom are golden brown and then it’s left to cool down. After that, it can be transferred to a container and kept at room temperature. In cold weather, Clarified Butter gets solidified.

Invented in the French region, Clarified Butter has since then advanced its reach. Clarified Butter contains Vitamin A, E and K, saturated and monounsaturated fat, protein, omega 3 & 6 and other nutrients.

As the amount of water present in Clarified Butter is negligible, it is suitable for high-flame of high-temperature cooking. Clarified Butter has a high melting point than traditional butter and more fat which gives a rich taste.

Main Differences Between Ghee and Clarified Butter

1. The initial process of producing both Ghee and Butter is same. The difference is that Ghee is simmered longer than Clarified Butter.
2. Due to the reason that Ghee is heated for a longer duration, Ghee tastes nuttier than Butter.
3. As Ghee is simmered for a longer duration, the water concentration is lower in it than Clarified Butter. Therefore, Ghee has a high smoke point than Clarified Butter.
4. Ghee was originated in the Indian Subcontinent whereas Clarified Butter is the product of France.
5. Ghee is easily available in the local market than Clarified Butter is.

References

1. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13197-021-05335-7
2. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Dhirajsingh-Rajput/publication/330507908_Physico_-_Chemical_Analysis_of_Purana_Ghrita_Old_Clarified_Butter_with_special_reference_to_Fatty_Acid_Profile/links/5c448d25458515a4c7341dfc/Physico-Chemical-Analysis-of-Purana-Ghrita-Old-Clarified-Butter-with-special-reference-to-Fatty-Acid-Profile.pdf