Ghee: a delicious ‘heathy fat’ good for your gut
What Is Ghee?
Ghee – begins with a hard ‘G’ and rhymes with glee. If only for the smile that has hopefully just spread across your face we should be incorporating more of this joyful, delicious and healthy fat into our lives.
Ghee is similar to clarified butter, which is butter heated to remove the milk solids and water. Unlike clarified butter though, it is simmered longer to increase its nutty flavour and raises its smoke point. It also contains neither casein – a protein in milk, nor lactose – a type of sugar in milk. Butter contains casein, but no lactose.
Fat is not to be feared. As every single cell is lined by fat molecules, and most of the weight of your brain is fat, it will nourish you. Just don’t eat it to excess.
Ayurvedic healing practices have recognised ghee as one of the most powerful healing foods available for thousands of years. Here’s why.
Why eat Ghee?
1. It is good for your gut.
Ghee contains the anti-inflammatory short chain fatty acid butyrate. Butyrate is produced in the gut by your beneficial gut bacteria(1). Butyrate is essential for gut health and is the primary energy source for your colon cells(2). It also helps support gut barrier function and a healthy gut microbiome. Gut health, I hope you’re learning by know is key to your overall health(3).
Butyrate has been shown to support insulin levels (so help with avoiding afternoon energy crashes and weight loss), your immune system and fighting inflammation with any digestive issues, including Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. (4,5,6)
2. Butyrate also reduces inflammation
Butyrate fights inflammation. (7)
Although inflammation is the correct immune response to help defend the body against foreign invaders, long-term inflammation contributes to chronic disease. (8)
This could have far-reaching benefits when it comes to preventing inflammatory conditions like arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, Alzheimer’s, diabetes and even certain types of cancer.
3. It’s packed with nutrients
Ghee is fat-packed (it was just wrong to write jam-packed(!)) with Omega 3 and Omega 9 essential fatty acids, Vitamins A, D, E and K, plus high levels of CLA (Conjugated Linoleic Acid). Ghee is also high in antioxidants and numerous other minerals.
CLA is a fatty acid associated with many health benefits, including reducing body fat, preventing cancer formation, alleviating inflammation and even lowering blood pressure. (9,10,11)
Choose grass-fed ghee provides a higher concentration of CLA and omega 3 fatty acids. (12)
Being a fat, it assists your body absorb the essential fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, K) in your diet too. Without eating fat at the same time, your body can’t absorb these vitamins. This can be particularly helpful if you suffer from any conditions like leaky gut, IBS or Crohn’s, as your body may have difficulty absorbing fat-soluble vitamins.
Fat soluble vitamins also keep your brain and immune systems working optimally. It’s a great animal source of Vitamin A, which is more bioavailable than vegan sources.
4. It’s easy to digest
This is because the MCTS (medium chain triglycerides) in ghee are used very quickly as energy, meaning they are not stored as body fat unless one eats an excessive amount.
Ghee contains medium-chain triglycerides, or MCTs, which can help improve memory, increase muscle strength, and reduce toxin build up. MCTs found in ghee can improve liver function, cholesterol, blood sugar, kidney function, and your immune system.
It’s free from lactose and casein
Ghee is free from both casein – a protein in milk, and lactose – a type of sugar in milk. If you have a milk allergy or lactose intolerance, you may find that you can tolerate ghee. You can introduce it slowly and see if you get a reaction. However, if you are hyper-allergic to casein then continue to avoid ghee to be safe.
Which Fats to Eat and Cook With?
Lots of people find which oils to cook with confusing, so you’re not alone. Firstly, you need to know which oils to use or avoid entirely – cooking or not. I used up any aged or unwanted oils by making bird fat balls for the birds then replaced them with healthier options.
Oils to avoid
Canola oil, sunflower oil, peanut oil, corn oil and soybean oil, safflower oil, vegetable shortening/ oil margarine. These oils are high in omega 6 fatty acids. A diet high in omega 6 fatty acids triggers inflammation in the body, leading to chronic disease. Many of these are usually genetically modified and often partially hydrogenated to increase their stability. Avoid anything ‘hydrogenated’.
Oils to enjoy
Ghee, extra virgin olive oil, coconut oil, avocado oil, butter, (cold-pressed) rapeseed oil, lard, duck fat, walnut oil, almond oil, macadamia oil, sesame oil, flax oil, hemp oil.
When oils smoke on heating, it shows that phytonutrients are breaking down and the fat itself is oxidising and creating harmful free radicals (which cause cell and DNA damage).
No/ low heat (<170°C): Dressings, sauces, dips, simmering, curries, casseroles: extra virgin olive oil, flax oil, hemp oil, pumpkin seed oil, walnut oil
Medium heat (<200°C): Sautee, baking, roasting: Coconut oil, grass- fed butter, animal fat (lard, tallow)
Medium to high heat (<230°C): Frying, stir-frying Grass-fed ghee (clarified butter), sesame oil, duck fat, cold-pressed) rapeseed oil
High heat (<260°C): Deep-frying, searing: Avocado oil
Happy Butter Ghee
If you’re keen to open up your taste buds and gut to the glorious world of ghee, then we’ve got a treat for you. Jones – Trust Your Gut is delighted to be hosting a competition with some Happy Butter Organic Ghee as the prize.
Happy Butter Ghee is organic, cooked from butter from grass-fed cows in the West Country. They use the same process as making fudge, i.e. gentle cooking – just without the sugar(!), so it has a broad-spectrum taste. In contrast, supermarket tins of ghee extract water via centrifuge, so don’t taste as good and can go rancid in the fridge.
I’ve just opened my jar that arrived in the post today and honestly it really smells like fudge. I cannot wait to cook with it tonight. In fact, I’m going to make some of these brain-food snacks right now as I just can’t wait. 100% glee!
Fat Bombs – recipe from Happy Butter!
Ingredients:
2 Tbsp Raw Cacao
2 Tbsp Happy butter ghee
2 Tbsp Coconut oil
4-5 Tbsp Ground almonds
1 Tsp Ground flax seed
1 Tsp Chia seeds
Handful Walnuts/almonds/cashews
1-2 Tbsp Goji berries
1-2 Tbsp desiccated coconut
1 Tbsp Vanilla essence
Pinch of one or combination of Cinnamon/ cardamom/ matcha
Method:
This is a very flexible recipe, mix it up whichever way you like it.
In a food processor start with ghee and coconut oil and add the vanilla essence, pulse until creamed together. Add Goji berries and whole nuts and pulse until desired consistency, add flax seed and chia seed, pulse again.
Then finally add the cacao, desiccated coconut and ground almonds to get the final consistency. If the mixture is a bit loose then add a bit more ground almond at this point.
The mixture can then either be stored in a tub in the fridge and spooned out as a delicious and sustaining snack when desired or rolled into balls which can then be rolled in cacao or coconut and stored in the fridge that way.
Enjoy!
References
1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4923077/
2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3099420/
3. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25394236/
4. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2699871/
5. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4816278/
6. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3070119/
7. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1728045/
8. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3492709/
9. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15159244/
10. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15941017/