Ghee has been used in India for over 5000 years. Yajurveda, an ancient Vedic script from India has mentioned the use of ghee in the Vedic worship of Hindu gods/ murties, in homa, and in all the ceremonies of life. Ghee has been consumed in India since ancient times and has great medicinal value in Ayurveda.
Other than India, some countries in Africa, such as Egypt, have an altered or identical form of ghee which is also staple in the diet of the local people.
Ghee is a clear, liquid fat. It has a very distinct aroma and nutty flavor, which comes from the butyric acid. The process of making ghee begins with the whole milk. The milk is boiled and then cooled to room temperature, separating the milk fat. This milk fat then is diluted with water and churned, leaving us with butter. The churned butter is then simmered until the clear liquid fat is separated from the solid residue and water evaporates.
Ghee has a high smoke point of 450 F, which makes it a great cooking fat.
It has a negligible amount of lactose (Milk sugar) and casein (milk protein) so can be consumed by lactose intolerant people.
And has a higher amount of saturated fat (72%) than PUFAs and so has longer shelf life.
Nutrition composition of ghee
Ghee has 0% carbs, very little amount of protein and remaining is fat.
Ghee contains cholesterol, predominantly saturated fat but a small amount of mono and poly unsaturated fat in it.
A good percentage of short chain fatty acids especially butyric acid and other short chain fatty acids make ghee a brilliant food and provide many health benefits.
It also has vitamin E, Vitamin K, Choline and an impressive amount of vitamin A.
Presence of short and medium chain fatty acid make ghee a healthy option to add to your diet.
Ghee has anticancer/anti tumor properties, antiviral activity. It increases HDL /good cholesterol. It modulates the immune response and inflammation. Ghee is energy source and growth promoter of gut cells that helps you to have healthy gut structure and function
Reference:
http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/recipe/2603984/2
https://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/foods/show/231711?fgcd=&manu=&lfacet=&format=&count=&max=50&offset=&sort=default&order=asc&qlookup=ghee&ds=&qt=&qp=&qa=&qn=&q=&ing=
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghee
http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/80/3/550.full
https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/butyric_acid#section=Top
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23041740
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21623034