Ghee, Anhydrous Milk Fat and Butteroil

Oils and fats have been constituents of human nutrition from ancient times; they contain the highest level of energy of all components of food and supply essential elements for the body. Dietary lipids provide essential fatty acids (EFA) and facilitate the absorption of lipid-soluble vitamins (FAO-WHO, 2010). They also largely determine the texture and flavour of foods and hence, enhance their taste and acceptability. In addition, fats slow gastric emptying and intestinal motility, thereby prolonging satiety. Milk fat is the third main source of lipids for human nutrition (Aguedo et al., 2008); it has been harvested for human use for thousands of years (Gnanasambandam, Torres-Gonzalez, Burrington, & Kapoor, 2017). Historically, milk fat and milk fat-based products have found a special place in food habits of all cultures as people all over the world have consumed them. It is widely acknowledged that milk fat imparts excellent flavour and superior mouthfeel to milk products (Aguedo et al., 2008; Omar et al., 2017; Reddy, 2010). Milk fat in the form of butter or cream has limited shelf life owing to lipolysis and microbiological deterioration. Since these types of spoilage take place in the water phase or at the interface between the water and the fat phases, it is well known that removal of water from cream and butter by converting them to anhydrous milk fat, butteroil and ghee extends the keeping quality of milk fat (Illingworth, Patil, & Tamime, 2009; Mortensen, 2011). The latest is the major form of utilization of milk fat in the Indian sub-continent. In this Chapter, the product description, method of manufacturing, composition, physico-chemical properties and functionality of ghee, anhydrous milk fat and butteroil are described.