20 Ways to Use Ghee in Recipes

Ghee has quickly become one of our favourite ingredients for all kinds of cooking and baking. It’s stable, full of nutritious fats and absolutely packed with flavour! If you haven’t hopped aboard the ghee train because it’s unfamiliar or you don’t know what to do with it, these 20 ways to use ghee in recipes will give you a ton of inspiration.

What Is Ghee?

Ghee is clarified butter. When butter is boiled, the milk proteins and milk solids are removed. It’s a staple in traditional Indian cooking and Ayurvedic medicine, plus ghee is rich in beneficial fats that can reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease, support digestion and help you maintain a healthy weight.

Ghee is very simple to make at home (we recommend choosing the organic, grass-fed variety), and it’s much more affordable than store-bought. We have a full tutorial to help you make your own ghee here! It’s also amazing when infused with herbs and spices like ginger, garlic, parsley, chives, turmeric or curry powder.

Once you’ve got your ghee ready to go, it’s time to start cooking with it!

Is Ghee Dairy-Free?

During the cooking process the milk proteins and milk solids are strained off, so it’s an option for those with dairy intolerances or lactose intolerances. As the origin of ghee is butter (a dairy product), it’s not suitable for vegans or those with severe dairy allergies. If you have any concerns or whether this is an ingredient to add to your diet, it’s best to speak to your health practitioner.

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Ways to Use Ghee in Recipes

Dairy-Free Elixirs

It’s no secret that we are obsessed with dairy-free elixirs. These delicious drinks are mighty beverages that include nut/seed milk, protein, herbs and spices, natural sweeteners, and healthy fats. Drop a tablespoon of ghee into your next elixir and marvel at the creaminess!

Recipe to Try: 20 Best Dairy-Free Elixir Recipes

As a Cooking Oil for High-Heat Cooking

There are a lot of cooking oils we can choose and one of our favourite ways to use ghee is for high-heat cooking methods like stir-frying, sautéing or roasting. Start off by melting a tablespoon in you pan and add more as needed.

Recipe to Try: Herb and Ghee Roasted Sweet Potatoes by Parsnips and Pastries

Melted Over Steamed Or Roasted Vegetables

Butter on veggies can go a long way, particularly when it comes to getting kids to eat more of them. Try drizzling melted ghee over them instead.

Spread On Baked Goods

Spread ghee all over your gluten-free bread, gluten-free crackers, muffins or other baked goods. It works well for either sweet or savory recipes!

In Gluten-Free Baking

Aside from spreading ghee on gluten-free baked goods, it’s also fantastic when used in recipes. Anywhere you’d normally use butter or coconut oil — like cookies, cakes, breads, pie crusts, crackers, buns, bagels, etc. — you could try swapping for ghee.

Recipe to Try: Mini Gluten-Free Apple Galettes by Macy Diulus (*Honorary Culinary Nutrition Expert)

Popcorn Topping

Grab a bowl of popcorn drizzled with melted ghee and hunker down on the couch with a selection of great food movies. You can melt ghee with herbs and spices for a flavourful topping, and pop your popcorn in it too!

Recipe to Try: Crazy Addictive ‘Gheesy’ Popcorn by Cashew Kitchen

Mashed Potatoes or Mashed Root Vegetables

Add flavour and creaminess to your mashed potatoes with ghee. If you’re following a Paleo-style diet or are skipping potatoes, use it to mash up your root vegetables like parsnips, carrots, celery root, turnips, cauliflower, and more!

Recipe to Try: Carrots and Rutabaga Mash by Paleo Leap

Chocolate Spreads

Make your own healthy chocolate spreads using your chocolate of choice, nuts or seeds (or nut and seed butters), and natural sweeteners. If the flavour in combination with chocolate is too strong for you, try half ghee and half coconut oil.

Recipe to Try: Hemp Chocolate Spread by Meghan Telpner (*Academy of Culinary Nutrition Founder + Director)

Oatmeal/Porridge

Your favourite oatmeal or porridge is a fantastic way to use ghee in your regular cooking, and amp up your morning with some healthy fats. Make sweet or savory porridge with ghee – and it also happens to work well in many other popular breakfast recipes too like hashes, omelettes, congee and pancakes.

Recipe to Try: Cranberry Apple Baked Oatmeal by Jaclyn Beatty (*Culinary Nutrition Expert) – swap the coconut oil for ghee

Cooked Gluten-Free Grains

Boost the flavour of gluten-free grains by cooking them with some ghee. Rice, millet, sorghum, quinoa, teff, buckwheat – dealer’s choice!

Recipe to Try: Ghee Rice by Food For Joy

Gluten-Free or Grain-Free Granola

Grab these must-haves for gluten-free granola and make your own! If you’re looking to mix up the traditional flavours that coconut oil, olive oil or avocado oil lend to granola, incorporate ghee into the liquid mix. You can use all ghee, or combine it with other oils to mute the flavour.

Recipe to Try: 20 Best Grain-Free Granola Recipes

Dairy-Free Butter Chicken

Yes, you can make butter chicken without butter or cream! Ghee and coconut milk will do the trick quite nicely.

Recipe to Try: Simple Dairy-Free Butter Chicken by Meghan Telpner

Whole Food Frostings

Get ready to drool – one of the unique ways to use ghee is in frosting! Many typical frosting recipes involve butter to make them creamy and fluffy, but you can certainly try ghee instead.

Recipe to Try: 20 Best Real Food Healthy Frosting Recipes

Fudge

Turn this decadent dessert into a healthier marvel with ghee. If you’re dubious, you have to check out the recipe below to see what we mean.

Recipe to Try: Paleo Toasted Coconut Fudge by The Healthy Foodie

Dairy-Free Cheese Sauce

Swap ghee for butter in a variety of dairy-free cheese sauces, from mac and cheese to queso to nacho cheese. And if you’re looking for more dairy-free cheese inspiration, check out these 22 Best Dairy-Free Cheese Recipes.

Recipe to Try: Paleo Dairy-Free Nacho Cheese Sauce by Against All Grain