Ack! Look what happened to my poor ghee!
The very week after I made it (see how to make ghee), I opened it up and noticed some fuzz growing right where I had scooped some out. 
I am my father’s daughter – he eats green baloney and just trims off the green – so I threw the fuzz away and used it to saute.
But this is really too much to scrape off.
I’m devastated! One of the selling points of ghee is its shelf life. Something has gone wrong.
I posed the question during last week’s #realfood Twitter chat and got some good advice and sympathy. (See below for the scoop on the chat.)
Some ghee troubleshooting:
- ALL the moisture needs to be boiled off. Maybe I didn’t boil it long enough?
- Separate the layers well: @lactoferment told me “nothing left on top, nothing on the bottom.” I’m guessing I wasn’t very careful about getting every last bit of “top” and “bottom” out.
- Storage should be in a not-so-humid area. (Mine was stored near the stove…?)
- Annnnnnnnd….it finally hit me that perhaps this caused some impurities to be introduced into my ghee:
Duh. What kind of a fool scrapes something off her possibly-not perfectly-clean counter to store at room temperature? *blush* I’ll definitely be trying ghee again sometime soon and making it work!
It’s humbling to be in a state of constant learning. Some days I just have to serve spaghetti so I can do something simple and be sure to get it “right”. 
Real Food Twitter Chat
If you’re on Twitter, by the way, the first Thursday of each month from 9-11 check out the #realfood hashtag for great conversation, hosted by Donielle at Naturally Knocked Up. Follow it at tweetchat.com to see only the #realfood conversation and join in easily. You might even be able to watch the conversation if you don’t have a Twitter account this way. (?)
If you follow me on Twitter you’ll be sure to get reminders as the next chat draws near. You can see Donielle’s recap of the last one here. It’s a great way to learn about real food and ask questions of people who know what they’re doing. I got links for healthy cookies and how to make kombucha, as well as encouragement to keep on truckin’!
———————————————
I’d love to see more of you! Sign up for an email subscription or grab my reader feed. You can also follow me on Twitter.
If you missed the last Monday Mission, click here.
Kitchen Stewardship is dedicated to balancing God’s gifts of time, health, earth and money. If you feel called to such a mission, read more at Mission, Method, and Mary and Martha Moments.
I’m pleased to participate in
- Ann Kroeker’s Food on Fridays
- What I Learned this Week at Musings of a Housewife
- Friday Fails at My Blessed Life
Oops!
I am the opposite of you, I am totally paranoid that food might be bad. If something’s been around too long, I will not use it even if it looks and smells fine. Makes me super nervous. I’ve never had food poisoning and my parents weren’t nervous about food, so no idea where I get that, but yeah…can’t stand “old” food! Too bad about the ghee though!
.-= Kate´s last blog ..Gluten-Free Christmas Cookies =-.
[Reply to this comment]
Food on Fridays: Clementine Celebration « // Dec 11, 2009 at 9:08 pm
[...] Kitchen Stewardship (What happened to my ghee?) 8. Sara (caramel chomeur) 9. Newlyweds (Friendship Casserole) 10. Twirland Taste- Deep Dish, Deep [...]
i’d bet heavily that the contamination is why your ghee spoiled. bummer.
there’s also an #agchat, if you’re ever interested. I am going to get into that myself & was wondering what the best way to follow was, so thanks for the site. i followed the last #agchat & noticed they talk a fair amount about #realfood too…the ag community is taking notice.
.-= tonya´s last blog ..rcwant2be: @KitchenStew looking forward to it =-.
[Reply to this comment]
Another possible source of contamination could be the tool/instrument used to get some ghee. If some food was on the tool, contamination/spoilage could occur.
[Reply to this comment]
Yes, this whole foods journey can certainly be discouraging at times. I think that’s why I’ve stopped trying new things for a while. I’ve come to a place where I’m content with what I’m doing. I have no idea what ghee even IS, lol. There are more things I would like to do, but for now I’m enjoying the satisfaction of proficiency in the changes I HAVE made. I bet after the holidays, I will get a renewed vigor for trying new things. And your site is one of the first I will come to for advice!
[Reply to this comment]
Katie Reply:
December 16th, 2009 at 11:40 pm
Jo-Lynne,
You have done sooooo much since you picked up Real Food, maybe even more than me in total. I make a lot of little changes but sometimes miss the BIG ones. Merry Christmas and happy white-doggone-flour cookie eating! 
Katie
Aw, you flatter me! I hear you – I am not trying much new, either. I can’t even get my house fully decorated for Christmas!
[Reply to this comment]
Oops! I hope that your next attempt is flawless!
Thanks for linking up to Friday Fails!
.-= Myra´s last blog ..A Clean Filter – Friday Fails =-.
[Reply to this comment]
You may have put a wet spoon in it. That may have caused the mold. I make ghee once every 2-3 days. But I have kept it longer successfully too. Somehow I like the flavor of the fresh ghee.
[Reply to this comment]