Vanaspati Ghee
Vanaspati (Devanagari) is the Sanskrit word that now refers to the entire plant kingdom. However, according to Charaka Samhitā and Sushruta Samhita medical texts and the Vaisesika school of philosophy, "vanaspati" is limited to plants that bear fruits but no evident flowers. In the Rigveda, 9th Mandala, Hymn 5.10, "Vanaspati" (literally meaning: Lord of the F orest) is a deity
presiding over the forest and described as the "bright golden hued Vanaspati, with its thousand branches." AddressBazar.com is an Bangladeshi Online Yellow Page. From here you will find important and necessary information of various V anaspati ghee industries in Bangladesh. Concept in Hindu scriptures The R igveda divides plants into Vrksha (tree), Oshadhi (herbs useful to humans) and Virudha (creepers). These are subdivided into: ● ● ● ● ●
Visakha (shrubs), Sasa (herbs), Vratati (climbers), Pratanavati (creepers) and Alasala (spreading on the ground).
All grasses are separately classified as Trna, flowering plants are Puspavati, and the fruit bearing ones are Phalavati. Leafless plants are placed under the group, Karira. Other veda, the Atharvaveda divides plants into eight classes: ● ● ● ● ● ● ●
(1) Visakha ( spreading branches); (2) M anjari (leaves with long clusters); (3) Stambini (bushy plants); (4) Prastanavati (which expands); (5) Ekasrnga ( those with monopodial growth); (6) Pratanavati (creeping plants); (7) Amsumati (with many stalks); and
● (8) Kandini (plants with knotty joints). The Taittiriya Samhita and the Vajasenayi Samhita texts the plant kingdom is classified into: ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●
vrksa, vana and drums (trees), visakha (shrubs with spreading branches), sasa (a herb), ansumali (a spreading or deliquescent plant), vratati (a climber), stambini (a bushy plant), pratanavati ( a creeper), and alasala (those spreading on the ground).
In the words of Brahma, the Manu classifies plants as ● (1) Osadhi – plants bearing abundant flowers and fruits, but withering away after fructification, ● (2) Vanaspati – plants bearing fruits without evident flowers, ● (3) Vrksa – trees bearing both flowers and fruits, ● (4) Guccha – bushy herbs, ● (5) Gulma – succulent shrubs, ● (6) Trna – grasses, ● (7) Pratana – creepers which spread their stems on the ground and ● (8) Valli – climbers and twiners. Charaka Samhitā and Sushruta Samhita medicine texts classify plants into V anaspati, Vrksa or vanaspati, Virudh and Osadhi. This second Susruta subdivides Virudhs into pratanavatya (creepers with spreading stem on the grounds) and gulminya (succulent herbs), whereas the first Charaka subdivides Virudhs into lata (creeper),
gulma and osadhis into annuals or perennials bearing fruits and grasses which go without fruits. These are further divided into 50 groups based on their physiological actions and diseases they cure. Flowering plants are divided into sukadhanya (cereals), siridhanya (pulses), saka varga (pot herbs), phala varga (fruits), harita varga (vegetable), mahayogi varga (oils), and iksu varga (sugarcane).
The Vaisesika school of philosophy classify plants under seven heads, e.g. Vrksa, Trna, Osadhi, Gulma, Lata, Avatana and Vanaspati. Defining the characteristics of the various groups Udayana's Kiranavali, remarks that:
● Arkansas are plants with trunk, branches, flowers and fruits; ● Trnas are exemplified by ulupa like plant; ● Osadhis are plants like kaluma. which die after fruition; ● Gulmas are plant like bhata, ● Latas are represented by kushmanda, a species of Cucurbita; ● Avatars are plants like ketaki;i and ● Vanaspati are trees which produce fruits without flowers. Parasara, the author of Vrikshayurveda, classified plants into Dvi Matrka (Dicotyledons) and E kamatra (Monocotyledons). These are further classified into: ● Samiganiya (Fabaceae) - With hypogynous (puspakrantabijadhara) and five-petalled flowers, with gamosepalous calyx and an androecium of 10 stamens. This family has three subtypes: vakra-puspa, vikarnika-puspa and suka-puspa. ● Puplikagalniya (Rutaceae) - Spine bearing plants with odoriferous leaves and winged petioles, flowers are hypogynous (tundamandala) with free petals and stamens. Family has two subtypes: kesaraka and maluraphala. ● Svastikaganiya (Cruciferae) – Calyx looks like a swastika. The flower has four sepals, four petals and six stamens, and a superior ovary (tundamandala). ● Tripuspaganiya (Cucurbitaceae) – Epigynous (kumbhamandala), often unisexual plant. The flower has five united sepals and petals and three stamens and a style with three-pointed stigma (trisirsavarata). The ovary is tri-vartaka (trilocular). ● Mallikaganiya (Apocynaceae) – Inflorescent, hermaphrodite (samanga) plants, calyx and corolla are
united having five stamens, epipetalous (avyoktakesara). The seeds have long fine hairs (tulapucchasamanvita). ● Kurcapuspaganiya (Compositae) – Sessile flowers, borne on a c ommon axis, surrounded by a common calyx and look like a brushy head (kurikara). The ovary is inferior (puspasirsakabijadhara). Hydrogenated vegetable oil
Vanaspati or Banaspati is also a South Asian slang for Vanaspati/Banaspati ghee of which "DALDA" is the leading brand in Indian markets. Vanaspati is a fully or partially hydrogenated
vegetable cooking oil, often used as a cheaper substitute for ghee and butter. In India, vanaspati ghee is usually made from palm oil. Hydrogenation is performed using a catalyst known as "supported nickel catalyst", in reactors at low-medium pressure (3-10 bar). Banaspati ghee is very high in trans fats, which may compose up to 50% of Vanaspati.[1] Ghee Ghee (Sanskrit: Ghṛta) is a class of clarified butter that originated in ancient India. It is commonly used in cuisine of the Indian subcontinent, Middle Eastern cuisine, Southeast Asian cuisine, traditional medicine, and religious rituals. Description Ghee i s typically prepared by simmering b utter, which is churned from cream (traditionally made by churning the top most layer of dahi), skimming a ny impurities from the surface, then pouring and retaining the clear liquid fat while discarding the solid residue that has settled to the bottom. Spices can be added for flavor. The texture, color and taste of ghee depend on the quality of the butter, the milk source used in the process and the duration of time spent boiling. Etymology The word ghee comes from Sanskrit clarified butter', from ghṛ- 'to sprinkle'.
In Hinduism
Traditionally, ghee (Sanskrit, go-ghṛta) is always made from bovine milk, as cows are considered sacred, and it is a sacred requirement in Vedic yajña and homa (fire rituals), through the medium of Agni (fire) to offer oblations to various deities. (See Yajurveda). Fire rituals have been performed dating back over 5,000 years. They are thought to be auspicious for ceremonies such as marriage, funerals, etc. Ghee is also necessary in Vedic worship of mūrtis (divine deities), with aarti (offering of ghee lamp) called diyā or dīpa and for Pañcāmṛta (Panchamruta) where ghee along with
mishri (mishri is different from sugar), honey, milk, and dahi (curd) is used for bathing the deities on the appearance day of Krishna on Janmashtami, Śiva (Shiva) on Mahā-śivarātrī (Maha Shivaratri). There is a hymn to ghee. In the Mahabharata, the kaurava were born from pots of ghee. Finding g hee pure enough to use for sacred purposes is a problem these days for devout Hindus, since many large-scale producers add salt to their product. Ghee is also used in b hang in order to heat the cannabis to cause decarboxylation, making the drink psychoactive. Culinary uses Ghee is common in cuisines from the Indian subcontinent, including traditional rice preparations (such as biryani). In Maharashtra, polis or Indian breads are accompanied with ghee. For example, 'Puranpoli', a typical Maharashtrian dish is eaten with much ghee. In Rajasthan, ghee often accompanies baati. All over north India, ghee tops roti. In Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, ghee tops dosa, and kesari bhath. In Bengal (both West Bengal and Bangladesh) and Gujarat, khichdi is a traditional evening meal of rice with lentils, cooked in curry made from dahi (yogurt), cumin seeds, curry leaves, cornflour, turmeric, garlic, salt and ghee. It is also an ingredient in kadhi and Indian sweets, such as Mysore pak and varieties of halva and laddu. Indian restaurants typically
incorporate large amounts of ghee, sometimes brushing naan and roti with it, either during preparation or just before serving. In the state of Odisha ghee is widely used in regional Odia cuisines such as 'Khichdi' and 'Dalma'. Particularly the satwik type of food prepared in most temples in Odisha uses ghee as a major ingredient for their culinary skills. Ghee is widely used in South Indian cuisine for tempering curries, in preparation of rice dishes and sweets. South Indians have a habit of adding ghee to their rice before eating it with pickles and curries. South Indians are one of the biggest consumers of ghee. The people from Telangana and Andhra Pradesh especially use ghee for preparation of savoury and sweet dishes alike. Ghee is important to traditional North Indian cuisine, with parathas, dals and curries often using ghee instead of oil for a richer taste. The type of ghee, in terms of animal source, tends to vary with the dish; for example, ghee prepared from cow's milk (Bengali: গাওয়া ঘী, gaoa ghi) is traditional with rice or roti or as a finishing drizzle atop a curry or daal (lentils) whereas buffalo-milk ghee is more typical for general cooking purposes. Ghee is an ideal fat for deep frying because its smoke point (where its molecules begin to break down) is 250 °C (482 °F), which is well above typical cooking temperatures of around 200 °C (392 °F) and above that of most vegetable oils.
Flavor.
The main flavor components of ghee are carbonyls, free fatty acids, lactones, and alcohols. Along with the flavor of milk fat, the ripening of the butter and temperature at which it is clarified also affect the flavor. For example, ghee produced by the clarification of butter at 100 °C or less results in a mild flavor, whereas batches produced at 120 °C produce a strong flavor. Versus clarified butter Ghee d iffers slightly in its production. The process of creating traditional clarified butter is complete once the water is evaporated and the fat (clarified butter) is separated from the milk solids.
However, the production of ghee includes simmering the butter, which makes it nutty-tasting and aromatic. A traditional Ayurvedic recipe for ghee is to boil raw milk, let it cool to 110 °F (43 °C). After letting it sit covered at room temperature for around 12 hours, add a bit of dahi (yogurt) to it and let it sit overnight. This makes more yogurt. This is churned with water, to obtain cultured butter, which is used to simmer into ghee.
