What Is Bilona Ghee? How It Is Made, Step by Step
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Quick answer: Bilona ghee is ghee made the traditional Indian way. Whole milk is boiled, set into curd, and the curd is churned with a wooden churner (the bilona) to get butter. That butter is then slow-cooked into ghee. Most factory ghee skips the curd step and is made directly from cream.
The bilona method, step by step
- Boil the milk. Fresh whole milk is boiled and allowed to cool until it is just warm.
- Set the curd. A little curd from the previous batch is added and the milk is left overnight to set.
- Churn the curd. The curd is churned with a wooden bilona, traditionally in both directions, until butter (makkhan) separates from the buttermilk.
- Collect the butter. The white butter is lifted out. The buttermilk that remains is a useful by-product.
- Slow-cook the butter. The butter is heated on a low flame. Water evaporates, milk solids settle and turn golden, and clear ghee is left on top.
- Filter and fill. The ghee is strained and filled into jars once it cools a little.
Bilona ghee vs cream ghee
| Bilona ghee | Cream (factory) ghee | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting point | Curd made from whole milk | Cream separated from milk by machine |
| Fermentation | Yes, the milk is cultured first | Usually none |
| Milk needed | Much more per litre of ghee | Less, because only cream is used |
| Aroma and taste | Stronger, slightly nutty, grainy texture | Milder and more uniform |
| Price | Higher | Lower |
Why does the curd step matter?
Culturing the milk changes its flavour before the butter is even made. That is why bilona ghee smells richer and tastes closer to the ghee many of us remember from home. It is also why the process takes two days instead of a few hours.
We would rather be straightforward here: both methods give you ghee, which is almost entirely milk fat. The honest differences are taste, aroma, texture, the amount of milk used and how carefully small batches are handled.
How Goseva makes its ghee
Our Gir cow ghee starts with milk from Gir cows at the Khachar family gaushala in Jasdan, Gujarat. The milk is set to curd, hand-churned with a wooden bilona and slow-cooked. You can see our test results on the lab reports page and read about the gaushala on our About page.
Common questions
Is bilona ghee the same as desi ghee?
Desi ghee is a broad term for Indian-style ghee. Bilona describes one specific way of making it, from curd.
Why is bilona ghee grainy?
Slow cooking and slow cooling let the fat form small crystals. A grainy (danedar) texture is normal for cow ghee and is not a defect.
Can I make bilona ghee at home?
Yes. Save malai or set full-fat curd, churn it to get butter, and cook the butter on a low flame until the solids turn golden.
