Ancient Anti-Aging Moisturizer That Will Love Your Face

by Suzan Ferreira
Ancient Anti-Aging Moisturizer That Will Love Your Face final product in jar side view closeup

“Shata dhauta ghrita”, also known as 100 washed ghee, is an ancient Ayurvedic preparation lauded for its skin healing benefits & defined by Ayurveda as a supreme skin elixir. This cooling, super light cream will leave your face feeling well moisturized and nourished. This preparation is by far the best face moisturizing cream you can easily make at home.

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When you think of ghee, most think of butter. The difference being, ghee is butter that has been clarified. Clarifying ghee is a simple process of cooking and straining the butter to remove the milk & water solids. I have been making ghee for many years due to its long list of health benefits. Keep an eye out for a tutorial on how to make your own organic ghee coming to the blog soon! Don’t want to make your own? Organic grass-fed ghee can be purchased HERE!

Ghee and it’s wide spectrum of health benefits, make it the perfect base for creating a light, odorless cream that penetrates deep within the skin’s layers. The process of making it traditionally is simple. Place the organic (no hormones or antibiotics) grass-fed (higher content of CLA, Conjugated Linoleic Acid, anti-inflammatory properties) ghee in a copper bowl and wash it 100 times with purified water while chanting mantras.

The resulting cream is somewhat like whipped cream. Light, airy, and almost odorless cream that left my skin feeling deeply moisturized without any oily residue. It makes an excellent anti-aging treatment that helps smooth wrinkles, fades sun spots, heals burns, and helps cool inflammatory issues such as rosacea, excema, and acne.

If you have read anything of mine before you are most likely aware that I really enjoy learning the what, how & why’s. Staying true to my voice, here goes with a little science behind the benefits.

WASHED GHEE – IT’S BEGINNINGS

Washed ghee starts as a lipid (fatty) emulsion. With each successive washing, the fat particles begin to split and the emulsion becomes more aqueous (water infused). According to a study in the Indian Journal of Traditional Knowledge, “Shata-dhauta-ghrita A Case Study:

Reduction in particle size makes the product non-granular, non-sticky, homogeneous, which makes it easy to apply on the skin and may result in increased rate of absorption through skin. – Deshpande, Tupkari, Agnihoptri

This fat splitting, according to the case study, is the process in which “fat is hydrolyzed in the presence of water to yield free fatty acids and glycerols”.

The copper bowl acts as a stimulant promoting the fat splitting (source) & increases the copper in the emulsion (copper has anti-inflammatory effects on skin (source).

BENEFITS OF GHEE

Ghee is rich in a short fatty chain acid, butyrate, aka butyric acid.  Butyric Acid has powerful anti-inflammatory properties. No wonder Ayurveda uses this rich source of butyrate for inflammatory issues such as rosacea, eczema, and acne!

Ghee is also full of fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K, which are known to improve the health of your skin. As one of the best sources for CLA (conjugated linoleic acid), giving your skin that added protection against external factors such as pollutants, sun, and stresses, ghee is the best option to use as a moisturizer base.

HOW TO MAKE 100 WASHED GHEE

Disclaimer. I could not wash the ghee 100 times. I did this by hand and let’s just say I got my upper body workout in for the day 🙂 This process was done 50 times and the result is still amazing. Next time, I will try it with my Kitchen Aid mixer and save some manpower energy.

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You will need the following to make washed ghee. A copper bowl if available, and I highly recommend it, a spoon, purified water, and lots of elbow grease if you don’t already have a Kitchen Aid mixer.

Begin by placing your ghee into the (copper) bowl. The end result will be almost double what you begin with. I began with about 1/2 cup of ghee and then added the same amount of purified water.

Stir briskly at least 10 times clockwise and then 10 times counter-clockwise. I highly recommend doing this in your sink as there will be quite a bit of splashing that occurs. Drain the water and repeat, and repeat, and repeat 🙂

Below are pictures of progression in 10x washing increments. Notice how the ghee begins to emulsify and turn from a deep golden color to almost completely white.

HOW TO STORE

After you have completed your washing (love to see yours if you can reach 100 times!), transfer your cream into mason jars or container of your choice. The cream will last approximately three or more months. During the hot months, store in the refrigerator for an added cooling effect.

Give this cream a try! I guarantee you won’t be sorry. Be sure to stay up to date with all the “happenings here on the hill”, our once per month newsletter by subscribing below!

Love, Light & Laughter,

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26 comments

Carol L March 30, 2021 - 5:47 am

So, each time you add the same amount of water? After pouring out the water that doesn’t incorporate? If you are using a kitchen aid, how do you do this? Just spin it 20 times then pour out the water left and add more water and do another 20? I want to make sure I do this correctly. If I had a large copper bowl to do this with the kitchen aid, would that be ok?

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Suzan Ferreira March 30, 2021 - 11:10 am

Yes, the instructions need to be completed as directed, the same way. I don’t believe you can use a different bowl with the mixer as it would not be stable. Hope that helps.

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Toral May 4, 2020 - 1:13 am

Hey I washed it 100 times. I was able to do it in 2 days. It almost took me 4 hours but the end product is amazing.

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Suzan Ferreira May 4, 2020 - 10:56 am

I’m so glad you love it! Enjoy!!

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Marilyn Lesniak March 14, 2020 - 9:47 pm

Thank you for sharing at #OverTheMoon. Pinned and shared. Have a lovely week. I hope to see you at next week’s party too! Come party with us at Over The Moon! Catapult your content Over The Moon! @marilyn_lesniak @EclecticRedBarn

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Loni March 7, 2020 - 7:22 pm

Wow this is so interesting, I’ve never heard of it before! I love the idea of such a natural, healthy face moisturizer and a workout to-boot! Thanks for sharing the knowledge! Blessings, Loni

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Kathleen December 21, 2019 - 1:13 am

Susan, I’ve been making ghee now often, and also 100 x washed. I’ve settle on a copper bowl with my kitchen aid blade. Can it be rinsed too much? How would the texture change? I always do a hundred washes, under the blade for about 40 seconds. I love it. Thanks for your timely blog. WE’re still reading… 🙂 happy holidays

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Suzan Ferreira December 21, 2019 - 12:39 pm

Hi Kathleen~

Thank you for reading! I couldn’t agree more, 100 x washed ghee is a wonderful moisturizer & one we use regularly here. I’m not sure if it can be washed too much as I’ve never made it that far, LOL! I would think it may slightly change the texture of the lotion some. Let me know if you make it beyond the 100x!

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Nancy Veloo June 16, 2019 - 5:55 pm

Hi Suzan,
Loved your article and cannot wait to try it out.
I’m always looking for natural ingredients to use for my skin care.
I’ll try and get to a 100 times 🙂

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Suzan Ferreira June 16, 2019 - 8:18 pm

Let me know how you like it! I’m still trying 🙂

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Jamie June 16, 2019 - 5:05 pm

Wow this was a very informative post. The result of your hard work is impressive. The cream looks so soft and smooth! Thanks for sharing this process.

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Suzan Ferreira June 16, 2019 - 8:18 pm

Thank you, Jamie! Hope you can give it a try!

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Kathleen September 17, 2019 - 9:09 pm

I’ve been making ghee for a few months now and love it. I cook with it, use it for infused lavender oil, moisturize with it and now have made my first shata dhauta ghrita. After 50 times beating with an electric whisk (3-5 min each cycle), rinsing each time, I ran out of time yesterday so stopped at 50. I refrigerated it in an enclosed mason jar. I find it’s still a tad bit gritty. Do you think that would change if I put it back in my copper bowl and do another 50 episodes of beating and rinsing? Thanks so much for your help and advice!

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Suzan Ferreira September 18, 2019 - 2:19 pm

Not sure why it would feel gritty. When you made your ghee, it was strained well so no brown “pieces” were left? That is the only thing I could think of as to why it would feel gritty.

It couldn’t hurt it to give it a few more rounds. I would recommend bringing to room temperature before to make it easier to work with. Let me know, I will be curious how the end result is.

Thank you for giving this a try & look forward to your update 🙂

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Kathleen September 18, 2019 - 7:30 pm

I think you nailed it. I didn’t use cheesecloth this last time, just a fine strainer. I’ll beat a while longer and do the next time with more clear ghee. Thanks for your note! K

Suzan Ferreira September 21, 2019 - 12:09 pm

My pleasure, Kathleen! Let me know how it works out.

Sara June 16, 2019 - 3:58 pm

Is this an emulsion? I feel like I made a cold cream similar to this with coconut oil and shea butter and whipped in dustilled water. It is amazing how it becomes white and fluffy.

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Suzan Ferreira June 16, 2019 - 4:34 pm

Yes it is, as an emulsion is combining two ingredients that are normally not “combinable” 🙂 In this case The amazing ingredient in this is the ghee and its plethora of health benefits. Hope you give it a try!

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Akiko June 16, 2019 - 2:23 pm

This cream looks amazing (I may have to hold myself back from eating it)! My facial skin gets painfully dry in the winter so I will keep this in mind. Some of the heaviest OTC facial creams actually dry me out even more 🙁 Thanks!

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Suzan Ferreira June 16, 2019 - 3:06 pm

My skin is the same Akiko. I have found that the petroleum/chemical based products do indeed dry your skin even further. This is one that had my skin healthy & glowing in no time!

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Michele June 16, 2019 - 2:06 pm

I am the world’s worst about using moisturizer and I hate the “off the shelf” options due to cost and ingredients. This one looks like a great option, all natural and reasonably priced (aside from the elbow grease)! And my daughter, who is all about natural and organic, will love this too, I’m sure!

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Suzan Ferreira June 16, 2019 - 3:09 pm

I’ve removed about 98% of the OTC products for just those reasons! This option is one that I’ve found really works and works well. Hope you & your daughter find it so as well!

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Sheri Hoyte June 16, 2019 - 12:06 pm

Oooh, I wish I had a Kitchen Aid but I may just have to put in some elbow grease because this looks amazing! Do you have any recommendations for copper bowls?

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Suzan Ferreira June 16, 2019 - 1:16 pm

I was fortunate to find the antique copper bowl at a yard sale…$8 so I have not looked into purchasing options. I do know they are readily available online and even through Home Depot! Hope you give this a try as it is well worth the time & elbow grease!

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Kim Wetherall March 8, 2019 - 5:32 pm

This is great! Am definitely going to give it a try. I hate putting anything on my face that isn’t natural! Thank you for sharing.

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Suzan Ferreira March 8, 2019 - 6:56 pm

Hi Kim ~

Thanks so much for giving it a try! Let me know how you like it!

Suzan

Reply

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