Ghee maker

This traditional wooden kitchen tool was used to extract ghee, or clarified unsalted butter. Ghee has been revered in Indian households for centuries. It is used for cooking and also held a place in Hindu rituals. The hand churn shown uses a simple pulley system to extract ghee from yoghurt or curd. The contraption is first placed on top of a yoghurt-filled pitcher. The ends of the rope wound around the central shaft, is held using two hands and is successively pulled. This makes the paddle wheel submerged in the pitcher churn the contents, first one way then the other, and thus ghee is extracted. Length: 68cm.