Peace Corps Ghana
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Version 1, March 2008
Harvest the nuts from the farm Accumulate in piles or pits Heat the nuts – boil (preferred) or roast Dry the whole nuts (if boiled) De-husk the nuts to get kernels (usually cracked by hand!) Dry the kernels & store in a secure place STOP HERE IF END PRODUCT IS NUTS, FOR BUTTER – CONTINUE STEPS 7-12
7. Crush the kernels 8. Dry roast the crushed kernels 9. Mill or pounded/grind into a paste 10. Kneaded (water-boiled or pressed) to form an emulsion to separate fats 11. Boil the oil (fat) to dry and clean by decanting to clarify the butter 12. Prepare for use, sale , or storage (cooled oil will congeal into solid white/cream colored butter) Typically the ratio of butter to nuts is approximately 3-to-1.
A Little Shea Chemistry What are the important chemical components in shea Butter? • Free Fatty Acids • Peroxides • Impurities • Moisture Free Fatty Acids are undesirable. FFAs cause too much variation in the shea butter, and makes it difficult for production in factories. How can we insure less FFAs? Time and heat are both our friends. Producers should select mature nuts instead of unripe nuts. Women know this, that’s why they forage for fallen ripe fruit instead of picking them from trees. Heat also denatures FFAs. Boiling is part of the shea butter process, so it is also important not to under boil the butter. Once again, the women know this. The downside of boiling is an increase in peroxides. Why are peroxides bad? They denature the antioxidants, which are the natural protection of shea butter. But don’t fear, most women know how long to boil the butter so that the FFAs and peroxides are both minimized. Impurities such as water, metal, and dirt can be difficult to keep out. Some precautionary measures include using sealed containers, taking care when grinding, and filtering butter. A little extra work can go a long way. Moisture is another enemy. Fungus can easily grow and spoil vast amounts of butter from just a small amount of moisture. This can be prevented by boiling, storing nuts in jute sacks instead of fertilizer bags, and not adding water to the finished butter.
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