Ginger

Ginger root is used extensively as a spice in many if not most cuisines of the world. Though

called a root, it is actually the rhizome of the monocotyledonous perennial plant Zingiber

officinale.

Originating in southern China, cultivation of ginger spread to India, Southeast Asia, West

Africa, and the Caribbean.

The English word ginger is etymologically related to the Tamil iñci (இஞ்சி),

having been borrowed into Indo-European languages from a Dravidian language.

Ginger contains up to 3% of an essential oil that causes the fragrance of the spice. The

main constituents are sesquiterpenoids with (-)-zingiberene as the main component. Lesser amounts

of other sesquiterpenoids (β-sesquiphellandrene, bisabolene and farnesene) and a small

monoterpenoid fraction (β-phelladrene, cineol, and citral) have also been identified.

The pungent taste of ginger is due to nonvolatile phenylpropanoids (particularly gingerol

and zingerone) and diarylheptanoids (gingeroles and shoagoles); the latter are more pungent and

form from the former when ginger is dried. Cooking ginger transforms gingerol into zingerone, which

is less pungent and has a spicy-sweet aroma. None of these pungent chemicals are related to

capsaicin, the principal hot constituent of chile pepper.

Young ginger roots are juicy and fleshy with a very mild taste. They are often pickled in

vinegar or sherry as a snack or just cooked as an ingredient in many dishes. They can also be

stewed in boiling water to make ginger tea, to which honey is often added as a sweetener. Mature

ginger roots are fibrous and nearly dry. The juice from old ginger roots is extremely potent and is

often used as a spice in Chinese cuisine to cover up other strong odors and flavors such as in

seafood and mutton.

Ginger is also made into candy, is used as a flavoring for cookies, crackers and cake, and

is the main flavor in ginger ale, a sweet, carbonated, non-alcoholic beverage, as well as the

similar, but somewhat spicier beverage ginger beer. A ginger-flavored liqueur called Canton is

produced in the Guangdong province of China; it is advertised to be based on a recipe created for

the rulers of the Qing Dynasty and made from six different varieties of ginger. Green ginger wine

is produced in the United Kingdom traditionally Crabbie's and Stone's, in a green glass bottle.

Ginger is also used as a spice added to hot coffee.

In Japan, ginger is pickled to make beni shoga and gari or grated and used raw on tofu or

noodles.

In Western cuisine, ginger is traditionally restricted to sweet foods, such as ginger ale,

gingerbread, ginger snaps (a type of cookie), ginger cake and ginger biscuits.

Powdered dry ginger (ground ginger) is typically to add spiciness to gingerbread and other

recipes. Ground and fresh ginger taste quite different and ground ginger is a particularly poor

substitute for fresh ginger. Fresh ginger can be successfully substituted for ground ginger and

should be done at a ratio of 6 parts fresh for 1 part ground. You generally achieve better results

by substituting only half the ground ginger for fresh ginger.