Friday, July 24, 2009

Making Crystallized Ginger

Crystallized (or candied) Ginger is a bit expensive at the grocery store, and my Wally World quit carrying it, so I decided to find out how to make it myself. I like to have it on hand because it's a key ingredient in my Ginger Crinkle Cookies - a favorite around here. After making it myself I realized that the flavor of the homemade version was much better than store bought and I liked snacking on it.


Ginger is good for you, snack on a piece of this if you have an upset tummy, or drop a piece into a cup of chammomile or green tea.

What you'll need
A good sized hunk of fresh gingerroot
Sugar (I used organic turbinado for cooking and organic granulated for coating)
Water
Sealable glass jar is best for storage


Peel and thinly slice the gingerroot, place in heavy saucepan and cover with water.
Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat to a simmer.
Continue cooking until tender (this took me about 1 hour and 20 minutes, but test yours every 30 minutes).
Drain ginger and return it to the empty pot. Add an amount of sugar equal to the amount of ginger you have (guessing is OK), plus 3 Tbsp. water. Bring to a boil, stirring often, and cook until th liquid has almost evaporated.
Reduce heat and cook until almost dry (this part happened very quickly for me). Cool ginger on a cooling rack, then toss in sugar. Store in airtight container (glass is preferred). It should store at room temp for about 3 months.


Dig up some roots and get slicin' (kidding - go buy it at the store!)

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