Tips on Grating Fresh Ginger
Ginger is known for its medicinal and culinary uses. The rhizome, which is native to China and India, is commonly used in many Asian and Indian dishes, and is known to aid in digestion and pain relief. Many recipes call for grated ginger, such as gingersnap cookie recipes. Since ginger is very fibrous and pulpy, this can often be quite difficult. Ginger powder should not be substituted for grated fresh ginger, however. With a few simple tips, grating ginger is much faster and easier, resulting in a tasty final product. Does this Spark an idea?
-
Preparing the Ginger
-
Freeze the ginger before grating it. This will dry the ginger out a bit, making it easier to grate. Simply wrap an unpeeled root of ginger in plastic wrap and freeze it overnight. The next day, peel only as much as you need to grate and return the rest to the freezer.
Grating Technique
-
When you grate ginger, hold the whole root in your hand. Peel the ginger section by section, until you have the desired amount. Holding the whole root in your hand will give you more support and make the grating safer and easier.
-
Grating Equipment
-
Rather than using the more common box grater, consider buying either a fine metal grater or a porcelain grater, which is designed especially for grating ginger. Porcelain graters work best and can also be used for nutmeg. They are also quite inexpensive. A fine, metal grater also does the trick, and can be used for a wider variety of other foods as well, such as ginger and citrus peel.
-
References
- Photo Credit ginger hand with minced and sliced ginger image by David Smith from Fotolia.com
