We’ve all done it: bought a piece of ginger for a recipe, used what we needed & left the remainder to shrivel away in the fridge or fruit bowl until we eventually chuck it out. Only then to need ginger for another recipe weeks later & then having to buy more & the whole process starts all over again. Does this sound familiar? What to do with that leftover ginger? Freezing any leftover ginger will ensure that nothing goes to waste & you’ll always have some on hand.
Ginger is touted for its medicinal properties as I’m sure you’ve read. Having suffered from motion sickness my whole life, I can attest ginger doesn’t work for me for nausea caused from motion sickness. And to truly get the health benefits from it such as inflammation & cardio health, well you’d have to eat a lot of it every day – studies fail to tell people how much is actually given to test subjects. I’m more about the culinary uses for ginger.
Warming to the taste, the piney, citrus, earthy flavors of ginger transcend many cuisines, crossing many cultural borders. I generally use it in Asian recipes, especially Chinese so I want to make sure I always have some on hand. When I buy a piece of ginger & use it in a recipe, then I will peel what remains & often will freeze it just in large pieces. From frozen, ginger is easily grated on a microplane zester & added to a recipe. If you’ve got the time, (it really doesn’t take very long), then chop, grate & julienne leftover ginger. Pop it into little re-sealable bags & freeze it for up to 3 months.
Now you always have ginger on hand. Use a tablespoon or two in Sesame Noodle Salad with Cashews. Or use more generously in Ginger Honey Anise Pork. Wasabi Ginger Steak Salad is fresh & lively & one of my favorite salads.
Freezing ginger alleviates a little waste but my main motivation for freezing it is convenience, ensuring it’s always at the ready when needed. What’s your favorite ginger recipe? Chat soon, Lovoni xo
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Welcome to Fresh Hunger – rustic, globally inspired food, peppered with Aussie style. I’m Lovoni – food creative, greedy guts & a lover of all things whimsical.
I’ve never thought about freezing this, but it makes so much sense. How do you actually peel ginger? I tried using a potato peeler once and wasted so much that I never used ginger again. Help!!!
I usually peel ginger with a teaspoon. I turn it so the bowl of the spoon faces down & use it to peel away the ginger skin. That way you’re not wasting it. Unless I’m tired, hungry & or in a rush, then I’ll have at it with a paring knife but the spoon trick works great.