The following useful note comes from Lyn – and I’ve often wondered about this myself since you never ever use all of the ginger knob in one go: My mum and I were using some ginger in a recipe the other day, and weren’t sure how to store the leftover ginger (in the end simplicity won out and we just tossed it in the crisper draw) but looks like we did the right thing!
STORING GINGER (from Cooks Illustrated)
Published March 1, 2007.
What’s the best way to store ginger?
We purchased several knobs of ginger, cut one end off of each to replicate the way they would normally be used in the kitchen, and stored them using several different methods: unwrapped in a cool, dark pantry; on the counter exposed to sunlight; in the refrigerator (unwrapped, wrapped in foil, wrapped in plastic wrap, and placed in a zipper-lock bag); and in the freezer (wrapped in foil).
After two weeks, we examined the samples, all of which had dried out and sealed up where they had been cut. The frozen ginger fared the worst: Following a brief thaw, it was porous and mushy, rendering the process of grating or mincing nearly impossible. Both samples of room temperature-stored ginger were shriveled and had started to sprout. All of the wrapped, refrigerated ginger retained a smooth, taut exterior but exhibited spots of mold where condensation had gotten trapped in the wrapper. The unwrapped, refrigerated ginger, however, had a relatively fresh appearance, with no mold. So the next time you have a leftover knob of ginger, just toss it into the refrigerator unwrapped.
v useful tip, i normally let the ginger hang out with the onions and garlic on kitchen top but they dry out v quickly….
Same here! I do usually put it in the fridge, but now I won’t wrap it in a paper towel!
two interesting things about ginger that are not commonly known.1. ever wonder why there is always pickled gignger in sushi and sashimi? it kills possible parasites in raw fish 2. a tiny piece of fresh ginger put into coffee will guarantee you no heartburn, no matter how much of it you drink.
I knew the first but not the second! Very interesting.
Thank you sooooo much for the ginger and coffee tidbit. I will definitely buy some fresh ginger and try it. Does it matter if it is raw and put in cold coffee?