Our Annual fresh Ginger and Turmeric Harvest is on now, with Ginger and Turmeric Recipes included

We  have just harvested our tropical and edible crop of aromatic Ginger and Turmeric. It's an annual event, generally occurring between the heat of Summer and the early chill of Winter, when the rhizomes or roots are mature. Ginger and turmeric grow almost like a weed here in Mackay in the tropics. Since then we've been chopping, slicing, cooking, freezing and dehydrating the ginger. Now I have enough dehydrated Spice Ginger and tropical Stem Ginger in Syrup, and frozen ginger and turmeric to last me for the next 12 months.

Yesterday was Spice Day, I almost felt like a "Spice Girl", not sure which one though. We now have 5 jars of soft and delicious cooked Stem Ginger within a sweet ginger flavoured syrup to use in cakes and slices, with other fruits, and in desserts and on ice cream. What could be better? Keep reading my story for the recipe, as I will take you through the harvesting and processing of the ginger and turmeric first.

We have one raised garden dedicated to ginger, and clumps of ginger and turmeric are also spread throughout a few of our other garden beds. It is a crop that once planted keeps on giving over the years, requires no attention really except to be watered but must be harvested generally in Autumn before the rhizomes toughen up. Most of our ginger has been harvested now, however I still have small clumps of fresh ginger growing throughout the garden beds ready for when I need to dig up a fresh piece for cooking. Although I often reach for my frozen ginger, as it is very easy to grate for recipes. It's nice to have options.

Ginger is ready to be harvested when it flowers like this from the ground up, and then the leaves and stems will start to go brown and die off. If you grow ginger, that will be happening now, most probably in the cooler weather of Autumn. If you leave the ginger in the ground for too long it will become tough, and if there is a lot of rain it could rot in the ground.

Ginger is a root crop so it needs to be cleaned well before processing and use. Mr. HRK now cleans off most of the dirt with his Gurney or high-pressure water jet, in his bare feet, hey it is the tropics, and he is also "grounding" at the same time!! Some of the outer thin skin or peel coating the ginger comes off in the process. 

It's ready to be trimmed up, stalks removed and sliced according to how it is to be cooked or processed.

Mr. HRK is slicing a large batch finely with the mandolin, which will be dehydrated overnight, and then ground in the spice grinder to make my Ginger Spice. Using the oven or air-fryer could work too for smaller quantities.

Mission accomplished! This is my annual supply of Ground Spice Ginger, which has been dehydrated, and ground finely in the spice grinder. It is quite potent and extremely aromatic, and lovely to use in cakes and desserts. I still have some leftover from last year and it is usable.  Homemade dried ginger is so much more aromatic and full of flavour than the powdered stuff we buy in the supermarkets.

Here are some chunks of ginger ready for my freezer.  Larger chunks are easier to grate, safer on the fingers, and then when you have what you need, the piece can be popped back in the freezer bag.

Ginger

Turmeric and ginger vacuum packed and sealed for the freezer for long term storage.

Turmeric

STEM GINGER IN SYRUP

This is how I cook my Stem Ginger in Syrup

Firstly, you need to start sterilising the jars you will be using to bottle your stem ginger. I use the dishwasher, on the cycle for cleaning bottles. However if you have a load ready to go, just add 5 smallish bottles to the load for 600 g of ginger. 

 It is so important before making stem ginger to ensure your ginger is meticulously cleaned. The ginger syrup needs to be clear as possible, so that the ginger looks really attractive through the bottle. This can only be achieved if all the skin has been removed from the ginger, and every last little speck of dirt removed from within the crevices of the ginger. 

Let's cook:

Ingredients: Quantities can be increased. 

600 g very fresh ginger, preferably home grown, or from the Farmer's market
600 g sugar
600 ml water

Method:

Day 1: Freeze the ginger overnight in a freezer bag so that it is tender the next day for your cooking. With this latest batch I was a bit impatient, and I tried just processing it when freshly cleaned, but the skins will definitely come off easier if it has been frozen. Stem Ginger in Syrup needs to have the skins removed, and all dirt removed, so that the syrup is nice and clear. It's often not so important to remove the skins for other culinary uses if using it fresh.

The Next Day:

• Take the bag of ginger from the freezer, and allow the pieces to thaw slightly for about 5-10 minutes. You don't want frostbite. 
• Peel the ginger using a teaspoon. Some of the skin will just slip off if they are very fresh pieces. Very fresh ginger will have a delicate pink blush in the flesh.
• Slice into pieces or knobs very carefully. You should now have about 450 g of fresh clean ginger after all of the trimming.
• Cook the ginger in a large saucepan with the lid on for 2 1/2 hours, in 1.4 litres of water until the ginger is tender. I test mine with a skewer and cook the ginger until the skewer is easily inserted. It seems a long time, but ginger needs to be cooked long and slow.

• Drain the ginger but reserve the water.
• I measure the water and bring the volume back up to 600 ml.
• Strain the water through a fine colander into a heatproof jug, and pour back into the saucepan and add the sugar.
• Bring the water and sugar to the boil.
• Add the ginger back into the syrup and bring back to the boil. Simmer gently for 5-15  minutes until the liquid has the consistency of a light syrup. It might even take 30 minutes.

• Turn off the heat and your work is done. You now have a beautiful pot of Stem Ginger in Syrup. It wasn't that hard was it?
• Retrieve your warm sterilised jars and lids from the dishwasher or the oven if you have used the oven to sterilise them. Pack the ginger into the jars with small tongs. Top up with the syrup, ensuring the ginger is covered.
• Store in the refrigerator when the jars are cool.

Stem Ginger in Syrup 

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 Ginger can be used in all types of cooking, I couldn't live without it, and it also has great medicinal value. It helps nausea and seasickness, is an anti-inflammatory and is said to lower high blood sugar and cholesterol. A few years ago, when we were out on a boat at beautiful Ningaloo Reef in Western Australia, on a swimming with whale sharks tour, I felt quite queasy after a while.  They were serving crystallised ginger and ginger tea to help with the seasickness and I think it helped, or maybe it was the delicious ginger nut biscuits.

Fancy a cup of ginger tea, it's just what the doctor ordered if you feel a head cold coming on. Just slice a small piece of peeled fresh ginger and steep it in boiling water. Delicious and warming. Add honey if desired. Oh I forgot to add a slice of lemon. Next time.

Ginger and turmeric are such valuable commodities, and are expensive to buy from supermarkets and markets. However, once you have grown one crop and harvested it, inevitably each Summer some new plants will start sprouting out of the earth. You can also place some rhizomes along a warm windowsill, around September (Spring),  and they will start to shoot during the warmer weather, and can be planted for your next crop. Your ginger has just become a very economical crop to grow.

So why do we grow our own ginger and turmeric?:

• Ginger grows so easily in the tropics and even the subtropics, the Buderim Ginger factory in Southern Queensland being a prime example of that.
• When you DIY, you know what is in it. We don't really know what additives or nasties have been added to commercially produced spices and herbs.
• They have anti-inflammatory properties when consumed according to health guidelines.
• Home grown is best. Turmeric is know for it's gut friendly qualities.
• It  also feels good to share any excess produce with friends. With home grown fruit and vegetables, there is often an excess to our needs. So why not share it? It continues to defray the cost and spreads the love of home gardening.
• By recycling your bottles when empty, the whole process is a lot more economical

There are a multitude of endless culinary ways that ginger and turmeric can be used in the home kitchen:-

Mince dishes, curries, casseroles, stews, stir fries, vegetarian dishes, smoothies, cakes, biscuits and slices to name a few. I would love to hear from you about what your favourite ways of using ginger or turmeric are. In our diverse multi-cultural society, ginger and turmeric are used in so many interesting dishes.

Here are some recipes for meals that are on rotation in our kitchen using ginger:

Gingered Garlic Pork with Stir-Fried Vegetables

Prawn and Broccolini Stir-Fry

Duck Breast and Soba Noodle Salad with White Miso Dressing

Chicken with Miso, Ginger, and Lime

Roasted Cauliflower Curry with Lime and Coriander

I like to add ginger and turmeric to my savoury dishes whenever possible. To find more recipes including ginger or turmeric in the ingredients, just type ginger or turmeric into the recipe search box on the side of this post.

Also some of my favourite cakes and slices using ginger as an ingredient:

Spiced Pumpkin, Orange and Prune Cake

Spiced Hummingbird Cake with Labneh Icing

Pumpkin and Ginger Slab Cake

Ginger Syrup cake

Stem Ginger and Pear Cake

Tropical Ginger, Coconut, and Lemon Slice

Of course, Homemade Ginger Nuts are always a favourite.

Or try a delicious Turmeric Latte to combat the Winter chills (this recipe is based on one from Dr. Mosley's book, The Clever Guts diet)

Ingredients:

1 cm root ginger (or 1/2 tsp. ground ginger)
1 tsp ground turmeric or fresh if you are game (a 2cm root grated)
300ml almond or coconut milk (from a carton not a tin, I'm not sure why)
The Seeds of 2 cardamon pods
1 tsp of local honey (There is a belief that using local honey provides better antihistamine benefits)
2 tsp coconut oil
1 pinch of ground cinnamon

( I didn't use nut milk when I made it, that's optional)

Peel and grate the fresh ginger. Heat the nut milk gently in a small pan, then add the cardamon seeds, honey and coconut oil, whisking constantly so that the milk heats through and is foamy. Pour the mixture into a cup and sprinkle over the cinnamon. Relax and enjoy your drink.

I haven't focussed on Turmeric as much in this post as Ginger is the focus, so here is the 

link to my story about how we grow and process Turmeric, including a few recipes, you might find interesting. 

You might also like to read Growing Turmeric and it's Health Benefits. 

Thanks for stopping by and happy gardening and cooking,

Best wishes,

Pauline