What Is Ginger root and How Can I Use It?

Ginger root is easier to cook with than it looks. Here's how to choose, use, and store it, what to substitute, and 616 recipes to get you started.

What is ginger root?

Ginger root is the knobby underground stem of the ginger plant, and it's the engine behind a huge swath of the world's cooking. Fresh, it's juicy and fibrous, with a sharp, peppery heat and a sweet, almost citrusy perfume that dried ginger never quite captures.

It's a staple across Chinese, Indian, Caribbean, and Middle Eastern kitchens, lending warmth to savory dishes and a clean bite to sweets. On this site it runs through more than 600 recipes, from stir-fries to gingerbread.

This page is about fresh ginger. Its dried, ground form behaves quite differently and isn't interchangeable spoon for spoon.

How to Use Fresh Ginger

Peel only what you need. The skin is thin, so scrape it off with the edge of a spoon, which follows the knobs and wastes less than a peeler.

How you cut it changes the result. Grated or finely minced ginger melts into a sauce and spreads its heat through the whole dish, the way it does in Grilled Ginger Lamb. Thin coins or matchsticks stay distinct and infuse a broth or oil, then can be fished out.

For stir-fries, add ginger to the hot oil early, alongside garlic, so its raw bite mellows into fragrance before the other ingredients go in. A microplane is the fastest tool for a fine, juicy pulp; for sauces you can also grate it and squeeze out just the juice.

Fresh ginger earns its place in sweets too. It steeps into the custard base of Adam's Chai Latte Ice Cream, and grated, it gives a moist Practically Fat-Free York Gingerbread its bright, peppery lift.

Pairing and Common Mistakes

Ginger has a natural affinity for garlic, scallion, soy, and sesame, the four that open countless Asian dishes. It also loves citrus and chile, and it cuts the earthiness of beans and stews, as in Caribbean Black Beans. On the sweet side it partners with cinnamon and molasses.

The most common mistake is leaving the fibers. Grate it, or cut across the grain rather than along it, so you don't end up with stringy threads in the dish. A good grater handles this for you.

The second is treating fresh and ground as the same thing. Ground ginger is dustier and warmer, without fresh ginger's juicy zing, so swapping it one for one leaves a savory dish flat. Adjust the amount instead.

Substitutes

When you're out of fresh, reach for ground ginger, but use far less, since it's more concentrated. About ¼ teaspoon of ground ginger stands in for 1 tablespoon of grated fresh. It works best in baking and long-cooked dishes; in a quick stir-fry you'll miss the fresh juice.

Jarred minced ginger or frozen grated ginger are closer stand-ins and keep that fresh character. Galangal, ginger's sharper, more piney cousin, works in Thai dishes but isn't a flavor match elsewhere. A pinch of ground turmeric can echo the warm color and earthiness, though not the heat.

Buying and Storing Ginger

Choose a hand of ginger that feels firm and heavy, with smooth, taut, papery skin. Heft means juice. Pass on pieces that are wrinkled, soft, or already sprouting, and snap off a knob to check: fresh ginger breaks cleanly and smells sharp, while old ginger bends and looks woody.

Younger ginger has thinner skin and a milder, less fibrous flesh, so it needs little or no peeling.

Stored loose and unwrapped in the crisper, a whole hand keeps for several weeks.

The freezer is the real trick: peel it or not, seal it in a bag, and grate it straight from frozen whenever a recipe calls for it. Frozen ginger lasts for months and grates more cleanly than fresh.

Nutrition

Quick facts

Where to find ginger root: Ginger root is usually found in the produce section or aisle of the grocery store or supermarket.

Food group: Ginger root is a member of the Vegetables and Vegetable Products US Department of Agriculture nutritional food group.

In Chinese

姜根

British (UK) term

Ginger root

en français

racine de gingembre

en español

raíz de gengibre

How much does ginger root weigh?

Related

Vegetables and Vegetable Products

Recipes using ginger root

There are 616 recipes that contain this ingredient.

Adam's Chai Latte Ice Cream

My brother Adam loves this ice cream so much that I asked him for the recipe. It's a Chai Latte with chunks of gingerbread cookies hidden within.

Chow Mein in Chanterelle Sauce with Fresh Herbs

Vegan. I always wondered how would chanterelles taste with typical ingredients of Chinese cuisine. Now I know. Of course I wouldn't be myself if I didn't make it my way.

Eastern Burger

Asian-inspired pork burgers with soy sauce, dry sherry, and fresh ginger root. Grilled hot for juicy, savory patties that beat plain beef burgers any night.

Gobhi Paratha

Gobhi Paratha: Indian stuffed cauliflower flatbread made with whole-wheat dough and a spiced filling of cauliflower, cumin, turmeric and green chili. Pan-fried in ghee until golden.

Halloween Pumpkin Pie

Halloween pumpkin pie with a from-scratch pastry crust, silky spiced custard, and fresh grated ginger for a livelier kick than the usual canned pie. The kind of pumpkin pie that earns its place on the autumn table.

Yummy Lion's Head Meatballs

Lion's head meatballs are large Chinese pork and beef meatballs wrapped in bok choy leaves and steamed in the microwave, glazed with stir-fry sauce. Easy weeknight Chinese dinner.

Andy's Murgh Kurma (Chicken Curry)

Andy's murgh kurma: Indian chicken curry with a yogurt marinade, whole cardamom and cloves, and a deeply spiced tomato sauce. Serve with rice and chapati for a fragrant home-cooked dinner.

Japanese Beef Stir-Fry

Japanese-style beef stir-fry with thinly sliced flank steak, snow peas, red pepper, escarole, and fresh ginger in a soy-brown sugar glaze. A fast, colorful skillet dinner.

Ginger Squash Soup

Microwave ginger squash soup with butternut, fresh ginger, orange juice and zest, finished with nutmeg. An elegant fall starter ready in 30 minutes, no stovetop required.

Middle Eastern Kebabs

Middle Eastern lamb kebabs (kofta) blend ground lamb with garlic, ginger, cumin, mint, and parsley before grilling on skewers. Serve with pita, salad, and yogurt for an authentic mezze dinner.

Minced Meat Cutlets with White Radish & Sesame

Polish-style fried meatballs or hamburgers literally called ground cutlets (pol. kotlety mielone). My latest rendition contains white radish, sesame seeds, and cilantro leaves. It is far away from home, but I think it's healthy to travel from time to time. My cutlets are served with potatoes, yoghurt, dill, and Bayou Carlin coleslaw. The salad recipe is taken from RecipeLand. Quick and easy dinner to prepare.

Stir-Fry for One

Solo stir-fry for one with marinated chicken, beef, or pork tossed with broccoli and celery in a quick ginger-garlic sauce. Single-serving Chinese-style dinner ready in 30 minutes.

Favorite Curried Beef Stir-Fry

Curried beef stir-fry with soy-marinated sirloin, crisp cucumber, peppers, and celery in a glossy curry-spiked sauce. The unexpected addition of cucumber keeps the dish bright and crunchy. Ready in under 20 minutes.

Pumpkin Gingerbread Loaves

Pumpkin gingerbread mini loaves spiced with cinnamon and fresh ginger root, sweetened with molasses, and topped with a walnut-sugar streusel. Makes four small loaves, freezes for up to six months, ideal for holiday gifting.

Crockpot Chicken Stew with Pepper & Pineapple

Crockpot Chicken Stew with Pepper and Pineapple recipe

Matar Paneer (Peas with Paneer)

This Punjabi dish, with some variation in spices, is eaten over all of northern India. Paneer is a fresh milk cheese with an interesting, slightly chewy consistency. It's easy to make, but requires planning ahead. You can substitute a diced 6- or 8-ounce cake of pressed tofu for it in this recipe.

Exotic Spiced Pea Pilaf

Flavorful and colorful. A classic Indian dish, the combination of yogurt, tomatoes, potatoes, rice and spices is super tasty and fills you up. Serve it as a side dish with a tangy stew or a main dish with some refreshing chutney.

Kimchi (Korean Cabbage Relish)

Korean kimchi made with napa cabbage soaked in salted water, then fermented with garlic, ginger, scallions, and Korean chili pepper. Simple traditional fermented relish.

Indian Mango Chutney

This delicious mango chutney is great with any kind of Indian dish.

Chicken & Green Onion Curry

A succulent chicken dish that is served with a delicious sauce everyone will love!

Soy-Peanut Sauce Noodle with Broccoli

A quick, easy and tasty one pan meal is perfect for a weeknight supper. Feel free to add whatever veggies you have on hand.

Beets & Carrots with West Indian Spices

Sugar beets and carrots covered a sweet, tangy, warmly spiced coating. West Indian spices and ginger.

Thai Pasta & Seafood Salad

Thai pasta seafood salad tosses chilled shrimp and scallops with rice vermicelli, cucumbers, peppers, and cilantro in a peanut ginger dressing. A bright, refreshing summer dinner with a kick.

Asian Turkey Burgers

Asian turkey burgers seasoned with fresh ginger, garlic, and soy sauce, then grilled and served on crisp romaine leaves. Lean, low-carb, and packed with savory flavor in every bite.

Wood-Grilled Trout with Mission Fig Compound Butter

Beer pairing suggestion: American India pale ale or amber ale. The Stone World Bistro & Gardens, in Escondido, California, serves wood-grilled trout with black mission fig butter to make it taste even milder and sweeter. Mission figs are available in the dried fruit section of most large supermarkets. Untreated wood planks for grilling are available in grilling and barbecue sections of hardware store s as well as some supermarkets.

Indian Samosas Easier

Crispy Indian samosas made easy with spring roll wrappers instead of homemade pastry. Spiced potato-pea filling wrapped and fried until golden.

Budget: Asian Spiced Orange Pork Ribs

Side ribs are cheaper than back ribs - there is lots of bone, but you can still get nice portions of meat.

Ananda's Palak Paneer

An rustic and authentic version of a very popular Palak Paneer from North India. Out of several version I've tried this Palak Paneer is the best one yet.

Crockpot Sweet & Sour Chicken Stew with Sweet Peppers

Juicy pineapple, sweet peppers, chicken breasts and carrots in a sweet and sour sauce. Easy slow cooker prep.

Mulled Cider

Enjoy the sweet aroma of this drink that can warm you up on a cold night.

Ginger Honey Roast Chicken

Instead of roasting a whole chicken, I only cooked one skin-on and bone-in chicken breast. Used the same ingredients, browned the chicken breast in a hot pan for about 4 minutes on each side until nicely browned. Then baked in the oven until the internal temperature of the chicken breast reached 165 degrees F. Then let it rest for about 10 minutes, and it was juicy, tender and packed with flavour.

Dry Sauteed Green Beans

I did prefer a tenderer texture, so I steamed green beans for a few minutes, then cooked in the pan with all the spices. Still had great flavour and tender-crisp texture.

The Tuna Burger

Awesome flavors in every way. Pickled relish with wasabi mayo perfectly complimentary. When you bite into it the texture is equal or better than milk-fed fillet mignon.

Shantung Chicken

Superb dish. I added Chinese veggies mix which contained bean sprouts, sherry was Spanish. Noodles were originally Chinese. Thanks very much, a photo is attached.

Amazing Spicy Szechuan Chicken

Spicy Szechuan chicken stir-fries velvety egg-white-coated chicken with peanuts, chilies, ginger and bamboo shoots in a glossy soy-sherry sauce. A fast, fiery weeknight stir-fry, easily made gluten-free.

Easy Chicken Stir Fry

It's easy, tasty and satisfying. A perfect dinner on a busy week day. No need to order takeout. This homemade version will definitely beat any takeouts, and much better for you.

Cold Oriental Noodles with Peanut Sauce

I made this for dinner this evening and had raves from the entire family!!!! First recipe tried from your site and you can be assured I will be trying many. We have very diverse tastes and your site seems to accomadate varied tastes. Thank you.

Garam Masala Lamb Kebabs

Garam masala lamb kebabs marinated in spiced yogurt with ginger, garlic, and fresh coriander, then grilled until charred and finished with a dusting of warm, toasted garam masala. Includes a from-scratch spice blend.

Curried Yogurt Dressing

This curried yogurt dressing is spicy, creamy and flavorful, it goes well with any your favorite salad, or you can also serve it as a dip with a piece of cracker or fresh vegetables.

Lamb Rogan Josh

Lamb rogan josh, the Kashmiri curry, with lamb marinated in spiced yogurt overnight then pressure-cooked fork-tender in a fragrant tomato, ginger, and garam masala gravy. Deeply spiced, not just hot.

Asparagus Cashew Stir-Fry

Quick, easy and delicious. An ideal week day dinner.

Vegetable Biryani

Our Indian-Tibetan friend came to our place this past Monday, this vegetarian biryani recipe was the main dish we made for him. It was quite flavorful and tasty, he certainly enjoyed it, and so did we.

Butternut Squash Soup with Ginger & Lime

Butternut squash soup with fresh ginger, garlic, and a bright squeeze of lime. Silky pureed soup finished with crispy fried ginger and toasted pumpkin seeds.

Butternut Squash Soup with Ginger & Lime

Butternut squash soup with fresh ginger, garlic, and a bright squeeze of lime. Silky pureed soup finished with crispy fried ginger and toasted pumpkin seeds.

Curry Lentils & Kale

This hearty and healthy Indian style dish is quick-easy to make, and it's tasty.

Hanoi Beef & Rice-Noodle Soup (Pho Bac)

Authentic Hanoi-style pho bo with slow-simmered oxtail and beef bone broth, star anise, charred ginger, rice noodles, and paper-thin sirloin. This traditional Vietnamese beef noodle soup recipe takes 5 hours but rewards you with deeply aromatic, soul-warming bowls.

Ginger Cedar Planked Salmon with Maple Glaze

Grilled Ginger-Sesame Cedar Planked Salmon with Maple Glaze recipe

Mango Chutney #1

Barely ripe mangoes simmer with fresh ginger, garlic, cumin, and fenugreek in malt vinegar until the fruit turns translucent and the liquid thickens into sweet-tart Indian chutney perfect for canning.

Broccoli Pasta with Sesame Sauce

A delicious way to prepare pasta. Broccoli, carrots and cilantro brighten up the whole dish, and sesame sauce adds the delicious ceaminess and nuttiness, and all the yummy Asian flavor. It's an easy dish that's packed with flavors. Serve it as a side dish or a simply tasty main dish.

Chinese Stuffed Pancake (????)

This is one of several Chinese stuffed pancake recipes, here we use bok choy, shiitake mushrooms and mung bean noodles (like vermicelli), tossed with sesame oil, ginger, garlic and five spice powder, lightly fry them on a non-stick skillet until golden brown outside, and steamy and flavorful inside.

All 616 recipes