Spicy ginger

I need to break something to you but I’ll do it gently. Ready?

 

It's still winter.

Really. It won’t be spring until March.

 

Don’t let these fool you:

 
 

 

Winter still reigns supreme.

 

So with that bombshell here is a little something to get you through those last few weeks of winter.  It’s really not difficult and the best bit is that you get two products from one recipe. I know! Genius.

First up you’ll get the recipe with pictures and then after you’ll get a lovely downloadable pdf with not so many pictures. Nice! Then you can print it out and put it in a ring binder or, if you like, make it into a paper aeroplane. Much more fun.

Crystallised Ginger

300g fresh ginger

3 Cups water

2 ½ Cups  sugar

(I would also recommend a sugar thermometer as it simply makes it all easier)

Firstly get your ginger.

 

Now peel that ginger. I like to use a teaspoon to do this. Yes. You heard right. A teaspoon.

Like this:

 (Bad picture courtesy of self timer) 

Peeling with a teaspoon means that just the skin comes off resulting in reduced ginger wastage.

Now chop it or slice it. I like small ginger nibbles so I chopped.

Now I have no photos until the finished products so here is the rest of the recipe.

1) Cover your ginger with water and simmer, with the lid on, for 20 minutes. It will still feel quite firm at this stage.

2) Drain into a jug to reserving all the liquid. Top this liquid up to 2 ½ cups.

3)  Put the 2 ½ cups liquid and 2 ½ cups sugar in the pan and add back in the ginger pieces.

4) Bring this mix up to a rolling boil keep it there until your sugar thermometer reaches 106C or 225F. (This stage is likely to take longer than you think. I find that it quickly nearly reaches the temperature but takes a good ten minutes to actually hit 225F/106C. Watch it though.

Once it reaches the correct temperature take it off the heat.

Strain the ginger straight away while it is still hot (reserving the syrupy liquid) and toss the ginger pieces into more sugar until they are coated. 

Here are mine...

Deeelicious. 

Whats that? Oh.They're pink you say.

 I had hoped you wouldn't notice.

In my excitement to make crystallised ginger I forgot one thing. To check I had everything. I didn't have enough sugar to roll my ginger in so I had to use my experimental batch...

 

...the batch  which i had scented with rose petals...

...and coloured with natural food dye.

At least I can say I'm resourceful.

Oh yes, before I forget, I had mentioned it was two recipes in one. Well you obviously have the crystallised ginger but you also have a ginger syrup and I have more recipes for each of those coming up soon.

So here you go, as promised,a downloadable recipe card: Crystallised Ginger

 (I also want to add just two things. 1) Please be careful when working with any hot liquid but especially hot sugar and 2) Use a much bigger pan than you think you will use. When the sugary water comes to a rolling boil it will at least triple in size. A bigger pan will educe the risk of spills and burns.)

Comments

[Hannah]

Very pretty in pink.

[Lucy]

no, no - the birds are singing - it sounds like spring!!!

just bought some ginger yesterday... this looks very good :)

[minnieschooler]

Thanks for the peeling tip:o)

I will try this.

[Penny]

Mmmm... Crystallised ginger... I love that stuff, but can't find an organic version. If I follow your instructions I can make my own! I'm off to buy a sugar thermometer! Thanks!

[Rebecca jennings]

Wow I never thought about crystallising my own ginger,off to get a sugar thermometer too I think!!Thank you,Oh and only today did I notice some daffs appearing in our front garden and thought"yes spring is here".I did buy a bunch of daffs I just love their bright sunny colours:) x

[Rebecca jennings]

Forgot to say thank you for the recipe card print out,I never get round to printing anything off but will now what a great idea!

[Pamela]

I have a sugar thermometer but as I am the only person in the house who likes ginger I probably won't make any. The paper aeroplane might come in useful though. For the entire Christmas period we had a paper plane stuck through a christmas decoration, it had been thrown rather high and there it stayed until the decs came down.