Crystallised ginger is one of my favourite baking ingredients, so when I saw a post on Whisky Drinkin’ Chimney Sweep about how to make my own I was really excited. It had never even occurred to me that I could make my own, what a dunce I am. I followed Jillian’s instructions and they didn’t let me down so much as a fraction of an ounce.
First you reduce an enormous bit of root ginger to little cubes. Cube-ish, at least.
Then you bring the ginger to the boil, then drain and repeat. After this, you boil again with a measured amount of water and sugar – I used golden caster sugar. Once you’ve done this, the ginger is shiny, sweet and syrupy.
Then, you roll the ginger in more sugar (the same kind, I think it’s important to use granulated and not caster). Spread it on a baking sheet and bake at a low heat for an hour, or a little longer, until it feels dried and not sticky.
Turn the oven off, stir through the ginger to turn any slightly syrupy bits upwards to let them dry, and leave on the baking sheet, in the oven, to finish drying overnight.
I used this ginger in my Herman the German Friendship Cake, and one of my colleagues liked it so much that she picked lots of it out of slices of the cake that WERE NOT HERS. YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE. Anyway I took it as a great compliment. The ginger is fiery, sweet, satisfyingly chewy and basically like a ginger fruit pastille. It is better than any shop bought crystallised ginger, and it’s cheaper, too. A great mini-project to undertake of an afternoon.
I also added the recipe book that the recipe comes from to my wish list. I love the idea of preserving my own food but quite often it’s hard to do on the scale I want. My kitchen is pretty small and I don’t have any specialist equipment, a lot of storage space or a large fridge. The book is called The Complete Book of Small Batch Preserving, and it looks like a nice introduction to preserving reasonable-sized portions of jam, chutney, fruit, vegetables and more. I don’t need gallons of jam. I won’t *eat* gallons of jam, at least not without becoming a bit ill and not being able to look jam in the face for a long time afterwards. Small batches for my own fridge and my friends and family’s cupboards sounds good to me!
April 20th, 2012 at 1:00 PM
Your ginger came out beautifully. I’ve never made it, although we always have fresh ginger in the freezer.
April 21st, 2012 at 11:52 AM
Thank you, I am really pleased with how it looks. I usually have ginger in the freezer too, it’s such a great way to always have some to hand!
April 20th, 2012 at 2:19 PM
Excellent idea. I love crystalized ginger for baking, in my chocolate, or just to eat for my quick sugar fix. And it also never occurred to me to make it. Thanks!
April 21st, 2012 at 11:54 AM
I know, I’d never considered it either! All thanks due to Jillian, her blog presents me with so many projects to make.
April 20th, 2012 at 2:43 PM
This is fantastic! I’m definitely going to do this with my son. He pops crystallized ginger like candy.
It looks fantastic! I never would have thought about trying it at home.
April 21st, 2012 at 12:00 PM
Brilliant, this would be a great project to do together! It’s delicious, and only two ingredients
April 20th, 2012 at 3:18 PM
What a useful post! The recipe for making this at home is great but I really want to find that book. So many recipes for preserves result in far too much for me to use, especially if I want any variety. Thanks for both the recipe and referral.
April 21st, 2012 at 12:02 PM
Hey thanks John! I’m hoping I might get the book for my birthday in a few weeks, it’s on my wish list… It’s nice to see a book aimed at people like you and I who want small scale recipes.
April 20th, 2012 at 3:37 PM
This looks great – have to give it a try
April 21st, 2012 at 12:03 PM
Definitely go for it, it’s a great reward for a little effort
April 20th, 2012 at 10:37 PM
Homemade crystallized ginger and the Complete Book of Small Batch Preserving…Like, like, like, like, like! Must try this and look for the book, thanks!
April 21st, 2012 at 12:04 PM
Ha what a great comment! Look forward to comparing notes with you when we both get the book – it’s available on Amazin for a very reasonable price
April 21st, 2012 at 1:22 AM
I’ve never thought to try this, but will be doing so! I’ve purchased it before with mixed results.. sometimes it’s so pungent and other times so saccharine!! I love that you have great control of the taste and the quality of the ginger you start with!
April 21st, 2012 at 12:08 PM
You’re so right, shop bought can be really variable, but when you make it at home you know just what’s going in there. I’m already thinking of interesting ways to vary this, now I know how easy it is!
April 21st, 2012 at 4:14 PM
I love candied/crystalized ginger too! I keep a container of it in the kitchen, its so good. And if you ever have a stomach ache it works better than most medications! I made ginger simple syrup recently for ginger sangria and was left with cooked, soft ginger pieces and I thought about trying to make my own candied ginger- but I didn’t have the granulated sugar needed for the baking part… will have to buy some next time I’m at the store and give it a go!
April 22nd, 2012 at 12:14 PM
I can recommend it! Ginger has so many uses, it’s really a versatile ingredient. I’ve always got granulated sugar in the house in case I suddenly take a notion for a cup of tea. More often it gets used in baking
April 21st, 2012 at 8:37 PM
Hi. I nominated you for the Versatile Blogger Award.. Congratulations..:)
April 22nd, 2012 at 12:15 PM
Aw thanks Nina! I’m very flattered.
April 23rd, 2012 at 1:29 AM
Thanks for the recipe. It is also very good to help treat nausea and of course used in many teas and other yummy recipes.
April 23rd, 2012 at 8:47 PM
Oh I’ve never thought of making tea with it, what a great idea!
April 30th, 2013 at 12:01 PM
[...] item in my parcel – but you may remember that I love crystallised ginger, to the point of making my own a while back. The ginger was accompanied by a recipe for rhubarb and ginger jam, which is [...]