1) Harvesting ginger
You should start harvest ginger when there in frost in the fall. Get ginger rhizomes out of the soil gently with a garden fork. As ginger rhizomes are about 30 cm in radius, keep in mind to dig outside of that radius around the base, or you may hurt them.
2) Drying and storing ginger
Wash ginger rhizomes after digging them out and put them on a towel or cooling rack. Then wait until they are dry. Break rhizomes into pieces and store them in a freezer bag. If you intend to enjoy them over the next years, it is best to dehydrate and ground into a powder.
3) Cooking with ginger
It is convenient to keep ginger in the freezer if you intend to cook it at any time. Just grate ginger on a microplane if it is frozen. Thus the ginger will become melty like snowflakes and can blend into soups and salad dressings. If the ginger is unfrozen, you can mince it and add it to recipes. If the ginger is fresh and dried, you can mince it and use three times the amount of dried ginger needed in the recipe.
4) Ginger as medicine
Ginger has been used to treat numerous ailments, including colds and nausea. It is also used to ease pain in the chest, low back and stomach. Additionally, it helps reduce inflammation in the body. People usually drink ginger tea and use ginger roots to make tinctures or infuse them in oil, vinegar or honey. To make tea, just chop ginger root and boil it in water. You can enjoy the tea after 10 minutes. If you want more flavor, add a cinnamon stick or orange peel. You can also add some lemongrass, honey and lemon to the tea.
5) Put ginger in soup
Hot and creamy soups smell wonderful if there is some fresh ginger in it. Ginger is an outstanding ingredient in any kinds of soup. The soup with ginger is good for your health.
6) Add ginger to Asian cuisine
Ginger is often used in Asian dishes. With a sweet peppery flavor, ginger is popular in Asian Cabbage Scramble, Sesame Chicken, Asian Apple-Chicken Salad and more.