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[crazycanuck]

Can you freeze ginger? I bought a large bit of ginger the other day & worry it'll go off before i need it..

Fridge or freezer??

[Owlie]

You can freeze it. I wash it, dry it well, then cut it into a combination of chunks and 1/4"-thick disks. It's quite happy in a quart-sized freezer bag for however long I want to leave it in there.

[OakLeaf]

I freeze it too. It gets a little crumbly, so it's no good if you need intact slices, but if you plan to grate or mince it anyway, it's fine. You can freeze it with the peel on, IMO it actually peels easier when it's frozen.

[withm]

Peel it. Slice it as thick/thin as you like. Put the slices into in a small jar. Pour sherry over to cover. Put lid on jar. Store in the fridge. Ginger keeps practically forever this way, and there is nothing you can make with fresh ginger that won't be enhanced by the few drops of sherry it absorbs

[NbyNW]

Oh wow. I'm going to try that thing with the sherry!

[OakLeaf]

My mom always did that back in the day, when you couldn't reliably get ginger in the grocery, and she used dry sherry in place of shaoshing wine that you just couldn't get at all.

But I don't think it would go all that well with most Indian recipes, which is where I typically use mass quantities of ginger.

It sounds kind of odd in sweet potato casserole and ginger snaps too, come to think of it.

[Owlie]

Or chai...unless you want that.

[withm]

Peel it. Slice it as thick/thin as you like. Put the slices into in a small jar. Pour sherry over to cover. Put lid on jar. Store in the fridge. Ginger keeps practically forever this way, and there is nothing you can make with fresh ginger that won't be enhanced by the few drops of sherry it absorbs

Note this should be DRY sherry. Note, if your recipe calls for grated sherry you can still grate it, but if you value your fingers you might be happy to mince it instead.

Maybe once a year or so I'll start new with fresh ginger root, and fresh sherry.

The sherry does not seem to evaporate. And really, just how much sherry can a slice of ginger root absorb? Even if it was a full teaspoon (and I think we'd be talking more like 1/4 tsp at most), would that really destroy your recipe? The ginger root will surely overpower a teaspoon of sherry in a recipe that makes more than a cup of anything.

I suppose it's easy to go to the trouble to denounce the idea if you are of mindset to find fault with everything and apparently have nothing better to do.

[crazycanuck]

Urm...i didn't denounce it.. Sounds ok to me

[OakLeaf]

Urm...i didn't denounce it.. Sounds ok to me

I think it was directed at me. And I do have better things to do than go back and forth about the experience my family has had for decades, with someone who's going to take it as "denunciation."

[Owlie]

Note this should be DRY sherry. Note, if your recipe calls for grated sherry you can still grate it, but if you value your fingers you might be happy to mince it instead.

Maybe once a year or so I'll start new with fresh ginger root, and fresh sherry.

The sherry does not seem to evaporate. And really, just how much sherry can a slice of ginger root absorb? Even if it was a full teaspoon (and I think we'd be talking more like 1/4 tsp at most), would that really destroy your recipe? The ginger root will surely overpower a teaspoon of sherry in a recipe that makes more than a cup of anything.

I suppose it's easy to go to the trouble to denounce the idea if you are of mindset to find fault with everything and apparently have nothing better to do.

I think it's a great idea for Chinese dishes. Not so sure it'll work with chai (something that I use a lot of ginger for), though. That's all.