How to Eat Raw Ginger

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Last Updated: March 5, 2023 References Approved

Raw ginger is a wonderful ingredient that's both healthy and delicious! You can add raw ginger to some of your favorite recipes to give them a bit of spice. Ginger is great in soup, main dishes like stir-fry, and even in dessert. You can also chew on raw ginger or make a tea from it to help with certain health issues.

Method 1

Method 1 of 2:

Using Raw Ginger in Recipes

1
Pair ginger with root vegetable soup. The spiciness of ginger pairs well with creamy soups. Ginger in creamy, root vegetable soups are especially great in cold weather, since the ginger adds flavor and warms you up! Make a simple root vegetable soup by doing the following:^{[1]
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- First measure out 1 US tbsp (15 mL) of fresh chopped ginger, 1 tsp (4.9 mL) ground coriander, and ¹⁄₂ tsp (2.5 mL) ground mustard seeds. Then add them and ¹⁄₂ tsp (2.5 mL) of curry powder to 2 US tbsp (30 mL) of hot oil in a heavy pot.
- Add 1 US tbsp (15 mL) fresh minced ginger, 2 c (470 mL) of chopped onions and 4 c (950 mL) of thinly sliced carrots rounds to the pot. Sauté for 3 minutes and then add 5 c (1,200 mL) of chicken broth and bring to a boil.
- Reduce the heat to medium and let everything simmer for 30 minutes. Let it cool and then blend the soup in batches in a food processor or blender until it’s all smooth. Return it to the soup pot and add broth ¹⁄₄ c (59 mL) at a time if it’s too thick.
2
Grate fresh ginger into stir-fry. Stir-fries are super easy to make at home. Mix together your favorite protein and vegetables, plus a bit of sauce, to a fry pan with a few ounces of oil. Stir over a medium heat until everything is cooked. Grate a bit of ginger into your stir-fry about halfway through to add some spice.

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3
Add ginger to your desserts. Because ginger is spicy, it pairs well with sweets. You can add some ginger to most cookie, cake, and pie recipes to spice them up. Check the recipes to see when you should add the fresh grated ginger. Depending on the type of recipe, you might need to add it with other semi-wet ingredients or with dry ingredients.^{[2]
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- Fresh ginger is usually more potent than ground, dry ginger, so keep that in mind when you're looking at the measurements. You might want to reduce the amount of dry ginger by 3/4 or 1/2 when you use fresh instead.
- The longer you let the ginger mingle with other flavors, the stronger the taste will be. If you’re making a pumpkin pie with ginger, for example, make the pie the day before you want to serve it for a stronger ginger flavor.
4
Make a ginger salad dressing. Add ¹⁄₄ c (59 mL) of oil and ¹⁄₄ c (59 mL) of vinegar to a blender. You can choose whichever oil and vinegar flavors you like. Then add a 1 inch (2.5 cm) piece of ginger, chopped fine. You can add salt, pepper, and other spices as you like. Blend everything together until it’s smooth, and you have a ginger dressing!^{[3]
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Method 2

Method 2 of 2:

Eating Raw Ginger for Health Benefits

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Chew on raw ginger to settle indigestion. If you’re suffering from a stomachache, a bit of raw ginger might help. Slice a thin piece of raw ginger off a peeled ginger root and chew on it the way you would a piece of chewing gum. Once the flavor has gone out of the piece of ginger, you can throw it away and get another piece.^{[4]
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2
Make hot tea from ginger to help a cough. There is some limited evidence that ginger may help with a cough. The size of the chunk of ginger you’ll want to use depends on how strong you like your tea. To start, try a chunk of ginger about 1 inch (2.5 cm) square. Cut up the chunk into smaller pieces and place it in the cup. Then pour 1 c (240 mL) of boiling water over the ginger.^{[5]
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- You can peel the ginger root chunk before you slice it, but you don't have to.
- You can add 1 tsp (4.9 mL) of honey and a few squeezes of lemon juice to the cup for extra flavor.
3
Use it to prepare your juicer. If you’re juicing as part of your diet, you can try adding ginger. Before you make your juice, slice a 1 inch (2.5 cm) piece of ginger root. Take the ginger remnants out and then make your juice as you normally would. Your juice will have the flavor of ginger without adding anything chunky to your juice.^{[6]
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- If you like, you can leave the ginger in your juicer for a chunkier, spicier juice.

Expert Q&A
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Question

What is an easy way to mince ginger?

Yoko Isassi
Japanese Food Specialist
Yoko Isassi is a Japanese Food Specialist and the Founder of Foodstory in Los Angeles, California. Since 2011, she has taught others how to cook Japanese food and educated others about Japanese food culture. Yoko holds an MA from Columbia University.

Yoko Isassi

Japanese Food Specialist

Expert Answer

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Ginger has prominent fibers—it's easiest to slice along the fiber first, which happens to be cutting along the length of the bulb. After slicing, cut the ginger into julienne strips; then, put these thin strips of ginger together and cut them into tiny pieces.