Ginger: beneficial properties and storage

From tropical plants ginger firmly entered our life, as beneficial to human health. Perennial root is also used in cooking. Back in the Middle Ages, it was considered one of the popular spices brought by merchants from Asian countries. There are several types of plants, medicinal, or pharmaceutical, ginger is used in traditional and folk medicine.

The healing properties of ginger have always been appreciated. It was believed that the root of the plant protects against the plague, so merchants profited from the sale of a miracle cure. In the modern world, ginger has firmly taken its position as a spice that is added to sweets and canned foods. But how to properly keep fresh ginger so that it does not lose its beneficial properties is not always known.

Content:

• Features of the structure of ginger
• Useful properties and uses of the plant
• How to choose the right ginger root?
• Storing fresh ginger
• Is the root stored in the freezer?
• Keeping the root dry
• Other ways to store ginger

Features of the structure of ginger

A perennial of the Ginger family is grown by the Chinese, Indians, residents of West Africa and Australia. The value of the plant is in the root, which looks like dissected tubers located horizontally in the ground.

In addition to the main roots, there are adventitious ones that form a fibrous system. The stems of the herbaceous culture are thickened, with internodes, they are up to a meter in height. On them are lanceolate leaves, reaching a length of twenty centimeters. In the axils of the leaves, buds are formed to form false stems.

Due to the spicy taste of the root, it is used as an additive in culinary dishes.

On flowering short shoots there are ears covered with scales. Form their yellowish or violet-brown flowers. In the fruit of ginger, which looks like a three-leaved box, there are oval-shaped seeds. But in cultured plants, seeds are not formed. All parts of the plant contain aromatic essential oil. Hence the healing properties of perennials.

Useful properties and uses of the plant

The ginger root is based on a resinous substance called gingerol. The tubers contain vitamins A, K, E, ascorbic acid, thiamine. They contain a lot of fatty acids, proteins, fats and carbohydrates.

Therefore, the use of ginger root is good for everyone. For medicinal purposes, the plant is used for:

1. lowering blood pressure
2. normalization of blood circulation
3. relief of pain, removal of edema in arthritis, osteoarthritis
4. normalization of the functions of the stomach and duodenum upon detection of an ulcer
5. prevent blood clots
6. expulsion from the body of worms

Due to the large amount of vitamins and minerals in ginger roots, they are used in the treatment of viral infections. Ginger powder helps to restore strength, strengthen immunity when the body is weakened.

Ginger tea relieves heaviness in the stomach, eliminates nausea and vomiting. It can be taken by those who are seasick in transport. Prepare the drink like this: pour one teaspoon with two glasses of water and boil for forty minutes. After straining, add sugar or honey and drink after meals.Tea is used to treat tonsillitis, inflammation of the oral cavity.

The root of the plant is widely used not only in medicine and cosmetology, but also in cooking.

A decoction of pieces of ginger root helps against colds. A little cinnamon powder is also added to it to speed up recovery, raise vitality. A tincture of alcohol is prepared from the root, ten drops of which are taken before meals to increase appetite. Ginger oil is used to lubricate sore joints or areas of the spine before the massage. After the sessions, the swelling of the tissues decreases, the pain goes away. You can moisten a lump of sugar with two or three drops of oil and use it after a meal, relieving heaviness in the stomach. This method eliminates pain during menstruation.
The oil added to the shampoo helps to improve the condition of the hair and strengthen it. And for the skin, ginger is useful as a refreshing, antiseptic, anti-inflammatory agent.

How to choose the right ginger root?

Ginger root is widely sold. They offer not only fresh product, but also dried and pickled ones. Still, fresh ginger is healthier. Pharmacies sell ginger oil. But if the medicine is improperly prepared, and the root was stored without taking into account the rules, then there will be little benefit from the plant.

There are both black and white root of the plant. The color is different due to the processing method. The root is black when it is washed and the skin is not removed from it. White has peeled off the surface. And to give them whiteness, the tubers are treated with bleach. Naturally, some of the properties ginger after processing is lost.

To benefit from a product, you need to make sure it is fresh.

When choosing a root, pay attention to the condition of the tubers. They should be elastic and smooth. Having broken the root, the cut site is examined. If it is pale yellow, then the ginger is fresh. If a rich yellow color is found on the break, they refuse to acquire the root. He's old, and of no use. You can not choose tubers with damage, rot on the skin. All this suggests that ginger was dug up a long time ago and was stored without following the rules.

Storing fresh ginger

To preserve the tubers, their healing qualities, you need to choose the optimal conditions and place ginger there. The roots need to maintain their firmness, fleshiness, without losing moisture. To do this, in the place where the healing roots are placed, there should be:

• air temperature no more than 15 degrees and no less than 10
• humidity at 65 - 70 percent
• shade, no sunlight

Under the right conditions, ginger will retain its beneficial properties from three months to six months. To do this, they keep the tubers in the sun a little and, wrapped in parchment paper, are placed in a basement or cellar. The refrigerator is also suitable for keeping ginger fresh. Store the fresh root by wrapping it in a bag with a fastener, creating a vacuum inside. After peeling and soaking, the roots of the plant are poured with cold boiled water and kept in the refrigerator. Dried ginger and ground ginger are also placed there.

Storage methods include freezing the product in the freezer. You can put the prepared root in a jar and fill it with vodka or sherry. The preservation of the product will be successful, neither taste nor aroma of ginger will change. Another way is to pickle ginger. In this form, ginger is served with various dishes. Here it is valued more for its taste and aroma. Properly selected storage methods allow not only enjoying the unusual taste of ginger, but also using it as a medicine.

Is the root stored in the freezer?

If the ginger root is needed only for cooking, then the best place to store it is the freezer. Tubers, washed, dried, are wrapped in polyethylene film. Zip bags are also suitable, from which air is removed. Place the sealed bags in the freezer. You can immediately spread out in portions for convenient use in winter, taking out part of the product.

Freezer storage involves using the frozen food within three months.

Put in sealed containers and chopped root, or cut into circles. First, the pieces are laid out on a platter and frozen, and then laid out in a resealable container.

Keeping the root dry

Dried roots are stored longer, up to two years. Prepare ginger for drying as follows:

1. Cut the washed and dried tubers thinly so that they are translucent.
2. In the oven, they are laid out on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper.
3. Turn on the temperature at 50 degrees and hold for an hour.
4. Turning the slices over, leave for another 60 minutes.
5. When the slices are well dried, they are placed in glassware and sealed tightly.

Store the product in a cabinet at room temperature or in the refrigerator on the shelf of the door. Before use, the ginger slices are poured with water, then added to dishes or drinks.

Other ways to store ginger

You can keep the ginger root in the marinade longer. This exotic spice comes from the East and is popular for its unusual taste. Before cooking, ginger is peeled, rubbed with sea salt. Left overnight, it is soaked in salt. In the morning it is washed, cut into plates along the fibers. From a two percent bite (one hundred grams), two tablespoons of wine, dry red or pink, a teaspoon of salt and two tablespoons of sugar, basil is prepared for pouring. The marinade is infused for several hours, it is constantly stirred. The prepared root is placed in a ceramic dish and poured with marinade. Ginger is cooked for a week under a lid in a dark, cool place.

The hot method of pickling is also used. A mixture for pouring is prepared from four tablespoons of wine, two - vodka, four tablespoons of sugar. Everything is cooked over a fire until it boils. Then pour in 200 milliliters of vinegar, keeping on fire. It remains to pour the chopped tubers and close the lid. In a jar, they put the pickled product in the refrigerator when it cools down.

Ginger in syrup is delicious. The root is dipped in slices in the syrup and boiled for fifteen minutes. After cooling, they are taken out and doused in powdered sugar, dried in the oven. Store the sugar delicacy in a jar.

Storage methods ginger many, choose the most acceptable for themselves.

For culinary needs, the chopped root is poured with vodka, liqueur, white wine. Insist the product for up to two weeks in a dark place. At the same time, ginger retains its qualities both as a medicine and as a product. You can make a mixture of peeled and chopped spicy tuber and lemon. The same amount of products are mixed and melted honey is added. Having spread out in jars, they store the treat in the refrigerator, using it during the cold and flu season.

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