How to Dehydrate Ginger Root and Make Ginger Powder

How to dehydrate ginger root and get the best ginger powder you’ve ever tasted! It’s so easy to do, and it will change your pantry forever!

Let’s open our pantry today, shall we? Ground Ginger that so many of use in our cooking is actually a rhizome of the Ginger Plant (but we still know it as Ginger Root instead). Each “hand” is a root full of sweet, spicy flavor that enhances many Asian dishes and makes for an awesomely refreshing beverage!

The problem is, as with other store bought spices and herbs, they’ve been created from poor specimens of plants, stored in hot warehouses for long periods of time before they ever make it to your grocer’s shelves and sit there even longer, just waiting for someone to spend that outrageous amount of money for a small sampling of what is a mere shadow of the goodness that it could be when made fresh.

So today – we dehydrate ginger!

How to Store Ginger Root

Before we start, let’s talk about storing ginger root when you first purchase it. Normally, I freezer my ginger root, skin and all. Then I can just peel the bit I need, give it a quick grate, and throw it back into the freezer.

However, if I’m going to be dehydrating it, I tend to store it on my counter. I like the texture and moisture level better when I’ve done it that way. However, I had tucked away about 5 segments of ginger into the freezer because knowing I was needing to restock my spice jar, but not being exactly sure when I was going to get to it, I wanted to be sure it didn’t get old too quickly on my counter.

How to Dehydrate Ginger Root

Peel your Ginger rhizomes

I love this peeler
” data-wplink-url-error=”true”>I love this peeler

Choose your method of breaking down

1. Grating

2. Shaving

I’m going to use this photo again because I could not get the regular photo to get the detail I wanted. Just like peeling off the skin, use your peeler to shave off paper thing sections of the rhizome. You want them as thin as possible.

or 3. Chopping

I did not do this method because I love my fingers. I find that trying to cut paper thin slices of a slippery vegetable, fruit or rhizome leaves my fingers without their tips. I love you guys, but I really love my fingers more. So I will just tell you. You can cut discs of ginger. But you want them as thin as possible so that they dry more efficiently.

This would be a good time to use a mandolin
“>use a mandolin, or even the side slicer bars of your box grater, but because these are small pieces of root, they tend to be slippier, I just prefer to err on the safe side.

Wring Out Moisture

Because these rhizomes were previously frozen, they are a little watery, so I then put them in a tea towel and squeeze out a lot of the moisture. It leaves me with a little bundle of gingery goodness.

However, I just spread it out on parchment paper in my dehydrator

And these are the shaved pieces on the racks. I can tell you that this is my preferred method. It’s just easier for me to store and use for the next phase.

Place in a Dehydrator and dry at about 95F until done.

WARNING: DO NOT WALK AWAY.

I know with a lot of dehydrating, we throw something in the machine, turn it on, set our mental timer and go on about our day running errands to the next state or going on long weekend cruises with our spouses. Yes, a bit of a hyperbole, but those of you with experience know that some foods just take FOREVER! Well, This ginger, a full dehydrator of it, was done in less than two hours. Truly. 2 hrs. Even less. It goes quickly!

Dehydrated Grated Ginger

Dehydrated Shaved Ginger

Dehydrated Ginger Root Powder

To powder, I simply put about a palm full of dehydrated flakes & shavings into my electric spice grinder
“>electric spice grinder and gave it a whirl. It took a little while to get it fine enough for me because ginger root can be a little fibrous, and it’s so light, it often whirls up out of the blades’ way, so it takes some pulsing. But there is nothing like the taste of freshly ground ginger!

How to Store Dried Ginger

I store my dried ginger in a small airtight container and keep it in a cool dry place. I don’t use ginger that often, so I prefer to keep it in this form than to powder it all at once. Don’t you just love this little canning jar my mother and law found for me? It’s one of my favorites!

Tools You Might Need:

Resource: Encyclopedia for Herbal Healing
“>Encyclopedia for Herbal Healing

Share Your Thoughts: What is an herb or spice that you love, that you haven’t tried to preserve, yet?

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