Ginger Root (Zingiber officinale)

In traditional Chinese cooking fresh ginger root is as essential as the wok. It is said that ginger root from Canton is the most aromatic, but, like garlic, it is an indispensable ingredient of all Chinese cookery. Its pungent, spicy, and fresh taste adds a subtle but distinctive flavour to soups, meats, fish, sauces, and vegetables. These rhizomes are golden-beige in colour with a thin dry skin. They range from small, broken-off bits to large knobbly “hands.” In China you can find peeled ginger root at the markets; older, ginger root is used for medicinal broths. Look for ginger root which is firm, solid, and clear-skinned.