In any form, ginger proves tasty

Max Jacobson

Wednesday, March 20, 2002 | 8:25 a.m.

Ginger is a substance more prevalent in food than most probably realize. Botanically, it is a rhizome, a type of root.

Whether ground, grated, candied or preserved in sugar syrup, it presents a variety of different characteristics, some of which are hot, zippy, spicy and pungent.

Ginger has many close botanical relatives turmeric, cardamom and arrowroot being just three. Historically, ginger has been around for centuries, even millennia. Ancient Greeks and Romans enjoyed it, and all European languages have words for it. But it seemed to have disappeared for centuries after the fall of the Roman Empire, until Marco Polo wrote about it in his travel journals. After that, it became popular in many European cuisines.

Similar to many spices, there are claims made regarding ginger's health benefits. It is commonly used as a homeopathic remedy for nausea and motion sickness, and sometimes for coughs and colds. It's been called a natural anti-inflammatory in literature, but it has also been warned that large doses can cause stomach irritation.

In Sweden, ginger is found in cookies such as pepparkrakor, the crunchy ginger snaps many of us know from Astrid Lindgren's famous children's book, "Pippi Longstocking."

Ginger is often found in such goodies as spice cake and gingerbread, and of course, ginger ale. Chef Ming Tsai, featured on the Food Network (Cox cable channel 42), has a recipe for homemade ginger ale on network's website (foodtv.com).

In Jamaica, ginger is the national condiment. It is found in many items, from jerk chicken recipes to pungent ginger beer, a well-known island brew.

Ginger is also omnipresent in Asian cuisine. In Indian cooking, it is a key component of masala, spice mixtures that flavor Indian dishes. Thais use it, along with its cousin ka (or galangal) liberally in preparations. Just about every Thai restaurant in Las Vegas serves gai ped king, literally translated as "chicken with ginger," a stir fry that is delicious with white rice.

Eaten shaved and pickled, ginger is one of the main condiments served with sushi at Japanese restaurants. This variety of ginger is also the one most commonly found in herbal teas. Chinese consider ginger a "yang," or heating food. The Chinese love to sip ginger teas, and the Cantonese often combine a grated version of ginger root with green onion to season a steamed fresh fish.

Ginger is available in many forms, and many area chefs use it in ways not readily apparent.

Chef Carlos Guia of Commander's Palace at Aladdin has a green peppercorn-seared ahi with wilted snow pea tendrils that is awash in a soy-ginger emulsion. The hot and sour soup at the Bellagio Buffet is laced with fresh ginger, as is the salad dressing on the mixed green salad at Bellagio's casual Asian restaurant.

Almost every local supermarket sells powdered ginger, which adds subtle flavor to a preparation, but which is not nearly as pungent as the root.

Roots are available locally at Chinese and Indian markets. According to Iris Lee, owner of Sesame House in Chinatown Plaza Mall on Spring Mountain Road, roots vary greatly in flavor.

When the roots are young, she says, they are tender and less spicy. Old ginger is spicier.

Sesame House specializes in candies and fruits preserved in traditional Chinese ways. Lee sells five varieties of sliced preserved ginger, all of which are $2.25 per quarter-pound. The flavors are sweet red, salty, plum, pickled and sugar ginger, which is the most similar to a typical candied fruit. All are delicious.

Also at Chinatown Plaza Mall, at the busy, well-stocked 99 Ranch Market, ginger can be found in several different forms. Hawaiian ginger roots are sold for $1.99 a pound.

Forty-nine cents will buy a 6-ounce packet of ginger candy, a chewy, bite-sized, individually wrapped product consisting of malt sugar and the spice.

Sushi ginger (known as gari or beni shoga), the sliced, pale-pink ginger bottled in water and vinegar, is $2.89 for an 11-ounce jar. A box of Dynasty brand Sugar Ginger, used for baking, is $1.39 for 4 ounces.

Ginger is also sold in Indian markets. One is India Spices, at 1166 E. Twain Ave. Owner Sayed Zaidi sells the roots for around $2 per pound, though he says that many Indian home cooks prefer to use ginger paste, manufactured by such companies as Rani, and which sells for $2.99 per pound. (There is also the more expensive Patak's, imported from England, which sells for $3.99 per pound.)

"When you use the roots," Zaidi says, "it is an involved process.

"First the root has to be washed, and then peeled. Later it can be grated, crushed in a mortar, or simply put into a food processor. That's too much trouble for the new generation."

Zaidi also points out that if too much is grated, the excess can be preserved in vinegar.

Another place to buy ginger in many forms is India Market, 5000 S. Maryland Parkway. This densely stocked market carries ginger root from Thailand at the low price of 99 cents per pound on certain days of the week, and sells powdered ginger from India at $2.49 per pound.

From Sri Lanka, the market imports ginger preserves, a 490-gram jar selling for $2.99, which is good on English muffins or crumpets. Also from Sri Lanka are bags of crunchy ginger biscuits, $1.49 for a half-pound, and 32-ounce bottles of Ginger Cordial, a concentrated-ginger beverage, for $3.99.