The Complete Handbook of Ginger Root

Chapter 1: Understanding Ginger Root

What Ginger Root Actually Is

The ginger you buy in a produce aisle or unload from a shipping crate is not a root. It is a rhizome, an underground stem that grows horizontally, sending up leafy shoots and fibrous roots from its nodes. The distinction is not pedantry. Rhizomes behaviorally are different from true roots: they store energy, they can sprout from any node, and they respond to environmental cues in ways that dictate how long they remain marketable. A true root like a carrot has no eyes that sprout; a ginger rhizome is a living, dormant stem system. When you see a green bud pushing out of the thumb of a hand of ginger, it is not decay beginning, it is the rhizome breaking dormancy.

Commercially, ginger is classified as an herbaceous perennial, but it is grown as an annual for harvest. The plant, Zingiber officinale, is a member of the Zingiberaceae family, which also includes turmeric, galangal, and cardamom. That family relationship matters because the visual and sensory confusion between these cousins is common. Galangal, for instance, has paler, harder, shinier rhizomes and a sharp, piney flavor that does not substitute well in recipes calling for ginger. Turmeric, similarly, bruises orange and has a completely different bitterness. For the procurement professional, knowing that ginger is the fleshy, buff-colored piece with a smooth, taut skin and a pale yellow interior is the first level of competency. The second level is understanding that within