Mother Would Know

Home Cooking Beats Take-Out

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • About
    • About Laura / Mother Would Know
    • Privacy Policy
    • Websites I Love
  • Recipes
    • Browse All Recipes
    • Appetizers & Snacks
    • Beef & Lamb
    • Beverages
    • Bread
    • Breakfast & Brunch
    • Sweets
    • Fish & Seafood
    • Grains
    • Pasta & Noodles
    • Pork
    • Potatoes
    • Poultry
    • Salads
    • Sandwiches
    • Sauces & Condiments
    • Soups & Stews
    • Vegetables
  • Kernels of Wisdom
    • Browse All Kernels
    • Cooking Equipment
    • Definitions
    • Ingredients
    • Techniques
  • Archives
  • In The News
  • Work With Me
    • For Companies, Brands, & Trade Associations
    • For Individuals
  • Contact

Candied or Crystallized Ginger

September 19, 2012 by Laura 14 Comments

Sharing is caring!

183 shares
  • Share
  • Tweet

I used to buy candied or crystallized ginger, but no more.  After discovering David Lebovitz’s recipe last year, I gathered up my courage and tried it myself.  The process is easy and the results are infinitely better than the packaged versions. 

candied or crystallized ginger

ingredients for candied or crystallized ginger

The ingredients are minimal – fresh ginger (prices are typically best at ethnic groceries that carry it, rather than at larger grocery chains), sugar, salt, and water.                                                                                                

The process is straightforward – you peel fresh ginger, slice it thinly, rinse it, and cook in a simple syrup (you remember that from the limoncello, right?) until it reaches 225 degrees F/106 C.  Read David’s post for the details, then come back here for my tips.  The terms “candied” and “crystallized” are typically used interchangeably.  If a distinction is made, the term candied refers to ginger stored in the simple syrup and crystallized ginger means the version cooked in the sweet syrup and rolled in sugar.  

My tips for making candied or crystallized ginger:

equipment for making candied or crystallized ginger

equipment for making candied or crystallized ginger

slicing fresh ginger for candied ginger

slicing fresh ginger for candied ginger

piles of thinly sliced fresh ginger

piles of thinly sliced fresh ginger

  • Make sure your knife is medium or large-sized (not a small, paring knife) and sharp.  

beginning to make candied or crystallized ginger

  • No shortcuts in the rinsing steps. Although a bit tedious, you must rinse the slices to soften them .  
  • If you use a candy thermometer to gauge the temperature of the syrup, make sure to use a mitten-style pot holder.  Take it from me, you don’t want to hold the thermometer in the hot syrup without one. That is a prescription for a burn or you’ll drop the thermometer in the syrup – or both. 

making simple syrup for candied gingerboiling the ginger for candied or crystallized gingercandied ginger in syrup

  • If you don’t use a candy thermometer, have patience.  It takes a long time for the syrup to get to the final temperature.  Water boils at 212 degrees F/100 C. When you get the simple syrup to that temperature, you may think you are almost done.  Not so fast.  The ginger cooks in the syrup for a while after the mixture boils.  

rolling candied ginger in sugarhow to make candied ginger

  • Here is how the simple process to coat the ginger slices in sugar. First, take them out of the syrup with a slotted spoon. Second, drain off the excess syrup. Third, roll or toss the slices in a bowl of sugar. Fourth, shake off the excess sugar and let the slices dry on a rack.

I use candied or crystallized ginger in lots of baked goods.  The syrup is great in tea, and the sugar is wonderful as a replacement for “plain” granulated sugar in any number of recipes for baked goods and puddings. 

A note: If you wonder why I linked to David’s recipe rather than reprint it, read his post on recipe attribution.  I do occasionally reprint a recipe (ingredients and directions) – as with Michael Ruhlman’s recipe for roasted whole cauliflower  – and in that case I get the original author’s permission.  When I use recipes from friends/relatives but give my own directions – e.g. the kugel recipe from my friend Gail and her mother-in-law, I provide acknowledgement for the recipe’s source.  In this case, I asked David about using his recipe and he asked me to link to his post rather than reprint. I have done so in deference to his request.  While I am a lawyer, I am not offering legal advice.  I’m just trying to respect others’ legal and/or moral rights as I hope others will respect mine. 

Filed Under: Archives, Desserts & Other Sweets, Techniques Tagged With: candied ginger, crystallized ginger, David Lebovitz, DIY, ginger, how to

« How to Peel Ginger
Money Matters – Tips on Saving When You Shop »

Comments

  1. kelly @ kellybakes says

    January 8, 2013 at 2:03 pm

    Once my roommate finds out that I can make this, I'm in trouble. Candied ginger is her favorite! Looks like I've got a project for this weekend!

    Reply
  2. motherwouldknow says

    January 10, 2013 at 4:05 pm

    Teach her to make her own. That way, you can keep (or give away) the ginger you make and maybe she'll be so grateful that she'll even give you some when you run out!

    Reply
  3. Diana says

    November 9, 2020 at 11:19 am

    I wondered why the 225 is important. I like it soft and want to boil it a bit longer. Is there a problem with going over 225?

    Reply
    • Laura says

      November 9, 2020 at 10:09 pm

      225 F is the temperature that keeps the sugar at the syrup stage. You don’t want it to get much above that or the syrup will start to harden.

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Welcome!

Join me for cooking adventures. You’ll gain confidence in your cooking abilities, find new ways to save time and money when preparing meals, and discover recipes and tips. Plus, we’ll enjoy ourselves.

Get 5 easy tips for home cooking success, checklists & recipes.

We never share your information.

Search

Follow Laura Kumin-MotherWouldKnow's board MotherWouldKnow Recipes & Tips on Pinterest.

Copyright © 2010-2025 Laura Kumin · All Rights Reserved · Privacy Policy · Implemented by WPopt

183 shares
MENU & SEARCH
  • About
    • About Laura / Mother Would Know
    • Privacy Policy
    • Websites I Love
  • Recipes
    • Browse All Recipes
    • Appetizers & Snacks
    • Beef & Lamb
    • Beverages
    • Bread
    • Breakfast & Brunch
    • Sweets
    • Fish & Seafood
    • Grains
    • Pasta & Noodles
    • Pork
    • Potatoes
    • Poultry
    • Salads
    • Sandwiches
    • Sauces & Condiments
    • Soups & Stews
    • Vegetables
  • Kernels of Wisdom
    • Browse All Kernels
    • Cooking Equipment
    • Definitions
    • Ingredients
    • Techniques
  • Archives
  • In The News
  • Work With Me
    • For Companies, Brands, & Trade Associations
    • For Individuals
  • Contact