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Natural Health Booster: Uses, Substitutes, and Benefits of Ginger

Natural Health Booster: Uses, Substitutes, and Benefits of Ginger

Ginger's earthy and spicy taste and soothing aroma make it an essential ingredient in Asian cooking. Beyond its culinary uses, ginger has a long history of medicinal uses for treating a variety of human ailments. It is rich in antioxidants making it a good alternative if you want an organic approach to boosting your health.

Let's dig deeper into ginger’s medicinal uses, explore ginger-based food items, and discover ginger substitutes to help you cook healthier and better!

5 Health Benefits of Ginger

Ginger contains Gingerol which is a natural component of ginger root which is loaded with benefits! Whether it’s fresh, dried, powdered, or juiced, adding ginger to your diet can help with the following:

1. Can soothe nausea

You might have heard your grandparents say that ginger helps calm an upset stomach, especially those who are pregnant. Ginger can help break up and get rid of the excess in our intestines, thus can keep your stomach down. Some studies also show that this can help lessen sea sickness or nausea felt by chemotherapy.

2. Helps reduce inflammation

Aside from being rich in antioxidants, ginger is also anti-inflammatory. This means that eating or drinking ginger can help reduce the swelling caused by rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis. Putting a ginger patch over the swollen area can also help bring down the inflammation too.

3. Aids in disease prevention

The antioxidants found in ginger can be a powerful agent to help you prevent stress and damage your body’s DNA. When your immune system is strong, you won’t get sick easily, so you won’t easily develop any chronic disease like hypertension and lung or heart disease. This would also help promote a healthy aging process.

4. Helps relieve indigestion

One of the medicinal properties of ginger helps in digesting food. This is especially helpful to those who have chronic indigestion. Drinking a cup of warm ginger tea before eating can help make your digestive system work faster, so no food can sit too long and leave problems.

5. Keeps your mouth healthy

Oral care is often made up of just brushing and flossing. But did you know ginger is also an antibacterial? The active compounds in ginger can help eliminate bacteria that can cause periodontal disease and serious gum infection. Try eating raw ginger every once in a while to keep those pearly whites shining and your gums healthy.

Best Uses of Ginger

Keeping your body healthy can be a bit challenging, but it doesn’t have to be boring! Add spice to your pursuit of a healthier lifestyle, and in this case, try adding ginger. Here are some of my top picks when it comes to the best way to enjoy the health boosting benefits of ginger:

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1. As a soothing beverage: Ginger Tea

GINGER TEA TOP PICK: Honsei Instant Honey Ginger Tea - 20 Tea bags

Whenever I feel like I have a scratchy throat, I immediately prepare a hot cup of ginger medicine in the form of this tea. It has a light ginger flavor that’s balanced with a sweet honey taste. On hot days, I also prepare this as an iced drink. It's a great beverage to enjoy instant cooling relief from the humid weather!

GINGER TEA TOP PICK: Prince Of Peace Ginger Honey Crystals - 10 Bags

Made from natural ingredients, this Prince of Peace Ginger Honey Crystals is an instant tea that contains raw ginger and is sweetened with cane sugar and honey. Imagine coming home after a long tiring day of work and brewing this hot and spicy drink. It’s sure to wash all the tiredness away from your muscles.

There’s no denying that I have a sweet tooth. However, in the hopes of keeping a healthy lifestyle, I have avoided artificial sweeteners from candies or chocolates. I now turn to Prince of Peace Ginger Chews for my sweet cravings. It’s made from natural ginger and honey and packed in granulated form. Now, whenever I crave something sweet, I fish out a pack from my bag and enjoy it.

If you’re looking for a fun way to offset the original ginger taste while enjoying its health benefits, you can check out more flavors from Trick or Treat with Prince of Peace Ginger Chews.

More Ginger Chews Flavors

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Fresh ginger root is used as a flavoring for salads, baked goods, soups, curries, and meat. Did you know that teriyaki sauce is sometimes added with ginger? This helps add depth and complexity to your dish and to add a bite of ginger spice. Ginger is also used in desserts such as gingerbread, gingersnaps, ginger cookies, and more.

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Trick or Treat with Prince of Peace Ginger Chews

Annie Chun's Seaweed Snack - Wasabi - .16 Oz.
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Substitutes to Ginger

The uses of ginger in cooking vary from recipe to recipe. More often than not, the best way to get that earthy, spicy flavor is to use a fresh one. However, when it’s unavailable, the easiest swap is to use ground ginger.

Still, it’s important to remember that ground ginger is much more potent. For every 1 tablespoon of fresh ginger, substitute it with just ½ or ¼ tablespoon, so your ginger food won’t have an overwhelming spiciness.

When baking, it may be better to substitute ground ginger with a different spice like pumpkin pie spice, allspice, cardamom, cinnamon, mace, or nutmeg. You can still have that same spicy flavor you get from ginger.

When it comes to making desserts and sweets, try using ⅛ teaspoon of ground ginger for every tablespoon of crystallized ginger and adjust the sugar according to taste.

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How to Store Ginger

There may be a lot of wonders of ginger, but one must be careful in storing this wonder spice to keep its freshness and quality. Ground, crystallized, and dried ginger should be kept in an airtight container and stored on a cool, dark shelf. On the other hand, pickled ginger should be kept in its original jar and stored in the refrigerator.

Fresh, unpeeled roots should be wrapped in paper towels, and placed in a plastic bag. These can be stored in the fridge for up to three weeks. You can also freeze ginger roots for up to two months. When I use frozen ginger, I simply grate or slice it unthawed.

For peeled ginger, you can still store them by placing them in a jar of sherry wine or vodka, and they'll still be good for several weeks. Just make sure to dispose of it when the alcohol becomes cloudy because it might mean there's mold or bacteria.

Ginger has always been used to enhance the aroma and flavor of food. But the wonders of ginger don't end in just being a spice. On its own, ginger is used in herbal medicine to help treat and reduce symptoms of certain ailments. Because it is rich in antioxidants, this will benefit your body in the best possible way. Don't miss out on a delicious way to boost your health!

Check out more ginger tea and other ginger-flavored food at Karman Foods!

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