At the moment we’re on a bit of a Japanese food kick. Think lots of stir fries, sushi and ramen
and you get the picture.
One thing that I love to have with Japanese food, sushi or
not, is pickled ginger or gari as it is often called.
I get through so much of the stuff that when a rather
bemused boyfriend suggested making my own I thought it might be a good idea.
The recipe is really simple and makes a jar more than twice
the size of the ones you buy in the supermarket, for less money. I worked out
that it cost me around £1.60 to make my big jar of ginger so whilst it takes a
little while and smells a little, it’s more than worth it.
What you will need:
250g ginger, peeled
2 teaspoons salt
120ml rice vinegar
120ml water
110g sugar
Method:
1.
Use a vegetable peeler or sharp knife to thinly
slice the ginger
2.
Place the ginger in a bowl and sprinkle with the
salt and mix thoroughly, making sure that all of the ginger is coated. Leave
for 30 minutes for the salt to draw out the excess liquid.
3.
Transfer the ginger into a sterilised jar,
squeezing out any last liquid with your hands as you do so.
4.
Heat the water, sugar and vinegar on medium
until the sugar is fully dissolved before turning to high and bringing to the
boil (this is the smelly part!)
5.
Once boiled, tip the vinegar mixture into the
jar of ginger so that the jar is full and the ginger fully covered.
6.
Allow to cool for 30 minutes before sealing and
placing in the fridge for a week to pickle.
Once the ginger has pickled, it can be kept for a month in
the fridge. Over the week where it I pickling, the ginger will slowly turn a
light pink which it perfectly normal, it is a reaction between the ginger and
the vinegar.
And boom, there you have it, the recipe for your own
homemade gari. If you make some of your own let me know, I’d love to know what
you think of it.
Annie xx
