Credit high tunnels and hoop houses for the fact that ginger is showing up at local farmers markets. It’s far fresher than any ginger that made its way to this country from China, which is where most grocery store ginger comes from.
Belinda Dunn, marketing and sales manager for Red Earth Organic Farms in Zebulon, can be found each Saturday morning at the Marietta Square Farmers Market. She’s had ginger available since late August.
Last year was the farm’s first foray into ginger farming. After a lot of research, particularly into the health benefits, she and farmer Dave Bentoski decided to try ginger in their high tunnels. The environment inside is warm and protected, perfect for a tropical plant like ginger that loves heat and moisture and needs a long growing season to yield a harvestable crop.
We call it ginger root, but the part we use for cooking is actually the rhizome of the ginger plant. After a few months of growing, the rhizomes are ready to harvest. Freshly dug ginger is like nothing that sits in a bin at your local grocery store. The skin is almost translucent and the flesh is sweet and juicy, all qualities ginger loses as it sits in storage or travels far distances to market.
Dunn dried some of last year’s ginger to keep it around a little longer. “I shaved it thin and put it in the dehydrator, then stored the slices in small canning jars. I just opened a jar the other night and the smell was so intense. There’s just a huge difference when you start with really fresh ginger,” she said.
She’s also found that her children like dishes like sloppy Joes and spaghetti sauce prepared with fresh ginger. In fact, she says, they love it.
Ginger tea, ginger in smoothies, they’re all ways to increase her family’s consumption of ginger. She especially likes knowing that she’s tapping into ginger’s medicinal qualities like helping digestion and treating upset stomachs and nausea.
When you’re choosing ginger rhizomes, look for those with firm, unwrinkled skins. The older the rhizome, the sharper the flavor is likely to be, but it’s almost impossible to tell how old the rhizome is by looking at it. For that, it helps to know the grower.
Store your unpeeled ginger in the refrigerator, wrapped loosely in ventilated plastic. It should keep for two or three weeks. Stored on the countertop, it dries out quickly. If you buy more ginger than you can use right away, dehydrate it as Dunn does, or peel and slice it and store it in sherry or vinegar in a jar in your refrigerator. The sherry and vinegar will soon be ginger-flavored and can be used in recipes as well.
Or you can peel and freeze your ginger in 1-inch chunks. Then grate or slice it as called for in your recipe. The easiest way to peel ginger? Use a teaspoon and scrape the peel off.
If you want to experiment with ginger at home, remember it’s a tropical plant and won’t survive our winter. Grow it in a container and as it matures, dig around the outside of the plant and break off little knobs. And then bring the pot inside in the winter. The ornamental “gingers” we grow outside in our Georgia gardens are not the same genus.
At local farmers markets
Cooking demos:
4-8 p.m. Thursday, September 12. Chef Seth Freedman of Forage and Flame offers demos throughout the market. East Atlanta Village Farmers Market, Atlanta. www.farmeav.com
9 a.m. Saturday, September 14. Chef David Sweeney of Cakes & Ale, working with ginger. Morningside Farmers Market, Atlanta. www.morningsidemarket.com
10 a.m. Saturday, September 14. Chef Lesley Cavender of Avalon Catering. Peachtree Road Farmers Market, Atlanta. www.peachtreeroadfarmersmarket.com
For sale
Vegetables and fruit: acorn squash, apples, arugula, Asian greens, Asian pears, beets, bitter melon, carrots, celery, collards, corn, cucumbers, dandelion, edamame, eggplant, figs, garlic, ginger, green beans, herbs, kale, lettuce, Malabar spinach, melons, muscadines, mushrooms, mustard greens, okra, onions, pea shoots, pears, peppers, potatoes, pumpkins, radishes, sorrel, spinach, spring onions, summer squash, sweet potatoes, sweet potato greens, tomatoes, turmeric, yard long beans, winter squash
From local reports
Coconut-Ginger Kale Salad
Hands on: 30 minutes
Total time: 1 hour
Serves: 6
Chef David Sweeney, who handles lunches and catering at Decatur’s Cakes & Ale, is celebrated for his way with vegetables and vegan cooking. This Saturday, he’ll be demonstrating this kale salad at the Morningside Farmers Market.
In supplying the recipe, he wrote, “This salad has many variations as far as what you can add to it. The tangy flavor of the coconut vinegar goes well with the spicy ginger and jalapeno. The toppings can be almost anything you want. I like avocado and crunchy toasted coconut. You could add hemp or pumpkin seeds. The candied cashews add crunchy bite. You can also add cucumber, red bell pepper, sprouts or carrot, even pineapple. This is a version that is great for a starter for a late summer cookout. To your health!”
Sweeney prefers using a chickpea miso made with no soy, and all organic ingredients. You can find coconut vinegar and vegan mayonnaise at the Buford Highway Farmers Market. Natural food stores will have many of the other ingredients. As for the greens, any variety of kale will do – curly, lacinato, Red Russian – or use your other favorite leafy greens.
1/2 cup chopped candied ginger
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup muscovado or dark brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt plus more for seasoning
2 cups toasted cashews
1 teaspoon toasted ground fennel seeds
1/2 teaspoon sweet Hungarian paprika
1/3 cup chopped fresh ginger
Juice of 4 limes
1/4 cup Philippine natural dark coconut vinegar
3 tablespoons miso paste
2 tablespoons toasted coriander seed
1 jalapeno
1/2 cup vegan mayonnaise
2 bunches kale (about 1 1/2 pounds), stems removed, washed and dried
3 tablespoons unseasoned rice wine vinegar
1 cup cubed/roasted African or butternut squash
1 cup diced sweet red bell peppers
1 cup toasted coconut
3/4 cup sliced scallions
1/2 cup diced radish
1/4 cup cilantro leaves
In a small bowl, cover candied ginger with hot water. Cover bowl and set aside at least 45 minutes.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
While ginger is soaking, in a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add sugar and whisk together briskly solid mass forms. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon salt. Add cashews and stir swiftly until all nuts are coated with butter and sugar mixture. Add ground fennel seeds and paprika and quickly mix thoroughly until all cashews are coated. The moment cashews start to stick, add vinegar and deglaze pan by scraping bottom of pan quickly. Immediately spread cashews onto parchment paper to cool.
When ginger is ready, make dressing. Drain candied ginger and discard soaking water. In the jar of a blender, combine soaked candied ginger with fresh ginger, lime juice, coconut vinegar, miso, coriander seed and jalapeno. Blend until thoroughly emulsified. Move to a small bowl and add mayonnaise. Whisk together and taste for seasoning. Set aside.
Stack several kale leaves on top of each other, roll cigar-style and thinly slice. Move the sliced greens to a large bowl and continue until all greens are sliced. Add dressing. Using your hands, gently massage the sliced kale with your fingers until tender. The greens should have some texture, but not be too stiff. Cover with a damp towel and set aside.
When ready to serve, divide squash and bell peppers between serving plates. To the large bowl of kale, add coconut, scallions, radish and cilantro. Divide salad between serving plates, top with cashews and serve immediately.
Per serving: 751 calories (percent of calories from fat, 61), 14 grams protein, 64 grams carbohydrates, 8 grams fiber, 55 grams fat (16 grams saturated), 27 milligrams cholesterol, 729 milligrams sodium.
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