Fresh Ginger

[Porthos]

I've never purchased fresh ginger before but I need to grate some for a dish my DW is making. Do I need to peel it first before grating?

[Corinna]

I usually do.

A vegetable peeler (or a spoon, or so I've read recently) does the trick. I've been experimenting with freezing ginger, so I always have some on hand. The texture does change, but it doesn't matter once I grate it (and it's so easy to grate frozen.)

Fresh ginger is so delicious-- enjoy!

[David A. Goldfarb]

I don't usually peel it if I'm grating it, but otherwise I tend to. If the ginger is really fresh, the skin will be moist and won't require peeling. I've only found it like this in Asian markets.

[jk1002]

I think if it is fresh and you strain it out later then no, otherwise I peel it.

Jk

[poppalarge]

The skin has a lot of the "fire" that you associate with Ginger.

[roosterchef21]

It's grown in the dirt i.e pig & chicken faeces. Peel the thing. It can be quite poisonous if you aren't careful.

[Kent Wang]

It's grown in the dirt i.e pig & chicken faeces. Peel the thing. It can be quite poisonous if you aren't careful.

Just like potatoes? Lots of people don't peel those.

I don't peel ginger because I'm too lazy and I don't think it makes any difference.

[roosterchef21]

As far as I'm concerned it's better to be safe than sorry...

[OliverB]

As far as I know, things that are really grown in $hit (like mushrooms), the stuff is sterilized to avoid nasty bugs. If it were poisonous, I doubt any supermarket would sell it? Seems like a lawsuit waiting to happen.

As for peeling, I always do, always with a spoon. Super easy, takes 30 sec. I discard the little nubs or buds that stick out, peeling the rest is less work than peeling garlic. I usually just peel as far as I think I'll need stuff off the root and then use a ginger grater, one of those porcelain dishes with little teeth on it.

I don't peel it if I just throw some slices into something that I'll strain, at least not always.

Try a spoon, it's really easy, just scrapes off the outer layer of dark skin.

[nakji]

I scrub my ginger with a vegetable brush under running water. If I'm going to chop it, I might sometimes peel it. If I'm grating it, I don't bother. I'm probably dicing with death, or worms, or worse, but there it is.

Some recipes call for the peel - I can think of a braised Japanese eggplant one in particular that calls for the eggplant to be braised with dashi and ginger peel, with the peel being removed at the end.

[qrn]

rather than grate it I usually do it in small chunks in the garlic press,,, fast and neat...

Bud

[nakji]

I use a Japanese ginger grater which has a very fine tooth and separates the juice from the pulp to boot. It takes seconds.

[Snadra]

If it's really fresh with thin skin, I usually just scrub it before grating or slicing or whatever. If I do peel it, I sometimes put the (scrubbed) peels into the rice as it's cooking - makes a lovely aroma.

[Blether]

I look at the ginger, then decide. The stuff I buy is usually young and fresh, with a thin, translucent skin, and has obviously been (pressure ?) washed before being packaged. This stuff, I'll wash again, cut in chunks and use/freeze.

If it's older, with thick, dry, whitened skin, I'll peel it. Where I live now, I'm lucky enough not to have to contend with this.

The home and kitchen aren't sterile environments anyway, and if washing/rinsing is good enough for other veggies, it's good enough for ginger too.

[SobaAddict70]

I never peel ginger and I'm obviously very much alive.

I also eat lots of it -- been doing so for 30+ years.

[Mr Pie]

I use a Japanese ginger grater which has a very fine tooth and separates the juice from the pulp to boot. It takes seconds.

Same here, I tend to find that a fine grater will take the skin away for you. I have never washed or peeled ginger.

[RobertM]

I use a spoon to peel my giner and then run it through my food processor - it's amazing - and since I've started useing Fresh Ginger - well, let's just say that I won't go back to anything else...