Majida Rashid
I grew up eating ginger on a daily basis. For curries, Mother would first brown sliced onions. Then she would add chopped tomatoes, ground ginger and garlic and cook for a little while before adding spices and other ingredients.
Ginger was considered good for digestion. Some Pakistani cooks use ginger powder, known as, haing. Haing has an extremely strong aroma and it is sold in herbal stores only, whereas fresh ginger is sold in vegetable markets.
Zingiber officinale or ginger is a perennial plant. Its nutrient-filled edible part grows horizontally beneath the soil. Hence, it’s considered a root. Ginger rhizomes spread without pollination.
For thousands of years ginger was grown in Asia, most notably in southeast Asia. It was the Chinese philosopher Confucius who first wrote about ginger. He was also known for consuming a small amount of ginger every day because of its digestive properties. Chinese tradition suggests it’s best to consume ginger earlier in the day — perhaps because it gives a lot of energy and evenings are for resting. Traditionally, the Japanese have used unsweetened ginger to cleanse and neutralize the palate in between eating various fish dishes.
Decades ago, I heard that Arab traders named it Zangabeel because they first came across ginger in Zanzibar, an island off of the coast of Tanzania. These traders introduced ginger to Europe where initially it was thought to be the root of peppers. No wonder in western cuisine ginger is referred to as a spice. But to me it is an herb.
Greeks also consumed ginger as a digestive aid. Even the physician, pharmacologist and botanist Pedanius Dioscorides wrote about ginger in De materia medica. Eventually, European cooks created fun cookies like gingerbread men. Ginger ale was specifically developed as an aid in digestion.
Ginger tea, with or without herbs, is popular among Arabs. During my work in Abu Dhabi, U.A.E., I used to frequent a hotel by the beach. I loved their tea, which was made with thinly sliced ginger and served with honey. I didn’t need honey to enjoy the delicate, mild fragrance of ginger.
South Asian ginger is dark brown but pale smooth rhizomes are from China and east Asia. Both have similar pungency and flavor. It’s best to buy thick ginger with smooth skin to ensure that the roots are not drying.
In addition to using ginger in curries and making tea, I used to cook this easy stir-fried Ginger Chicken in a wok. It was extremely popular with our guests. Today, after decades, I made it in a thick wide non-stick frying pan. When my daughter entered the house, she said that it reminded her of a chicken dish I used to make in Bahrain.
Bingo! I thought.
Ginger Chicken
(Serves 2-3)
Ingredients
1 lb. boneless and skinless chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons corn starch
2 tablespoons finely grated ginger
Salt to taste
3-4 tablespoons cooking oil
1-2 green chilies, sliced diagonally
A few Sichuan peppercorns roughly crushed
1/2 medium onion
1 large thin carrot
1 medium green bell pepper
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 tablespoon chopped coriander leaves, optional
Directions
Mix together the chicken, 1 tablespoon each of soy sauce and corn starch and salt, if using. Leave aside for half an hour.
Meanwhile thinly slice the carrots diagonally and cut the onion in 4 strips.
Cut each strip into 4 square shaped pieces.
Half the bell pepper and remove the seeds. Score each half lengthwise into 4 and cut into square slices.
Heat the oil over medium heat and fry the grated ginger, stirring continuously, for 2 minutes without letting it turn brown.
Stir in the green chilies and peppercorns for a minute. This reduces their heat.
Add the marinated chicken in a single layer and stir continuously until it turns golden brown.
Mix in the vegetables and cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes.
Stir the oyster sauce, the remaining cornstarch and soy sauce in the water and pour over the chicken. One chicken bouillon dissolved in hot water can also be used.
Bring to a boil and let it cook over medium heat for 8-10 minute or until the sauce is thickened to one’s desire.
Taste and adjust salt and transfer it into a serving bowl and sprinkle with chopped coriander.
Serve hot with white rice.
Ginger was considered good for digestion. Some Pakistani cooks use ginger powder, known as, haing. Haing has an extremely strong aroma and it is sold in herbal stores only, whereas fresh ginger is sold in vegetable markets.
Zingiber officinale or ginger is a perennial plant. Its nutrient-filled edible part grows horizontally beneath the soil. Hence, it’s considered a root. Ginger rhizomes spread without pollination.
For thousands of years ginger was grown in Asia, most notably in southeast Asia. It was the Chinese philosopher Confucius who first wrote about ginger. He was also known for consuming a small amount of ginger every day because of its digestive properties. Chinese tradition suggests it’s best to consume ginger earlier in the day — perhaps because it gives a lot of energy and evenings are for resting. Traditionally, the Japanese have used unsweetened ginger to cleanse and neutralize the palate in between eating various fish dishes.
Decades ago, I heard that Arab traders named it Zangabeel because they first came across ginger in Zanzibar, an island off of the coast of Tanzania. These traders introduced ginger to Europe where initially it was thought to be the root of peppers. No wonder in western cuisine ginger is referred to as a spice. But to me it is an herb.
Greeks also consumed ginger as a digestive aid. Even the physician, pharmacologist and botanist Pedanius Dioscorides wrote about ginger in De materia medica. Eventually, European cooks created fun cookies like gingerbread men. Ginger ale was specifically developed as an aid in digestion.
Ginger tea, with or without herbs, is popular among Arabs. During my work in Abu Dhabi, U.A.E., I used to frequent a hotel by the beach. I loved their tea, which was made with thinly sliced ginger and served with honey. I didn’t need honey to enjoy the delicate, mild fragrance of ginger.
South Asian ginger is dark brown but pale smooth rhizomes are from China and east Asia. Both have similar pungency and flavor. It’s best to buy thick ginger with smooth skin to ensure that the roots are not drying.
In addition to using ginger in curries and making tea, I used to cook this easy stir-fried Ginger Chicken in a wok. It was extremely popular with our guests. Today, after decades, I made it in a thick wide non-stick frying pan. When my daughter entered the house, she said that it reminded her of a chicken dish I used to make in Bahrain.
Bingo! I thought.
Ginger Chicken
(Serves 2-3)
Ingredients
1 lb. boneless and skinless chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons corn starch
2 tablespoons finely grated ginger
Salt to taste
3-4 tablespoons cooking oil
1-2 green chilies, sliced diagonally
A few Sichuan peppercorns roughly crushed
1/2 medium onion
1 large thin carrot
1 medium green bell pepper
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 tablespoon chopped coriander leaves, optional
Directions
Mix together the chicken, 1 tablespoon each of soy sauce and corn starch and salt, if using. Leave aside for half an hour.
Meanwhile thinly slice the carrots diagonally and cut the onion in 4 strips.
Cut each strip into 4 square shaped pieces.
Half the bell pepper and remove the seeds. Score each half lengthwise into 4 and cut into square slices.
Heat the oil over medium heat and fry the grated ginger, stirring continuously, for 2 minutes without letting it turn brown.
Stir in the green chilies and peppercorns for a minute. This reduces their heat.
Add the marinated chicken in a single layer and stir continuously until it turns golden brown.
Mix in the vegetables and cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes.
Stir the oyster sauce, the remaining cornstarch and soy sauce in the water and pour over the chicken. One chicken bouillon dissolved in hot water can also be used.
Bring to a boil and let it cook over medium heat for 8-10 minute or until the sauce is thickened to one’s desire.
Taste and adjust salt and transfer it into a serving bowl and sprinkle with chopped coriander.
Serve hot with white rice.
