Ginger Root

Ginger is one of the few botanicals in this catalogue with genuinely good clinical evidence, and the preparation method materially affects what you get.

Decoction, not infusion

Ginger is a rhizome — dense, fibrous root material rather than leaf.

Steeping it briefly in hot water extracts very little. Simmering it — a decoction — extracts far more, and the difference is immediately obvious in strength and heat.

Simmer sliced or grated fresh ginger for 10-20 minutes. That is the single change that transforms weak ginger tea into something with real presence.

Gingerol and shogaol

Gingerol is the primary pungent compound in fresh ginger.

When ginger is dried or heated, gingerol converts to shogaol, which is more pungent still. This is why dried ginger tastes sharper and hotter than the same quantity of fresh, and why long simmering intensifies the heat rather than mellowing it.

Fresh and dried are therefore not interchangeable by weight, and they give different results.

The evidence for nausea

This is the strongest claim ginger has, and it holds up reasonably well.

Multiple trials and reviews support ginger for nausea — including pregnancy-related nausea, post-operative nausea and motion sickness. It is one of the better-evidenced botanical uses.

Doses in studies commonly fall around 1-1.5g of dried ginger daily, which is more than a casual cup provides. A well-made decoction from a decent piece of fresh root gets closer.

Evidence for anti-inflammatory and pain effects is weaker and more mixed.

Cautions worth knowing

Anticoagulants. Ginger may affect platelet function and could add to the effect of blood-thinning medication. Worth mentioning to a pharmacist if you take warfarin or similar, particularly at supplement doses.

Surgery. Stop high-dose ginger supplements before planned surgery and tell your surgeon.

Reflux. Ginger helps some people and aggravates others. Worth testing rather than assuming.

Pregnancy. Commonly used and generally considered acceptable in culinary amounts, but it is worth confirming with a midwife rather than relying on general advice.

A working recipe

A thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger, sliced thinly or grated, simmered in 400ml water for 15 minutes. Add honey and lemon at the end, off the heat.

Grating rather than slicing increases surface area and gives a stronger, faster extraction.

Leave the skin on if the ginger is fresh and clean; much of the flavour sits just beneath it.