Ingredient: Ginger

Ginger is not just a delicious ingredient in the kitchen, but it’s an important part of your healthy toolkit at home. It has been used throughout history for its healing properties. The knobbly skin hides a golden-yellow flesh brimming with antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial properties, not to mention the lovely aroma.

Traditional uses include supporting digestion, relieving nausea, and easing cold symptoms. The bioactive compound responsible for many of its therapeutic skills is gingerol, which has been shown to have useful antiviral effects, helping to inhibit viral replication and preventing viruses from entering your cells.

A few slices of fresh ginger, steeped in hot water with a splash of lemon or fresh turmeric, create a soothing and anti-inflammatory drink that warms from the inside out. It’s the kind of thing you reach for when your body needs a little TLC and sip slowly, feeling the warmth spread, which can be immediately comforting. There is a reason it has been used for centuries as a natural remedy!

The ginger we know is the gnarly underground stem, or rhizome, of the Zingiber officinale plant, which hails from Southeast Asia. It is full of fiery flavour and fresh it adds a wonderfully fragrant heat to both sweet and savoury dishes. It is delicious in Goan Prawn Curry or blended into a Pineapple & Ginger Zinger Smoothie. When it is ground, the root transforms into a warm, aromatic powder that is softer in heat, and as equally at home in sweet treats, such as my Spiced Carrot Cake. Whether fresh or ground, ginger brings a warmth and zing to everything it touches.