Ginger Syrup

I love that ginger is a bit of a chameleon, offering its spicy-yet-refreshing bite to savory stir-fries as well as being a warm spice in sweets like gingerbread. When steeped in hot sugar water, ginger lets out its flavor and leaves behind a super-versatile syrup that you can use in cocktails or anywhere else you use simple syrup. Homemade ginger syrup is a great way to use up an excess of ginger, it’s easy to make, and it has a long shelf life.

A lot of ginger syrup recipes have you simmer sliced ginger, sugar, and water on the stovetop, requiring you to stay in the kitchen to monitor it. I’ve found that simply grating peeled ginger on the large holes of a box grater right into the saucepan breaks it down enough that you can just bring the ginger, sugar, and water to a boil and then turn the heat off. While the ginger steeps in the hot liquid, you can walk away and forget about it. Strain out the ginger once the syrup cools and you’re left with a spicy-sweet, thoroughly ginger-y syrup.

Once made, homemade ginger syrup can be refrigerated for up to two weeks or frozen for up to two months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator if frozen.

Ginger syrup can be used pretty much anywhere where you would use simple syrup but want a more flavorful, lightly spicy kick. Here are a couple of my favorite ways.

• In mojitos, French 75s, or other cocktails.
• Mixed with sparkling water and fresh mint for a refreshing spritzer.
• Tossed with cut fruit for a gingery fruit salad.
• Stirred into hot tea.
• As a poaching liquid for pears or apples.