Fresh herbs and spices can be a great addition to any recipe, but keeping them from going bad between uses is another challenge. One home cook on TikTok shared an incredible tip for keeping your ginger fresh and easy to use.
The scoop
Iris King (@life.with.iris.king) shares recipes, health tips, and kitchen hacks on TikTok. She shows viewers how to keep ginger from going bad in one viral clip. The clip starts with Iris showing a wrinkled and dried-out ginger root, saying, "Let me show you a cool hack. Instead of on the counter, store your ginger in the freezer."
@life.with.iris.king Ginger always going bad? Try this! #ginger #nofoodwaste #health #learnsomethingnew #lifehack ♬ Cheers - New Rules
King, whose account also carries the handle "Health Advocate," shows how freezing ginger also makes it easier to use. The TikTok clip demonstrates the difference between grating fresh ginger and frozen ginger: "When you grate room-temperature ginger, it's very fibrous … but when you grate frozen ginger, it has a really even and nonfibrous consistency."
It's clear from the clip how much better the ginger looks when grating from frozen. Ginger is a great addition to many recipes, so this hack will help you amp up your cooking while wasting less ginger.
How it's helping
Tips and hacks like this can help your groceries last longer. This isn't the only freezer tip that can help your grocery budget go a little further. Throw your veggies in before a vacation, or buy in bulk and freeze butter when it's on sale. According to the TCD Guide, the average American wastes around $1,200 worth of food each year, and cutting that by even just 5% could save you $60 a year.
Cutting back your food waste is also a positive step toward helping the planet. According to an EPA report, "wasted food causes 58% of methane emissions from municipal solid waste landfills." Methane is one of the greenhouse gases contributing to the warming of our planet, and it's even more potent than carbon. According to the Environmental Defense Fund, methane has around 80 times more warming power.
What everyone's saying
Folks in the comments were loving this tip. One person wrote, "How am I just finding this out!!?? THANK YOU!"
Another commenter said, "I was always annoyed trying to peel bumpy ginger, but I don't have to? Thanks for the info!"
Finally, another helpful person commented, "I freeze my ginger and turmeric … cut it into pieces and I grate skin [and] everything."
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