A Hint of Spice

What's the best way to store ginger?

Several knobs of ginger, were cut one end off of each to replicate the way they would normally be used in the kitchen, and stored them using several different methods: unwrapped in a cool, dark pantry; on the counter exposed to sunlight; in the refrigerator (unwrapped, wrapped in foil, wrapped in plastic wrap, and placed in a zipper-lock bag); and in the freezer (wrapped in foil).

After two weeks, the samples were examined, all of which had dried out and sealed up where they had been cut. The frozen ginger fared the worst: Following a brief thaw, it was porous and mushy, rendering the process of grating or mincing nearly impossible. Both samples of room temperature-stored ginger were shriveled and had started to sprout. All of the wrapped, refrigerated ginger retained a smooth, taut exterior but exhibited spots of mold where condensation had gotten trapped in the wrapper. The unwrapped, refrigerated ginger, however, had a relatively fresh appearance, with no mold. So the next time you have a leftover knob of ginger, just toss it into the refrigerator unwrapped.