Homemade Ginger Ale and Spice is Nice Recipes #SundaySupper

Homemade Ginger Ale – Photos by Stacy Rushton

Homemade ginger ale is a refreshing treat in hot weather, cooling you down even as it sort of warms you up inside. Make some and pour yourself a glass while you read all about the spices our Sunday Supper tastemakers love to use in their creations.

Spices are funny things. I am a pure chili pepper eater from way back. In fact, when I was eight years old, my party trick was to eat whole pickled jalapeños. Raw ginger, on the other hand, I just can’t do. It burns! My mother-in-law is the opposite; she can’t take the heat of chili but loves ginger. When she was living in Singapore and I would visit, we frequented an outdoor eatery that specialized in Chinese cooking. There was one dish, stir-fried vegetables with bits of chicken, that I had to eat with caution. Sometimes that slice of vegetable was an innocent bamboo shoot, sometimes it was a pain-inducing piece of fresh, crunchy ginger. When I’d get one between my teeth by accident, my nose felt like it did when I was a kid and got chlorinated pool water all up it. Not nice. Horseradish and hot English mustard in more than small quantities have the same effect. I’d carefully pick the slices of ginger out of that dish and pass them over to my mother-in-law who munched them up happily.

But cooked ginger? That is a whole ‘nother animal. Along with garlic and onions, it is the base of my favorite Burmese curry. Spicy sweet tomato chutney would not be the same without it. Not to mention homemade ginger ale.

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Homemade Ginger Ale

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

1 hr 5 mins

Total Time

1 hr 15 mins

 

Biting yet sweet, ginger syrup and a little lime juice topped up with seltzer or club soda make a deliciously refreshing hot weather drink.

Course: beverage

Servings: 6 -10 drinks - 1 1/4 cups or 300ml syrup

Author: Stacy Rushton

Ingredients

For the ginger syrup

• 1 1/2 cups or 220g chopped peeled ginger
• 2 cups or 480ml water
• 3/4 cup or 150g sugar
• Pinch salt

To make one serving of ginger ale

• 2-3 tablespoons ginger syrup
• 3/4 cup or 165ml chilled seltzer or club soda half a can
• 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
• Ice

Optional garnish

• Slice of lime

Instructions

To make the syrup:

1. Bring water with ginger to a gentle boil then lower the temperature to simmer and continue cooking, covered, for 45 minutes.
2. When your timer rings (you did set a timer, right?) remove the pot from the stove and leave the ginger in to steep for another 20 minutes.
3. Strain the ginger out through a sieve and squeeze it to get as much juice as possible out. Discard the ginger.
4. Add the sugar into the pot, along with the ginger water. Cook over a medium heat until the sugar dissolves and the liquid has reduced to about 1 1/4 cups or 300ml.
5. Pour the hot syrup into a heatproof vessel and chill before using. Keeps for up to one week in the refrigerator or freeze in an ice cube tray for longer storage.

To assemble the ginger ale

1. Put two or three ice cubes in a glass.
2. Add in the lime juice and a slice of lime, if desired.
3. Pour in the ginger syrup then top up with seltzer or club soda. Stir gently to mix the juice and syrup in.

Recipe Notes

Ginger weight before peeling - 7 3/4 oz or 300g.

Are there some spices you can handle and others that are just too much? If you are a fan of spicy dishes, whether aromatic or downright hot, this is a Sunday Supper you are going to love! We’ve got a lineup of recipes from drinks to desserts, using a wide array of wonderful spices today.

Aromatic Appetizers

• Buffalo Chicken Spring Rolls by Cupcakes & Kale Chips
• Cajun Shrimp Dip by Cooking with Carlee
• Harissa Lamb Meatballs with Herbed Yogurt Dipping Sauce by The Hungry Goddess
• Jalapeño Cheddar Roasted Chickpeas by A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
• Smoky Jalapeño Pineapple Salsa by Dash of Evans
• Spicy Apricot Chicken Meatballs by My Life Cookbook
• Spicy Jalapeño Chickpeas by Helpful Homemade
• Spicy Peach Chicken Wings by Eat, Drink and be Tracy
• Spicy Sugared Cashews by That Skinny Chick Can Bake

Distinctive Drinks

• Cilantro Jalapeño Mojito by Manu’s Menu
• Shoo Fly Punch with a Kick by Our Good Life

Daring Desserts

• Chipotle Peanut Butter Cookies by Renee’s Kitchen Adventures
• Cinnamon Rolls by The Freshman Cook
• Mexican Chocolate Pudding by Pies and Plots
• Peppercorn Shortbread by The Finer Cookie
• Spicy Fudge Brownies by The Chef Next Door
• Spicy Mexican Hot Chocolate Fudge by Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks

Masterful Mains

• Buffalo Chicken & Lentil Stuffed Peppers by Momma’s Meals
• Chicken Karahi (Pakistani Chicken Curry) by Curious Cuisiniere
• Chicken Stuffed Poblano Peppers by Feeding Big and more
• Chickpea, lentil and spinach curry by Caroline’s Cooking
• Ddukboki (Spicy Stir Fried Rice Cakes) by kimchi MOM
• Devil’s Chicken by Monica’s Table
• East Indian Chard and Lentils by Wholistic Woman
• Fried Chicken with a Kick by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Grilled Chipotle Pork Chops by Cooking Chat
• Hella-peño Burger by Fantastical Sharing of Recipes
• Jalapeño Popper Pizza by Hardly A Goddess
• Kung Pao Chicken by Palatable Pastime
• Lomo Saltado by Tramplingrose
• Spicy Black Bean Burgers by Simple and Savory
• Spicy Penne all’arrabbiata by She Loves Biscotti
• Sweet & Spicy Pulled Pork Tacos by Grumpy’s Honeybunch
• Sweet Chili Pork by Cookin’ Mimi
• Tunisian Garlic Chickpea Soup by What Smells So Good?

Seasoned Sides

• Baked Sriracha Sweet Potato Fries by Magnolia Days
• Green Mango Sambal by Food Lust People Love
• Grilled Potato Salad with Spicy Picada Sauce by Culinary Adventures with Camilla

Plus Homemade Ginger Ale and Spice is Nice Recipes from Sunday Supper Movement

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