I was first introduced to Ginger Chews earlier this year by my husband. He did a sailing course, got sea sick and some kind soul presented him with a pack of Gingerbons to alleviate the nausea and save his life. He came home with a packet of these fiery sweets and I finished them.
That’s the summary of my introduction and love of chewy ginger sweeties.
I’m good at summaries.
The highlight of these Ginger chews though, is the ginger decoction that goes into them.
Oh YEAH, we’re talking DECOCTIONS people!!!
That sounds fancy I know but a decoction is simply an infusion of a more hardy part of a plant ie. roots or bark. The plant materials needs to be boiled in water in order to extract the flavours and beneficial properties. An infusion, has the same end result but it typically refers to extracting flavours and properties from the more delicate parts of the plant such as the leaves, stems and flowers.
Since Ginger is a root, we need to create a decoction by boiling the water with some freshly grated ginger. The water evaporates to about half that originally added and the result is a spicy cup of ginger water which is called for in the recipe. The decoction gives the sweets this authentic, warm and fiery ginger flavour which is all 100% natural. I have convinced myself that although there is a good amount of sugar in this recipe, that ZING from the Ginger must keep bugs, slugs and viruses from approaching one’s personal space. It is therefore (in my mind) perfectly acceptable to snack on throughout the day, seeing as though it is a medicinal sweet 🙂
Plus, I’m sure it would be great for pregnant woman with morning sickness or anyone else battling with nausea.
It is also great if you have no nausea. It’s just a wholesome, fiery, old-fashioned sweet! And who doesn’t love that?!
Also, If you LOVE Ginger, you will also enjoy these Ginger Shots!! They are amazing if you want the ginger benefits without the sugar.
Fiery Ginger Chews
Prep Time: 35 mins- Cook Time: 25 mins
- Total Time: 60 mins
Yield: 20 Chews 1x
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Ingredients
- 2 cups water
- 1/4 cup fresh, grated ginger;
- 3/4 cup caster sugar
- 1/4 cup glucose syrup (or honey)
- 4 tablespoons icing sugar
- 1 tablespoon cornflour
Instructions
- Create the Ginger decocotion. In a medium-sized pot, add the grated ginger and water and allow to simmer until approximately half the water has evaported – not more than that). Strain and keep 1 cup of the decoction for the ginger chews (this should take approx 30 mins)
- Grease a small baking dish with coconut oil or butter and set aside.
- In a clean, medium-sized pot, add the ginger decoction, the sugar and glucose syrup and stir over low heat until the sugar has dissolved.
- Bring to a gentle simmer and avoid stirring.
- Using a candy thermometer, keep an eye on the temperature – allow the mixture to heat up to 124 degrees Celsius or 255 degrees Fahrenheit. Once it has reached that temperature, remove immediately and pour into the glass dish.
- Once the mixture has cooled slightly, peel it out of the baking dish and using a sharp knife (you can warm it in water) slice the chews into bite-sized strips.
- Dust in the cornflour/icing sugar mixture and store in an airtight container.
