Ok, my brew was bubbling this morning and threatening to rise over the top of the jar so I strained the ginger out. I'm drinking it right now mixed with club soda and a couple drops of splenda. VERY TASTY!

I am reusing the ginger for another batch. Seems like there's a lot of good stuff left there.

Hmmm... how much alcohol is in this stuff? I swear I caught a buzz!

Really? I didn't, but then I drink alcohol often, so I'm kind of immune. And of course, it might vary by batch- I'm waiting on my second batch to mature.

Mine has been brewing since Sunday, but it's not bubbling much. It's cold in our kitchen.

Mine seems to foamy before even 24 hours goes by.

I'm not sure I caught a buzz but I felt kind of light headed after drinking some.

Weird- mine never really got very foamy, just a tiny bit and only after three days. Maybe yours does have a bit of alcohol in it, Nancy!

Oh god, I love this stuff. I poured a bit of ginger beer into a glass added 3 drops of Sweetzfree. It tastes like liquid crystallized ginger! I LOVE that stuff! Anyway, usually I dillute it down with club soda. I have seltzer water too, I'll try that next.

But for some reason this stuff makes my tummy feel extremely full. I don't get like that on normal diet soda. I actually had to put what I was drinking (yesterday) back into the fridge to finish it later.

I don't know if I'm getting tipsy, I can't taste any alcohol, but I get really sleepy after I drink this stuff. I think I'll save it for bedtime!

My ginger beer never got fizzy, or particularly strong. I think I didn't use enough ginger. It got a little bitter - maybe I kept it too warm (it was on top of the dishwasher).

I used it in my coconut smoothie tonight, though. That was pretty good.

How did your second batch go, Nancy?

2nd batch was a little weaker. Dilluting it with soda water was a bit too much. But just plain it was great.

BTW: I wouldn't say it got fizzy, it just kind of got foamy in the jar.

Oooh, now this I want to try! I'm looking forward to making it - I know it's so healthy. I've made a lacto fermented blueberry/ginger drink before with sea salt and whey - it was pretty good. Oh, I've also made the Nourishing Traditions apple cider, let it sit for about 2 months before drinking, then would dilute it with water before drinking (to minimize sugar intake) - now that cider was divine!

I didn't know about the wild yeast - that sounds so easy!

I've started a second batch. On Wednesday I happened onto Food Not Bombs again (they do it every week, but I always forget about it) and picked up a ton of ginger, along with a huge bag of jalapenos, some flat-leaf parsley, some plums for the kids, and some sweet potatoes for the chickens.

The ginger had a bit of mold on it (hey, it was free!), so I cut off a bunch of bad spots. Even after that, I filled up the gallon jar halfway with grated ginger and added about 1/2 teaspoon honey. I added some water and some of the last batch of ginger beer. I wonder if sugar works better than honey? We ran out and didn't replace it.

My last batch really just tastes like ginger tea. I hope this one goes better. It was pretty late at night by the time I got to it, so I just left it on the windowsill with the window open for an hour or two. Not much happening the next day, so I gave it a stir and left the lid off a little longer. It tasted good, though.

Does anyone have a recipe for lowcarb pickled ginger? I LOVE the stuff that comes with sashimi, but I try to skip it due to the sugar (I don't just let it soak in my wasabi/soy sauce- I like to put a slice on top of a peice of fish and eat it .

Making beer/wine sounds like so much fun! I can't wait until I have a house and can try it (I live in studio right now, and there is NO counter space).

I didn't know they put sugar in pickled ginger. I imagine you could slice it yourself and put it in salt and rice vinegar and that would be pretty good.

I can't remember if there's a pickled ginger recipe in Nourishing Traditions, but I think there is. I don't think there is one in Wild Fermentation, but that's a great book that will give you the basics of pickling, and the confidence to experiment. It's also a lot more vegetarian-friendly than NT.

I've only pickled ginger in drinks or in kimchi. Kimchi has a limited amount of ginger, but it adds a wonderful flavor. I tried making ginger carrots once, but I didn't like it.

Yep, there's a recipe for pickled ginger in Nourishing Traditions - it goes like this...

About 3 pounds fresh ginger root
1 Tbsp. sea salt
4 Tbsp. whey (if you don't have whey, use another 1 Tbsp. sea salt, but it will be a lot more salty)
1 cup filtered water (NOT tap water - chlorine will ruin the lacto fermentation process)

Peel ginger and slice very thinly. Place in a large bowl and pound lightly with a wooden pounder (I use my fists and also squeeze with my hands since I don't have a wooden pounder!) to release juices. Place in a quart sized, wide mouth mason jar and press down lightly. Mix the water with salt and whey and pour on top of the ginger in the jar, adding more water if necessary to cover the ginger. The top of the ginger should be at least 1 inch below the top of the jar (otherwise it could leak due to expansion). Cover tightly and keep at room temperature for about 3 days before transferring to cold storage.

Oh, and Capmikee, I made the ginger carrots before, too, and I also wasn't the biggest fan.

I haven't tried the ginger beer yet - but this is a great thread Very pleased to find out that it's not necessary or a good idea to peel the ginger. This will make my life a lot easier.

I love ginger, and one of my old favourites that I really miss from before I started low-carbing is... candied ginger.

Here's a recipe for a ginger salad dressing, though I don't think it'll use up anyone's five pounds of ginger.

Ginger Salad Dressing
---------------------
1/3 cup sesame oil
1/3 cup rice vinegar
2 teaspoons finely grated fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon minced fresh garlic
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
2 drops Sweetzfree

Entire recipe is 1.17 grams total carbohydrate.

I made this salad for it - based on a good friend's suggestion:

Chicken & Cabbage Salad with Ginger Dressing

Dressing:
--------
1/3 cup rice vinegar (non 'seasoned')
1/3 cup toasted sesame oil
2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger
1/2 teaspoon freshly minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
2 drops Sweetzfree

Salad:
------
1/2 cup diced celery
4 tablespoons green onion tops
2 cups grated/sliced purple cabbage
2.5 cups cooked chicken, chopped/diced
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds

Mix up dressing in a small bowl. Meanwhile, in another larger bowl - toss in cabbage, chicken, celery, green onion ends. Next, 'toast' 2 tablespoons in a dry frying pan on high-ish heat for about a minute or less. Toss sesame seeds into salad. Drizzle dressing over top and mix well. Transfer to a pretty bowl, cover and let sit in fridge for awhile to allow flavours to meld.

The salad with the dressing in it comes in at:

4.9 grams carbohydrate, with 1.9 grams fiber, for a 'net' carb count of 4 grams per 1 cup serving.

I like to sautee some boneless, skinless chicken thighs in some garlic and ginger for the chicken salad - start sauteeing, and once the thighs start cooking, snip them up haphazardly with a pair of good kitchen scissors into bite-sized pieces and continue cooking. But, you could use any leftover chicken you happened to have on hand for the salad.

Here's a pic I took of the finished salad (I put some grated carrot on top for colour):





I'm very interested in the ginger beer, and will be off looking for a nice big quantity of fresh ginger tomorrow.