ginger ale
Summary
| Yield | |
|---|---|
| Source | |
| Prep time | 5 minutes |
| Kind of Dish | drinks |
| Dietary Info | |
| Tags |
Description
DIY ginger ale
Ingredients
| 1 | Pound | fresh ginger, thinly sliced |
| 1 | zest from 1 large lemon | |
| 1 | juice from 1 large lemon (approx .5 cup) | |
| 3⁄4 | Cup | packed dark brown sugar |
| 1⁄2 | Cup | dark maple syrup |
| 2 | Cup | granulated sugar |
| 3 | cloves | |
| 3 | Tablespoon | vanilla extract |
| 1⁄2 | Teaspoon | cream of tartar |
| 2 | Tablespoon | lightly toasted oak chips (from homebrew store) |
| 2 1⁄2 | Gallon | water (the cleaner the better) |
| 1⁄2 | packet of ale yeast (from homebrew store) |
Instructions
- Combine ginger, zest, lemon juice, brown sugar, maple syrup, cloves, vanilla, cream of tartar, oak chips and 16 c. of water in a large stock pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover and simmer for 45 minutes. Your abode will smell delicious!
- Caramelize* your sugar in a separate pan, and carefully pour the liquefied sugar into the main pot. It may spit and hiss a little when you pour it in. Stir to combine.
- Remove stock pot from heat and add 16 c. of cool water.
- Wait until the mixture has cooled to under 100 degrees, then start your yeast and pitch it into the pot. Keep the lid loosely on the pot, and allow it to sit for 12 hours.
- Strain the mixture through cheesecloth, add the rest of the water and stir.
- Bottle. I put a little bit of ginger in each bottle. This helps keep the "ginger burn" flavor. I cut the ginger just a little bit larger than the opening of the bottle, so it doesn't accidentally fall into anyone's drink. The piece of ginger does make the bottles more apt to foam over when you open them, but I think it's worth it.
- Allow the bottled ginger ale to sit for 1-3 days at room temperature. This allows the yeast time to make da bubbles and eat up some of the sugar. VERY IMPORTANT - to avoid exploding bottles, make sure to refrigerate as soon as you've got the right amount of fizz. If you wait too long, your ginger ale will be bitter, and your BOTTLES COULD EXPLODE!! This is important. Be careful. Refrigerating the ginger ale causes the yeast to die/go inactive.
- Wait till the bottle is fully chilled, then drink it! I find that it tastes best after it's aged in the fridge for a few days. Just like homebrewed beer, there is a small layer of yeast silt at the bottom of the bottle. Most people leave about a 1/4" of liquid in the bottle when pouring to avoid drinking the yeast. Other people drink it all and swear by the yeasty bits.
Notes
Candied ginger:
If you want to make candied ginger, rinse the spent ginger, coat the pieces in granulated sugar, and through in a dehydrator (or oven on a low temp) for a few hours. I swear by candied ginger for when my tummy hurts. It aids in digestion.
*Caramelizing sugar:
I tried a bunch of different ways (several ending in tragedy), and here's the most successful for me:
thoroughly mix 2 cups of sugar with 1/2 c. water. pour into pan, and turn the burner on high. Then don't touch it. At all. Stop touching it! After about eight minutes, it will start turning a caramel color. If you want, you can swirl the pan around to get an even color, but don't stir. When it's ready, pour it right into the stock pot.
