How to Make Sushi Ginger at Home (Gari Recipe)

Every great sushi experience needs the perfect palate cleanser. Today I'm bringing the authentic Japanese experience straight to your kitchen with my homemade curry recipe. For a printable version of this recipe visit my website just google sushi ginger space statue to find me. Let's start by making a pickling liquid. In a saucepan combine 250 milliliters of water with 125 milliliters of one teaspoon of light soy sauce and a small piece of dried kelp called kombu. Kombu is going to add those subtle umami notes that transform this from a simple pickle into something truly special. Heat this mixture over medium heat until it just begins to bubble around the edges. You want it almost at a boil but not quite there. If you want a paler pink curry go ahead and use white sugar. Also fair warning my recipe leans towards the sweeter side so feel free to dial back the sugar. Turn off the heat immediately. If you let the kombu boil vigorously it will release bitter compounds and make your liquid too slimy. Let this pickling liquid cool while we prep our star ingredient. Take a young ginger also known as new ginger and cut into manageable five centimeters sections. Give these pieces a brief soak in water gently rubbing them to remove any dirt hiding in the crevices. If you spot stubborn brown bits don't hesitate to scrape them gently with a spoon. The skin is so tender on young ginger that you don't need a peeler. This isn't the tough woody ginger root you find here around a grocery store. Young ginger has thin tender skin and a much milder bite. In Japan the best time to make curry is during June and July when young ginger is in season. Those beautiful pink tinged stems are just for show. They contain the natural pigments that give authentic curry its characteristic pale pink color without any artificial coloring. Now here's where I have to come clean. When I went to the supermarket to film this I couldn't find a single piece of young ginger with good amount of those gorgeous red tips I'd been talking about. Ideally you want to hunt down ginger with more red sections like the one I used for my website recipe than what I managed to find this time. Slice the ginger body into paper thin pieces about one to two millimeters thick. I prefer using a sharp knife over a peeler because it gives me better control but either works. You want these slices thin enough to pickle properly but not so thin they fall apart. Time for blanching. Bring a separate pot of water to a rolling boil and add both the sliced ginger with those pink stems intact. Blanch for exactly one minute. This brief heat treatment is hitting the sweet spot. Long enough to mellow the ginger's sharp bite and open up its fiber to better absorb our pickling liquid but short enough to preserve that essential ginger zing. Go longer and you start losing the characteristic punch to the cooking water. Here's a bonus tip. Don't pour the ginger infused water down drain. It makes an excellent base for homemade ginger ale. Just add sugar, fresh lemon juice and cinnamon then top with sparkling water for a refreshing treat during the summer. Drain the ginger in a colander and sprinkle with salt. Now resist the urge to shock it in ice water. Let it cool naturally. Ice water can strip away too much of the ginger's natural heat along with excess moisture and we want to preserve the perfect balance. Once the ginger is cool enough to handle comfortably, squeeze out as much excess water as possible with your hands. That salt you added earlier has been working its magic, drawing out moisture and further mellowing the ginger's intensity, creating the perfect canvas for our pickling liquid. Place the squeezed ginger into a clean sterilized sealable container as you go. Now for the final assembly. Remove the kombu from your cooled pickling liquid. It's done its job. Pour the pickling liquid over the ginger making sure every piece is completely submerged. This is crucial for proper pickling and preventing spoilage. Cover tightly and refrigerate for at least 24 hours before your first taste. Your ginger will continue to develop flavour and that beautiful blushing colour over several days. It's absolutely fascinating to watch. And there you have it, your very own homemade curry. Enjoy with your favourite sushi and store in clean airtight containers in the refrigerator for two to three weeks. It can last up to a month or longer when properly prepared. If you see any cloudiness, mold or bad smells, toss out. Want even more delicious recipes? Grab my free cookbook from the link in the description. Okay, let's go over the ingredients one more time and if you're ready to cook, grab the written instructions by clicking the full recipe box with a picture that's about to pop up on your screen. There we go, the link to the full recipe is on the screen for you now and if you want to watch more similar videos, don't miss my pickled cucumber recipe popping up on your screen as well. Thanks so much for watching and I hope to see you in the next one. Bye!