How Do You Know If Ginger Is Bad? Info And Tips

• Loss of Freshness

Everything loses freshness over time. And the loss of freshness tells a lot about your ginger's quality. Fresh ginger has a different smell and taste. So, when it loses its freshness, it is more likely to smell or taste less spicy.

So, how can you say if ginger has lost its freshness? First, you have to cut or crush some ginger. Now smell if the aroma is still there. If you find it, you can try tasting it once. There is no better way than a manual inspection. If you find the perfect aroma present in that, it is good to use in your recipes.

• Softness

Softness is another symptom that the ginger is losing its freshness. Gingers are the root that we eat. Hence, they are not soft at all. Softness means that the ginger has come in contact with moisture and has retained water. So, how do you check if it has got soft or not?

Well, it requires no special instruction. The one and the only way to check this is by pressing the root. If you feel it has got softness, the only choice is to reject it. However, if the softness is only in one part, you can still use it by cutting that portion out.

• Texture

The texture of ginger also tells a lot about its freshness. Most of you dealing with kitchen jobs in regular life know it from the moment you see something. But for those who are new to this, it can become a little confusing. Fortunately, you don't need to run a lab test for this.

Again all it needs is your simple touch. Fresh ginger has a different dry texture. But if you feel it wet or mushy when you touch it, the best decision is to reject it and move with another.

• Dark and Wrinkled

Did you think that only humans have got wrinkles and dark spot problems? Well, it's not the case. Any living being, including plant roots, can have the same problem. But the problem is that even though you can go to the parlor and hide marks, ginger cannot.

So, what does it mean? If you find dark or wrinkled spots on ginger, you wouldn't want to use it. Fresh ginger should have a new look without many bumps on it. So, when you see these, it means the ginger is not good at all. And when it's not, you know what to do.

• Color

You have seen fresh ginger before, haven't you? The color of the flesh of fresh ginger is light yellow. If the ginger is losing its freshness, it will start losing its color too. No, it won't become white, but the color will darken with each passing day.

If you find ginger having a darker yellow flesh, you should remember it as "not fresh." And if it has turned grey, you should entirely reject it. Most of the time, the color around the edge of rotting ginger has a darker shade.

These signs are pretty helpful in deciding whether the ginger is fresh or not. If you find any of these symptoms in your ginger, consider rejecting them immediately. However, if any particular part of ginger has rotten, you can still use it by removing that specific spot.

Can I Eat Moldy Ginger?

So, is it safe to eat moldy ginger? For one thing, anything stale is never a safe thing to consume. The same goes for your ginger too.

However, for some people, it depends on their guts. So, how does it go? Why should we not consume moldy ginger?

Rotten or moldy ginger can seriously damage your liver and can cause serious harm to your health. Moldy ginger contains a powerful toxin named Safrole. Safrole is harmful to our liver and can cause cancer as well. Therefore, one should always avoid moldy or rotten ginger.

Apart from this, old ginger can also cause upset stomachs or heartburn. Now, as we were saying, eating or not eating also depends on your guts.

What we meant is that many people use moldy ginger by eliminating the moldy part from it. For example, if you find ginger having a rotten part, you can cut it off and safely use it.

However, most restaurants follow a zero-mold policy. It means that if they find any moldy food or ingredient, they entirely reject the item. Therefore, whether you'll keep it or throw it away is your decision to make.

But, whatever you do, you should never forget that consuming moldy ginger can evoke serious health problems.

How to Store Ginger Properly?