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    Home / Recipes / Healthy Candy (DIY, vegan)

    How to Make Ginger Candy

    Oct 23, 2023 · Updated: Oct 24, 2024 by Dee Dine · Affliate links disclosure.

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    candied ginger on a fork.

    How to make ginger candy using 2 ingredients. A sour patch candy for adults that you can eat as candy, add to cookies or ice cream, or use to calm nausea or upset stomach.

    candied ginger on a fork.

    Homemade ginger candy chips made with fresh ginger are unlike any store-bought ginger candy. They are sweet and sour with the crunch of sugar on a gummy candy that bites like sour patch kids. They have too strong a zingy flavor for kids, but for adults, they are perfect. Eat them as candy or use them as a medicine to calm nausea or upset stomach.

    No thermometer needed, just boil twice and toss chips in sugar and you have a fresh, homemade crystal ginger candy.

    Other healthy candies of mine you might consider are my twix cups, my caramel candy bars and my chocolate rice cakes. Enjoy this festive candy with a steamy mug of mulled spiced apple cider.

    Why You'll Love This

    Sweet & sour candy. Ginger candy is moist and chewy with the texture of sour patch kids candy, yet with a gingery, spicy flavor beneath the sweet crunch of sugar.

    Cheaper to make. Crystallized ginger is considered a luxury candy, sold as chews or nuggets, and it's expensive to buy, popular during holiday season. But its easy to make, and costs only the price of ginger and sugar.

    Dessert & nutritional. Yes, it's coated in sugar, but crystallized ginger actually has some health benefits thanks to ginger. Chewing on ginger candy eases nausea and motion sickness, and supports digestion.

    Ingredients

    ingredients for candied ginger.

    Ginger root. Fresh ginger root is found loose in produce section. Look for large, clean pieces as they are easier to prepare.

    Cane sugar. I use organic cane sugar because it is less process and tastes better but any cane sugar works.

    Lemon juice. Just a little keeps the ginger from turning brown.

    Vanilla. You can use extract or a vanilla paste for a stronger flavor.

    Salt. Flavor enhancer.

    See the recipe card at the bottom for full information on ingredients and quantities.

    Step by Step Instructions

    For more detail, visit the complete and printable recipe at the bottom of this post, but here are general steps.

    Preparation: Peel the skin off dry ginger with a spoon, then slice into ⅛-inch slices. It's easier to peel ginger when it is dry.

    peeling and chopping ginger.

    Step 1: Soften the Ginger. Put the ginger in a pot with water and lemon. Put a cover on the pot, allowing steam to escape, bring it to a boil and simmer 30 minutes to soften and reduce bitter flavor. Add a little more water if it begins to boil away to keep the ginger submerged.

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    Pro tip: This step is vital to reduce the burning flavor of the ginger in the final candy.

    Then, drain the ginger, capture the liquid and reserve it as a ginger juice to use in recipes and to make ginger tea.

    boiled and drained ginger.

    Step 2: Sweeten ginger. Boil ginger in fresh water this time with added sugar, vanilla and salt as well. Put the cover on the pot, allow steam to escape, and simmer for 30 minutes or until the liquid is basically gone. Spread slices on a parchment-lined pan to cool and dry - about an hour.

    Pro tip: If the ginger slices are still wet and warm when you dip them in the sugar coating, the sugar coating will melt.

    boiled in sugar ginger, and drying on a pan.

    Step 3: Coat the candied ginger. Toss the drained slices in cane sugar. Shake off excess sugar and return the ginger slices on a parchment-lined baking sheet and allow to sit at room temperature until completely cool.

    Pro tip: Dipping in cane sugar with large granules, such as organic cane sugar, will be prettier at first but will melt faster over 24 hours. Dipping in granulated sugar with a finer crystal - think Dominos - will be more powdery in appearance but will stay dry and granulated on the candy longer over time.

    sugared ginger on a pan.

    Recipe Tips

    Do not wash the ginger before you peel it - it is much easier to scrap off the skin when it is dry, and you'll be boiling the ginger so don't worry about bacteria from any dirt.

    Cut ginger as thin as you can, even ⅛ inch, for the chewiest texture to your ginger chips. You can use a knife or even a mandolin.

    It's important to change the water for the second boiling to be sure the ginger isn't too sour.

    The sugar will stick better and not melt if the ginger has a chance to cool and dry up to an hour after the second boiling before they are dipped in sugar.

    Storage

    Store the crystallized ginger in a dry, airtight container in a dark place at room temperature or refrigerated for 2 months.

    FAQS

    Why should we boil ginger twice?

    The first boiling is to soften the ginger and reduce the bitter flavor. The second boiling is to cook in the sugar and bring the texture of the ginger to a more glassy translucent texture. It's possible to skip the first boiling if you don't mind a more sour chip.

    Should I wash the ginger before I peel it for candied ginger?

    No, don't wash it because it's easier to peel ginger with a spoon when it is dry. And since you will be removing the peel and then boiling the ginger, you don't have to worry about germs.

    What is the difference between candied ginger and crystallized ginger?

    There is a difference in opinion. Some believe they are the same thing, simply ginger turned into a candy. But there are those that believe candied ginger is soaked in sugar and stored in a syrup, while crystallized ginger is coated in sugar and stored dry.

    How can you use crystallized ginger?

    Candied ginger is used as a solo candy, but also chunks can be used in cookies, cakes, frostings, cupcakes, ice cream and it can be gifted. The candy can also be used to improve digestive issues and combat nausea.

    More Homemade Candy Recipes

    • chocolate rice cakes in a row.
      Chocolate Rice Cakes
    • chocolate chickpea clusters, one sliced open
      Chocolate Covered Chickpeas
    • two chocolate pralines on a table
      Chocolate Praline Truffles
    • twix cups on white board.
      Healthy Twix Cups

    If you tried this recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!

    📖 Recipe

    candied ginger on a fork.

    How to Make Ginger Candy

    Created by Dee Dine
    How to make ginger candy using 2 ingredients. A sour patch candy for adults that you can eat as candy, add to cookies or ice cream, or use to calm nausea or upset stomach.
    5 from 1 vote
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe SaveSaved! Rate Recipe
    Prep Time 10 minutes mins
    Cook Time 1 hour hr
    Total Time 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins
    Course Dessert
    Cuisine American
    Servings 8
    Calories 107 kcal

    Equipment

    • pot

    Ingredients
     
     

    to soften ginger*

    • 1 ½ cup fresh ginger, peeled and sliced
    • 2 cups water
    • 1 teaspoon lemon juice

    to sweeten ginger

    • 1 cup cane sugar
    • 1 cup water
    • ½ teaspoon vanilla

    extra sugar to toss**

    • ½ cup sugar***
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    Instructions
     

    Prep

    • Peel dry ginger using back of spoon. Get all the peel off. Slice the ginger into coins or slices. Depending on your ginger shape, you'll probably get some odd shapes.

    Soften ginger

    • Put the chopped ginger in a pot, add 2 cups of water, enough to cover the ginger, and bring the pot to a boil, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat, partially cover the pot to allow steam to escape, and let ginger simmer for another 25 minutes.*
      Pro tip: Add water throughout the simmering if too much ginger becomes exposed.
      1 ½ cup fresh ginger, peeled and sliced, 2 cups water, 1 teaspoon lemon juice
    • Drain the ginger into a strainer set over a bowl so you can capture the liquid. Refrigerate the liquid as a ginger juice to use to ease stomach aches, or to make ginger tea with. Return the ginger to the empty pot.

    Sweeten ginger

    • To the ginger in the pot, now add only 1 cup of fresh water, the sugar, and vanilla.
      1 ½ cup fresh ginger, peeled and sliced, 1 cup cane sugar, ½ teaspoon vanilla, 1 cup water
    • Bring the pot to a boil, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat, partially cover the pot to allow steam to escape, and let ginger simmer for another 25 minutes or until the liquid is basically gone. Lift the lid and stir off and on, and don't let it burn.
    • Drain the ginger slices and spread them on a dish to cool and dry for an hour before coating them with sugar.**

    Coat the candied ginger

    • Coat the slices in sugar.*** Use a fork and lower each piece into a bowl or sugar, or just dump the lot into the sugar and pick each piece out individually, shake and line on a parchment-lined baking sheet and allow to sit at room temperature until completely cool.
      ½ cup sugar***
    • Store in a dry, airtight container at room temperature or refrigerated for 2 months.

    Video

    Notes

    Do not wash the ginger before you peel it. 
    Cut ginger as thin as you can, even ⅛ inch.
    Change the water for the second boiling to be sure the ginger isn't too sour.
    *The first simmering for 30 minutes is vital to reduce the burning flavor of the ginger in the final candy.
    **Be sure ginger slices are cool and sticky but not wet before dipping them in sugar or the coating could melt.
    ***Dipping in cane sugar with large granules, such as organic cane sugar, will be prettier at first but will melt faster over 24 hours. Dipping in granulated sugar - think Dominos - will be more powdery in appearance but will stay dry and granulated on the candy longer over time.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 107kcalCarbohydrates: 21gProtein: 0.2gFat: 0.2gSaturated Fat: 0.02gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.02gMonounsaturated Fat: 0.02gSodium: 79mgPotassium: 51mgFiber: 0.2gSugar: 12gVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 5mgIron: 0.1mg
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

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    5 from 1 vote (1 rating without comment)

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    candied ginger on a fork.
    dee dine

    My name is Dee Dine and I’m a two-time cookbook author and certified nutritionist. Here you’ll find easy, healthy recipes made with few ingredients and always egg free, dairy free, & gluten free. About Dee →

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