ginger
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ginger
ginger, common name for members of the Zingiberaceae, a family of tropical and subtropical perennial herbs, chiefly of Indomalaysia. The aromatic oils of many are used in making condiments, perfumes, and medicines, especially stimulants and preparations to ease stomach distress.
True ginger (Zingiber officinale), cultivated since ancient times in many countries, no longer grows wild. Commercial ginger is made from the root, a rhizome, which is either preserved by candying or dried for medicines and spice. Studies have found some benefit from the use of ginger as an herbal medicine to treat nausea and vomiting, but other medicinal uses have not been as well substantiated by studies.
Other members of the ginger family also have uses as spices and in perfumery or traditional medicine; zedoary or white ginger (Curcuma zedoaria) and turmeric (C. longa) are grown for their rhizomes, and cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum) and black cardamom (Amomum species) for their seed pods and seeds. The last three are often combined with ginger and other spices to make various curries. Turmeric root yields a yellow dye, and a compound derived from it, curcumin, is used to promote bile secretion by the liver. C. angustifolia is an East Indian arrowroot.
Ginger is classified in the division Magnoliophyta, class Liliopsida, order Zingiberales, family Zingiberaceae.
ginger
Ginger
(Zingiber officinale), a perennial tropical plant of the family Zingiberaceae. It is cultivated in the south of Asia. The rhizomes are fleshy, aboveground stalks up to 1 m tall, the leaves are lanceolate, the flowers are violet yellow and gathered into short, spike-shaped inflorescences. The rhizome has a pleasant aromatic odor, caused by the presence of an essential oil (1.2–3 percent in the air-dried root) and a stinging taste, dependent on the presence of the phenol-like substance, gingerol.
The dry rhizome, under the name “ginger,” is used in cooking as a condiment and is also used in the food industry for aromati-zation of certain products (jam, liqueur). According to the method of processing, two commercial varieties are distinguished: white, or Jamaica, ginger is washed, peeled, and sun-dried; black ginger is unpeeled, boiled or scalded, and sun-dried.