How to Make Your Own Easy Ginger Chews

Ginger chews are delightfully gingery, sweet, and soothing. They’re perfect for soothing sore throats, calming coughs, and easing upset stomachs.

Serves: 50-60 pieces Time: 1 hour 10 minutes Cookbook: Heart of Wellness Online

Ginger and honey is a remedy that dates back to ancient times. Ginger was rare in most of the world and was thought to be a symbol of prosperity. Getting some now is as easy as going to your local grocery store and picking up this miracle root.

Besides being very good for you, ginger can also be very tasty when prepared properly. Take these ginger chews, for example. Fresh ginger is mixed with honey and sugar to make a confection that tastes way better than anything you can buy at a store. Crystallized ginger, is another great recipe that prepares candied ginger in a way that highlights the ginger without it being too spicy.

We were delighted with how these ginger chews came out and as it turns out, making candy at home is not all that hard. Stick a few of these chews in your pocket and you have a delicious dose of healthy goodness anywhere you go. Bonus points: This makes a large batch so it’s perfect for getting through cold and flu season.

Jump Ahead:

• ❤️ Why You’ll Love This Recipe
• 🍬 Ingredients Needed to Make Ginger Chews
• 🍴 Equipment You’ll Need in the Kitchen
• 🥄 How to Make Ginger Chews
• ♾️ Variations on Ginger Chews
• ❓ Ginger Chews: Tips, Tricks, and FAQs

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Surprisingly Easy: When we decided to do a ginger candy recipe, I’ll admit I was a bit hesitant. But these ginger candies come out exactly as the recipe says they will and it’s really not that complicated!

Homemade: If you want some chews at the ready during cold and flu season, homemade ginger candy is a great way to do it. And this way, you know exactly what goes into them (and what gets left out).

Cost Effective: Purchasing ginger chews at the grocery store can get pretty expensive. Make these and you’ll get around 50-60 individual chews per batch. That’s way better than the 10-15 that come in a store-bought pouch.

Ingredients Needed to Make Ginger Chews

• Ginger Root: Most grocery stores sell fresh ginger root in the produce section.
• Cane Sugar or Brown Sugar: Either sugar works great with this recipe. We used cane sugar and it turned out perfectly. If you only have white sugar, it will work but the flavor will be a little bit different.
• Honey: Any type of honey works with this recipe, so choose your favorite one.
• Coconut Oil or Grapeseed Oil: Either oil works well for oiling the pan and parchment paper. Coconut will lent a slight taste to your finished product, whereas grapeseed oil is flavorless and won’t alter the chew flavor at all.

Equipment Needed In the Kitchen

Instant Read Thermometer (w/ extendable probe)

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Cheese Grater

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Fine Mesh Strainer

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1-Quart Saucepan

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3-Quart Saucepan

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Glass Baking Dish (1 Qt)

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Chef Knife

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• Instant Read or Candy Thermometer: Either thermometer will work here. The important part is that you have a thermometer that you can set in the pot and not have to hold. We have an instant read thermometer with an extendable probe and it worked great.
• Cheese Grater: Any standard metallic shredder is perfect for grating the ginger.
• Fine Mesh Strainer: You want a fine mesh strainer here so the ginger is removed and the liquid can easily pass through.
• 1-Quart Saucepan: This size is perfect for making the concentrated ginger water.
• 3-Quart Saucepan: This is the smallest size you want for the candy-making process.
• Glass Baking Dish: The size you want is a 1-quart dish, which is around 7×5 inches. If you have a large dish, simply section off a 7×5-inch area as we did.
• Chef Knife: You’ll use this to cut the candy pieces.
• Parchment Paper: You’ll need parchment paper, not wax paper or foil, to line the baking dish.

How to Make Ginger Chews

Before starting these chews, we were a bit intimidated. Making candy is supposed to be difficult, isn’t it? Well, this was surprisingly simple and came out great! Give it a try and you’ll see just how easy it is.

Make ginger concentrate

First, shred the ginger. Shredding the ginger will release the oils and juice to make this especially gingery. If you want less ginger flavor, cut the root into thin ginger pieces instead.

Next, add the shredded ginger or ginger slices and water to a saucepan and simmer for 30 minutes on low heat. Bump up to medium heat if needed toward the end.

After half of the liquid has evaporated, you’re ready to take it off the heat.

Strain the ginger tea and set the liquid aside. You can discard the ginger at this point.

Prep a glass dish

While your ginger water cools, now is the time to prep a glass dish.

The dish should be small, around 7×4 inches. If you don’t have anything this small, you can create a smaller section within the larger dish like we did.

Grease the dish bottom and sides with flavorless oil. Then measure a piece of parchment paper the size of your dish and press it into the bottom and up the sides.

Finally, crease the parchment paper, as well.

Start the candying process

In a large saucepan add the ginger water, honey, and 3/4 cup sugar. Let the concoction boil until the mixture reaches 260 degrees Fahrenheit.

A quick note on pan size: The concoction will boil up during part of the process, so you want a 3-quart pan, minimum, if you stay and stir down the bubbles the entire time. If you plan to let it do its thing without watching it, double the size and go with a 6-quart pan.

Test the candy

If you don’t have an instant-read or candy thermometer, you can do the water drop test starting around the 5-minute mark and every 5 minutes thereafter.

Water drop test: Get a cup of very cold water. Spoon out a small amount of the ginger sugar syrup and drop it into the water. You should see it immediately form into hardened pieces. Fish it out and pop it in your mouth. The consistency should be nice and chewy, not runny, and not overly sticky. This isn’t a hard candy, either.

Let the candy set

After the syrup hits the right temperature or it’s passed the water drop test, pour the ginger syrup into the prepared glass dish. Place the dish on a cooling rack or trivet to encourage faster cooling.

Let it sit for 30 minutes and harden at room temperature.

Cut and store the candy

After 30 minutes, turn out the candy onto an oiled piece of parchment paper. Oil a knife and score the candy lengthwise, then again horizontally to form small candies in your preferred size. If the candy gets a bit sticky, dip the knife into hot water to help with cutting.

Wrap the candy in pieces of parchment paper separately to keep them from sticking and becoming one large mass.

Store at room temperature if your home stays around 75 degrees or cooler. Store in the refrigerator if you don’t have a cool enough spot.

Variations on Ginger Chews

Want to change up the flavor profile a bit? Try these variations!

Lemon Ginger: For a lemony twist, add 2-3 drops of lemon essential oil to the ginger sugar water and stir before starting the candying process.

Gingery Ginger: For even more ginger, add 2-3 drops of ginger essential oil or 1/8 cup ginger juice to the ginger sugar water and stir before placing it on the heat.

Lavender Ginger: Add a 1/4 teaspoon of culinary lavender to the shredded ginger while it simmers. Follow the rest of the recipe as written.

Cinnamon Ginger: Add a 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon powder to the ginger sugar water and stir in before beginning the candying process.

Ginger Chews: Tips, Tricks, and FAQs

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