Homemade Ginger Garlic Paste

Ginger garlic paste is the base ingredient for almost any Indian food. Whether you are making a curry or a vegetable, it always comes in handy. And there's nothing better than the homemade stuff right? 

The more involved I seem to get with food and cooking, the more I value the whole concept of trying to make as much as possible at home without having to buy store bought products. In today's world, where we are never really sure what goes into anything we eat, its best to try and make as much as you can at home. 

I know most of us are really short on time, so make larger quantities that can stay for a while, instead of small bottles where you find yourself having to make a new fresh batch every week. 

Ginger Garlic Paste

The basic principal of this recipe is to use equal quantities of ginger and garlic. Some recipes call for water, but I don't see the need for it, as water will naturally come out from the ginger and garlic. 

I recommend grinding the ginger first, and pre cutting it in smaller pieces before you throw it into the mixer. If you are dealing with larger quantities like I did in this recipe, I grind the ginger first and remove, and then grind the garlic, just to make sure there are no chunks of either in the paste. 

Turmeric is a natural preserving agent. So add a little to help keep it for longer. For my quantity I found that 1/4 tsp was more than enough. You want a very slight yellow tinge to your ginger garlic paste. Don't over do the turmeric. The way I looked at it, is, you don't want it to change the colour of a dish that you might be preparing later, so keeping that in mind too, just add a little.

Ginger garlic paste 

Oil is also a natural preserving agent. You can't go wrong here in how much you add.. For this quantity I've added 5 tbsps but if you are making lesser, then 2 to 3 tbsps should suffice.

Salt is another preserving agent. Again, don't add too much as you do not want it affecting the dish you use it for later.

I DON'T add vinegar to my paste when making it. It will slowly turn the whole paste an alien bright green and unless to want to show your kids a bit of cooking magic or some science fun, I wouldn't recommend adding any vinegar at all.

Always store your ginger garlic paste once made in the fridge. You can store it in a glass bottle, and it will sit nicely in the door of your fridge for as long as you want. Make sure you use a clean spoon when taking it out, and that the spoon doesn't come into contact with any other food item to avoid contamination. 

This recipe makes for 2 mayonnaise sized - 750ml bottles of paste. If you would prefer to make less, just use half the quantity of all the ingredients. 

Ingredients:
700 gms fresh whole ginger
700 gms fresh garlic
5 tbsps of oil
1/4 tsp of turmeric
1 1/2 tsp of salt 

Ginger garlic paste

Method: 
Peel the ginger and garlic. The best way to peel ginger is to use a teaspoon. It helps to get into all those nooks and crannies of the ginger root. But if you want somthing faster, then use a sharp knife to slice away the skin. I find the later way, always creates a bit of wastage that I like to avoid.

Garlic is best peeled by twisting the skin in an anti clock wise motion to remove the skin. Another alternative is to give is a small bash with the palm of your hand to release the skin.

Cut the ginger into smaller pieces and set aside. Grind the ginger in the mixer to a fine paste. Remove in a bowl and set aside. Add the garlic next, into the mixer. Grind to a fine paste. Now add the ground ginger back in, and add the rest of the ingredients. ie. the salt, turmeric and oil. Blend till smooth. 

Store in a glass air tight bottle in the refrigerator. 

Ginger Garlic Paste