Yup, through and through, I'm 100% a ginger. Both my parents had red heair - my mom's kinda blonded out a bit, and my dad's kinda retreated and browned - but both had vibrant red hair not too too many years ago. All my siblings have red hair, too, and some of us have our own little red heads too. But red hair, pale freckled skin, propensity to sunburn after 10 minutes, even at midnight? Yup, that's me.
Ginger, as a flavor and ingedient, is definitely an acquired taste. I've come to embrace its warmth and spicy sharpness, especially in beverage form. The best kombuchas has ginger in them, for my palate.That being said, it's one of those things that can come to be "a bit much" fairly quickly and easily, so I knew that Trader Joe's 100% Ginger Drink Mix was going to be an interesting try.
The ingredient lsit here is pretty simple: it's just ginger. I'm unsure of the proper term, but it's a dried up, light, powdery mix inside the single serving packets. Really, the first thing that came to mind was a fine sawdust. There's no sugar or added anything to make big ol' granules of anything.
Well, I was wrong.
Being that it's been a little chilly and dreary in the 'burgh, and I was heading back towards my chillier and drearier basement for work, i opted for the hot beverage option. The ginger drink mix dissolved nealry instantly will just a customary stir or two in the near-boiling recommended 12 ounces of water I poured into my mug.
First few sips were mild, warm, a bit spicy..and then it just got more and more and more, well super gingery. I had to cough once or twice in reaction. I mean, it was all pretty enjoyable...but I sure was glad to pour in a little more hot water to warm up my cup and dilute it down a little more.
Somehow I'm the only one who's tried it thus far here. Sandy's been more into tea for an afternoon warm beverage, which I'm not a huge fan of, but I'm sure we will get around to trying out the drink mix in a variety of ways. Got any good suggestions? Share away. I like it enough to give it a seven overall.
Bottom line: Trader Joe's 100% Ginger Drink Mix: 7 out of 10 Golden Spoons
It's also ideal for baking too. A packet= tablespoon of ground ginger. Also great idea for seasoning usage too. Why limit to just drink mix? It said just ginger powder.
ReplyDeleteI mixed it with matcha for a super punchy morning drink! But I think it would also be awesome mellowed out for a "golden drink" type of situation with turmeric and other spices.
ReplyDeleteI wonder where all those carbs come from since there's no sugar or anything?
ReplyDeleteSomething seems "off" with the labeling. There is no way ginger powder could have 60 kcal and 14g carbs. That's like a thin slice of white bread! Or a tablespoon of sugar! I love ginger so I will pick some up next time I'm in the store, and taste it to see if I can figure out what's up.
DeleteYeah. I could understand a few carbs as I"m assuming this is basically ground up, freeze dried ginger which is super fibrous, but still, 14?
DeleteLooking up the nutrition info for dried ginger, it checks out. 30g dried ginger has 110 cal and 27g carbs, according to the top results in my very in-depth google investigation. For reference, fresh ginger has 80 cal per 100g, and a water content of 79% (dried spice ginger roughly 9%) according to wikipedia.
DeleteHuh. It's so fibrous (when I use it fresh) that I never considered the water content being so high. I guess it takes a whole lot of fresh to make a little bit of dried. The label doesn't specify, but it must be mostly fiber, I guess?
DeleteEven with the fibre, etc., something is off. If it was simply powder, it wouldn't dissolve instantly as he described, anymore than powdered cinnamon dissolves instantly. If it IS just powdered ginger, why do we even need this project? Why not buy bulk powdered ginger and dig your spoon in? Who needs spices individually packed by the teaspoon, and then boxed in top of that? A colossal waste of materials to avoid what, a measuring spoon?
DeleteGround ginger (as in spice) has 3.5 grams carbs per tablespoon according to just about everywhere I looked. DRIED ginger is much higher and I think that's what this is. I wouldn't use this for baking particularly if you're low carb or keto. Stick to the spice.
DeleteI just discovered this at TJ’s and love it. The difference b/t this and ginger *powder* is that TJ’s is spray-dried, not simply ground up, ginger. That makes TJ’s instantly dissolvable in liquids. If you mixed regular ginger spice into liquid, you’ll get a gritty mess.
ReplyDeleteThis spray-dried ginger is a much better value over your typical ginger tea, which usually has licorice or other herbs mixed in and doesn’t give you the medicinal punch of this packet. I swear by ginger tea with honey to shorten viral illnesses like the flu or cold, and just stocked up on this product with an eye on COVID.
I'm enjoying a cup right now and absolutely love the stuff, but keep reading about "upper limits" of ginger being 4g per day. These are 15g packets. Are we all completely overdoing it?
ReplyDeleteDid you get an answer because I drink two cups a day.
DeleteI drink 2-3 packets a day, and now worry i'm taking in too much carbs (i'm on Keto diet). Can't understand why there are so much carbs per packet.
DeleteI absolutely love ginger drink mix sold by Trader Joe's. In addition I add lemon and a spoon of honey. It does helps to get the colds out of the way. My new fav.during Covid times
ReplyDeleteLast night was the first time I purchased the ginger mix and I wished I would've gotten two boxes! I just mixed it with cold water and spritz of lemon. This stuff is great!
ReplyDeleteI usually use half a packet for tea, and add the other half to lemonade. It is awesome with the lemonade.
DeleteFor a long time I have made a tea by slicing fresh ginger, and then simmering it in a pot of water until the water turns golden. This powder tastes exactly like that when made in to a hot tea. I drink it with a bit of honey and cream. I love the slight burn as it goes down.
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