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ur_gothmomI could have sworn I'd written this down in my cookbook or saved it in my gmail recipes folder, but apparently I didn't, so I'll put it here.
生姜湯 (shouga-yu) is a Japanese hot ginger drink that I love, especially during cold and flu season. I first had it when I was living in Japan, when I could buy pouches of just-add-boiling-water powder. Similar to the Chinese-style ginger honey drink mix my dad has bought from the Asian market for years, shouga-yu is sweet and gingery tasting, perfect for when you're sick or maybe coming down with something. Unlike the Chinese version, it's not as spicy and has a thick texture and throat-coating ability from the inclusion of 片栗粉 (katakuriko), potato starch. I would buy boxes of five or six sachets from the pharmacy; then I discovered the Osaka Costco stocked it in bulk and drank it all winter.
Much to my disappointment, after I came home I couldn't find those sachets in any of the Asian markets near me, but I figured I must be able to make it from scratch. It turns out to be fairly easy to put together as long as you have the components on hand. In theory you should grate the ginger fresh and use just the juice for the most canonical version, but I use jarred ginger paste since I resent any drink recipe that takes longer than putting things in a mug and don't mind chewing a few ginger bits.
This is barely a recipe and all the quantities are extremely customizable. Use any sweetener you like, adjusting the quantity to your taste. Use more or less ginger. You can even use more or less potato starch if you like it thinner or thicker.
Ingredients: (makes 1 serving)
1 tsp katakuriko/potato starch
2 tsps COLD water
1 tsp ginger paste
2 tsps honey
about 1 cup hot or boiling water
1. In a mug, combine the potato starch and cold water, mix until dissolved. (Don't skip this step or you'll end up with hot ginger water over a thin layer of hard-set gel.)
2. Add the ginger and honey.
3. Add the hot water and stir well. Enjoy!
生姜湯 (shouga-yu) is a Japanese hot ginger drink that I love, especially during cold and flu season. I first had it when I was living in Japan, when I could buy pouches of just-add-boiling-water powder. Similar to the Chinese-style ginger honey drink mix my dad has bought from the Asian market for years, shouga-yu is sweet and gingery tasting, perfect for when you're sick or maybe coming down with something. Unlike the Chinese version, it's not as spicy and has a thick texture and throat-coating ability from the inclusion of 片栗粉 (katakuriko), potato starch. I would buy boxes of five or six sachets from the pharmacy; then I discovered the Osaka Costco stocked it in bulk and drank it all winter.
Much to my disappointment, after I came home I couldn't find those sachets in any of the Asian markets near me, but I figured I must be able to make it from scratch. It turns out to be fairly easy to put together as long as you have the components on hand. In theory you should grate the ginger fresh and use just the juice for the most canonical version, but I use jarred ginger paste since I resent any drink recipe that takes longer than putting things in a mug and don't mind chewing a few ginger bits.
This is barely a recipe and all the quantities are extremely customizable. Use any sweetener you like, adjusting the quantity to your taste. Use more or less ginger. You can even use more or less potato starch if you like it thinner or thicker.
Ingredients: (makes 1 serving)
1 tsp katakuriko/potato starch
2 tsps COLD water
1 tsp ginger paste
2 tsps honey
about 1 cup hot or boiling water
1. In a mug, combine the potato starch and cold water, mix until dissolved. (Don't skip this step or you'll end up with hot ginger water over a thin layer of hard-set gel.)
2. Add the ginger and honey.
3. Add the hot water and stir well. Enjoy!
