Homemade Natural Ginger Hard Candies

Ingredients

Ginger tea

6 cups water
1/2 cup organic ginger, peeled and roughly chopped into 1" chunks, *see notes

Candies

1 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup ginger tea (from above)
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar

Instructions

The first step is to make a strong ginger tea with fresh organic ginger. (A store bought tea will not be strong enough). Place the water and chopped ginger in a medium sized pot. Bring to a boil. Once it reaches a boil turn it down to medium heat. Make sure that it's bubbling. Partially cover the pot with a lid. Let it cook for 40-50 minutes, checking on it periodically, until the liquid has reduced to 1/3 cup. It should be a dark yellow colour and have a VERY strong medicinal like ginger flavour. If the ginger flavour isn't strong enough it won't come through in the candies. Set the pot aside.
Next, it's time to make the candies. Mix the sugar, 1/3 cup of the ginger tea you just made and the cream of tartar in a small heavy bottom pot (not non-stick). It's important to use a small pot either 5" or 6" diameter. If your pot is larger then that you will need to double the recipe. Place your candy thermometer into the pot. Place the pot on the stove on high heat. Bring the mixture to a boil and watch it carefully because the mixture will bubble up and can spill over. Let it boil without stirring until it reaches 300°F which will take about 7-8 minutes. Make sure to watch it carefully because the temperature can go up quite fast and the candy can burn.
Once it has reached 300°F remove it from the heat and let it sit for few minutes until the bubbles have settled. (Do not let it sit too long because the candy will cool and it will be hard to pour.) Carefully pour the candy into the molds. Make sure not to touch any of the hot candy as it will burn.
Let the candy sit for about 15 minutes. Remove the candy from the molds and wrap each one in wax paper. Place all of the wrapped candies in a sealed container. If stored in a cool dry place they can last up to a month. If it's hot/humid they will become sticky and can slightly melt. Enjoy!

Notes

*Organic ginger is preferred over conventional ginger because the flavor is stronger. A store bought tea cannot replace the homemade tea because the flavor won't be strong enough.

*Make sure to wrap the candies once they are set. If they stay unwrapped at room temperature they will become sticky. In hot/humid months the wrapped candies can slightly melt and become sticky.

*The yield of the recipe depends on the size of the mold. I use a silicon mold that holds 36 candies that are each 3/4" in diameter. When choosing a mold make sure that it is heat safe to at least 300°F.

*To clean the pot just fill it with hot soapy water and let it sit for an hour or two. All of the sugar will dissolve.

Nutrition