Ginger is one of the widely use spice. It can be processed to ginger powder and ginger tea. It is also a potent medicinal herb.

I case you want to engage in ginger processing, choosing the right raw materials can be tedious. I noticed that there are three types of ginger based on maturity.

1) Ginger are harvested about eight months from the time of planting. Ginger harvested at this age may look like this. Appearance may differ depending on variety.

2) This ginger (below, right) is still immature or the young ginger. They are harvested when the sign of rotting (pasik) is observed. The remaining ginger should be harvested as soon as possible or the disease will wipe all the tubers. Young gingers are often result of disease occurrence.

3) The ginger above (left) is called inahin, the planting material used to propagate the tuber. It stayed under soil for approximately 16 months, two planting season.

Among the three, inahin has the strongest flavor but the most expensive. They claimed that inahing luya is best for cooking. Young ginger is the cheapest but contains less flavor. Both young ginger and ginger with the right maturity are easy to acquire.