Ginger Substitutes, Ranked by the Job Ginger Is Doing

Fresh ginger in a stir-fry and ground ginger in gingerbread do different jobs, so the first question is which one your recipe wants. For fresh, your best stand-in is another form of ginger: ground ginger works, though published conversions disagree by a factor of six, and rinsed candied ginger swaps one for one in glazes, sauces and baking. For ground ginger in baking, allspice, cinnamon, mace or nutmeg will do, and a mix of allspice and nutmeg comes closest in a gingerbread. None of them gives you ginger’s bite.

Quick answer

How the ratios on this page are labeled

Every ratio carries one of four labels.

• Computed: based on a measurable physical relationship.
• Attributed: a named source publishes this ratio. We quote it as theirs.
• Disputed: named sources give different answers to the same swap. You get each one, side by side.
• Method: our starting point, based on how the two compare. Taste and adjust.

If the recipe calls for fresh ginger

In stir-fries, curries, marinades, dressings and broths, fresh ginger brings heat and a bright, sharp smell. Your best stand-in is another form of ginger.

1. Ground ginger

Ratio (Disputed): Published conversions disagree by a factor of six.

None of these sources says where its figure came from, and none measured pungency. Start at 1/8 teaspoon of ground ginger per tablespoon of fresh. Add it with the liquid, not to a dry, hot pan, taste once the dish has simmered, and add more if you want more heat.

Expect a different flavor, not just a weaker one. Ground ginger is less bright and zesty than fresh. The Spice House suggests a little citrus or pepper to brighten a stir-fry made with ground ginger.³

2. Crystallized (candied) ginger

Ratio (Attributed): NDSU and NMSU both list 1 tablespoon of candied ginger, rinsed in water to remove the sugar and finely cut, and 1 tablespoon of grated fresh ginger as equal replacements for 1/8 teaspoon of ground ginger.¹² By their tables, rinsed candied ginger stands in for fresh ginger one for one.

Rinsing takes off the surface sugar, but candied ginger is cooked in syrup, so it suits glazes, sauces and baking better than a savory stir-fry.

3. Galangal

Galangal is in the same plant family as ginger. Its taste is strongly pungent, like a mix of pepper and ginger. It tastes noticeably different from ginger, sharper and more resinous, so this swap changes the dish. See galangal and galangal vs. ginger.

Ratio (Method): In a broth where you lift the slices out, use the same amount. Grated into a dish, start with half as much and taste.

If the recipe calls for ground ginger

In gingerbread, gingersnaps, spice cakes, pumpkin pie and lots of spice rubs, ground ginger is one warm spice among several.

1. Allspice, cinnamon, mace or nutmeg

Ratio (Attributed): The Spice House says to “use a 1:1 ratio of ground allspice, ground cinnamon, ground mace or ground nutmeg,” alone or mixed, and to start with a 1:1 swap in baking and adjust to taste.³ Its cinnamon page says ginger and cinnamon are “fairly equal in strength.”⁵ Both are merchant rules of thumb with no stated basis.

None of the four gives you ginger’s bite. Each brings warmth and a smell of its own:

• Allspice tastes aromatic and pungent, like a combination of cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg. It’s the most versatile of the four, since it works in savory dishes as well as baking.
• Nutmeg has a distinctive pungent fragrance and a warm, slightly sweet taste. The Spice House says its spicy-sweet flavor resembles ginger.³
• Mace is made from the dried covering of the nutmeg seed. It’s the more delicate of the two.
• Cinnamon brings sweetness, not heat; The Spice House notes that nutmeg and cinnamon bring different notes from ginger.³

The Spice House also suggests mixing small amounts of two or more for a more complex flavor.³ In a gingerbread or spice cake, a mix of allspice and nutmeg comes closest.

2. Pumpkin pie spice

Pumpkin pie spice already has ginger in it. McCormick’s lists cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and allspice,⁶ and since US labels list ingredients in descending order by weight, ginger is the second-biggest ingredient after cinnamon.⁷ NMSU’s homemade formula is mostly cinnamon, with ginger making up a quarter of the blend by volume and smaller, equal amounts of allspice and nutmeg.²

Ratio (Method): Use it 1:1 and cut the cinnamon, nutmeg or allspice the recipe already calls for by about the same amount, so cinnamon doesn’t take over.

3. Fresh ginger in place of ground

Read the table above in reverse and you get 1 tablespoon of grated fresh ginger for every 1/8 to 3/4 teaspoon of ground ginger, depending on the source. Fresh ginger adds moisture and fibers, so it suits wet batters, sauces and marinades better than shortbread or dry rubs.

What isn’t known

• You’ll sometimes read that cinnamon tastes like ginger. None of our sources says so; The Spice House says only that they’re similar in strength.
• We found no source for ginger juice as a substitute for dried, ground or crystallized ginger.

Related

• Ginger, fresh ginger vs. ground ginger, is ginger spicy?
• Cooking with ginger, how to store ginger, too much ginger
• Galangal, galangal vs. ginger, galangal substitutes, turmeric vs. ginger
• Allspice, cinnamon, mace, nutmeg, mace vs. nutmeg, allspice vs. nutmeg
• Garlic vs. ginger