Ginger drinks (also: shots) can now be found in every supermarket. But are the alleged immune boosters really that healthy? Stiftung Warentest tested 19 ginger shots more closely. You can read the overall assessment here. In the video we reveal how you can make the drink yourself.
If you mix a ginger shot yourself, you will get a more intense ginger taste compared to the mini bottles from the supermarket. This is due to the pungent substances, of which a fresh “shot” has around a third more on average. This is the conclusion of the Stiftung Warentest on its online site test.de. So homemade is better. But how do the finished products perform – and what do the shots actually do?
Stiftung Warentest on ginger shots: Which products can score?
Of the 19 ready-made shots tested (5.60 to 80 euros per liter), cold-pressed ones in particular usually have more pungent substances. The higher their proportion in the shot, the more evidence that fresh ginger has been processed. Because ginger loses its sharpness during storage and processing.
The testers can recommend the following products, among others:
Consumers should also pay attention to the sugar content. Depending on the composition with orange juice and especially with apple juice, it can be higher than that of cola.
The True Fruits Ginger Shot, for example, is a real sugar bomb. It contains almost eight grams of sugar per 60 milliliter serving. According to Stiftung Warentest, the ginger shot from Kloster Kitchen is also far too sweet. Other criticisms of the Kloster Kitchen product: The shot consists mainly of water and is also very expensive (78.50 euros per liter).
Ginger Shot: Easy DIY recipe
With turmeric and juice rich in vitamin C, the ginger shot can be made very quickly at home: according to a recipe from the Food Lab at the Münster University of Applied Sciences, add 40 g of freshly peeled ginger or unpeeled organic ginger and 2.5 g of freshly peeled ginger Turmeric.
You don’t need a knife to peel. A spoon is enough, with the edge of which you simply scrape off the thin skin. Fresh ginger can even be processed unpeeled, longer stored less, since the skin then releases a lot of bitter substances.
Using a blender, puree the juice of two medium-sized oranges (130 ml), 2 teaspoons of honey and, depending on how sweet you want it, a small sliced apple with the pieces of ginger and turmeric for one minute and strain through a hair sieve. The mix keeps in the fridge for up to four days and is enough for four shots.