Ginger has become one of the most popular and commonly used spices in many parts of the world for decades. It offers a wide range of benefits for medicine and culinary purposes, starting from adding a rich flavour to various food products to serving as a herbal medicine used to treat many ailments, such as nausea, digestion problems, and inflammation.

In Indonesia, ginger comes in a few varieties with different key characteristics. The most commonly known and used types of ginger in Indonesia are white ginger, giant white ginger, and red ginger. Although the three types of ginger similarly provide a handful of health benefits, each ginger has its own unique characteristic that you might want to consider while buying and picking ginger from the store.

To help you pick the best ginger, below are the three commonly used types of ginger in Indonesia, their characteristics, and how they can suit to your specific health needs:

1. White Ginger

White ginger or also known as jahe emprit in Indonesian is the most common type of ginger that is used as a home cooking ingredient at home. This type of ginger has a wider rhizome and a soft and little amount of fiber. However, white ginger also contains gingerol, an active ingredient that can help reduce risks of infection. White ginger’s extracts are also beneficial to impede the growth of various bacteria, especially mouth bacteria that usually causes infection around the gum area, such as gingivitis and periodontitis.

2. Giant White Ginger

Giant w ginger (Jahe Gajah in Indonesian) comes in a bigger form compared to other types of ginger. It also has a white-yellow flesh which makes it also known as yellow ginger among the Indonesian society. Unlike other types of ginger, giant white ginger does not only offer various health benefits, but also aesthetic benefits. For instance, you can use giant white ginger to improve your skin health by reducing acne, oily skin, and eliminating dead skin cells.

3. Red Ginger

Similar to white ginger, red ginger (In Indonesian: Jahe Merah) also contains various active ingredients, such as gingerol, zingerol, shogaol, gingerin and zingerberin that make it highly beneficial to improve your overall health condition. These active ingredients of red ginger can help with weight loss, reduce muscle pain, prevent bowel cancer, and even improve fertility in men.

After learning and understanding about the different characteristics and health benefits of the three types of Indonesian ginger above, you can now have a better idea about which ginger to choose depending on your specific health problems and needs. Most importantly, make sure that you always pick fresh and good quality ginger from a reliable and trustworthy spices supplier or nearby local store.

References:

1. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/265

2. https://tanihub.com/blog/3-jenis-jahe-yang-ada-di-indonesia/

3. http://eprints.undip.ac.id/66664/5/V._BAB_II.pdf