Let‘s make Pickled Sushi Ginger (or Gari ガリ) at home! Refreshing and slightly sweet, it‘s perfect for cleansing your palate as you enjoy delicious sushi.
If you enjoy my sushi recipes like Hand Roll Sushi, California Roll, Dragon Roll, and Spicy Tuna Roll, there’s one crucial complementary item you need to enjoy with the amazing sushi. And that’s Pickled Sushi Ginger.
What is Pickled Sushi Ginger
In Japan, we call the pickled ginger Gari (ガリ) or Shin-shoga no Amazu-zuke (新生姜の甘酢漬け).
It’s young pickled ginger that is soaked in sweet vinegar brine. It can have a blush pink color when made from young ginger or artificially colored, or beige if made with regular ginger.
We often serve and eat pickled sushi ginger while eating sushi and it’s an essential part of a sushi meal. The spiciness and sweet vinegar flavor of the ginger helps cleanse the palate between eating, allowing you to enjoy different pieces of fish and rolls. The name Gari is from the onomatopoeia of the crunching noise or the sound of a knife thinly slice the ginger. At a sushi restaurant, you can ask more gari if you want extra.
Sweet Pickle – Amazuzuke
There are many types of pickles or what we call Tsukemono (漬け物) in Japan. We call the sweet and vinegar type Amazu-zuke (甘酢漬け).
All you need is just 3 ingredients for the pickling solution: rice vinegar, sugar, and salt. Put all the ingredients in a saucepan to meld and let cool completely. You can keep the finished Amazu for 2-3 months in the refrigerator, and use it in batches.
Do you need to use rice vinegar? Ideally, yes. The taste of rice vinegar is mellow, milder, and refreshing compared to the other types of vinegar, and because of that, you can use less sugar. If you use another type of vinegar, please adjust the amount of sugar. For authentic Japanese flavor, go with rice vinegar!
How to Make “Gari” – Pickled Sushi Ginger
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Young ginger (We’ll talk more about this later)
- Salt (Roughly 3-5% of the ginger weight. It helps remove moisture from the ginger and better absorb the pickling solution)
- Sweet pickle solution – rice vinegar, sugar, and salt
*Note: If you use white granulated sugar (in my recipe, I used organic cane sugar), the pickle solution will be lighter in color and showcase the pink more visibly (see below).
Overview: Cooking Process
- Thinly slice ginger and dehydrate with salt.
- Blanch the sliced ginger to remove spiciness.
- Let cool and squeeze the liquid out.
- Combine ingredients in a pot to make sweet pickle solution.
- Pour the hot solution to ginger and pickle for a few days.
It’s simple and easy to make, and lasts for a long time! If you can get young ginger, make a lot and preserve!
Why Do We Use Young Ginger?
Young ginger has a mild zesty flavor and a fine fleshy texture that is tender. Unlike matured ginger that’s usually used for cooking, the young ginger’s skin is very thin and easy to peel with fingers or a spoon.
To make sushi ginger, use only young ginger. Thinly slice and pickle it in a sugar and rice vinegar mixture. The sliced ginger will naturally become light pink from the tips of the young ginger (see the photo).
Many commercial producers artificially dye the pickled ginger pink. If you’re purchasing pickled sushi ginger, you can find some brands that avoid artificial coloring.
Young ginger is harvested and sold in early summer around May/June!
You can find young ginger in Asian grocery stores but they sometimes do not have the pink tip (already cut off). You can still make pickled ginger with these, but they won’t be naturally pink.
Where to Find Young Ginger
- Japanese/Asian grocery stores
- Farmers markets
- Etsy (I’ve purchased young ginger from Hawaii before)
- Good Eggs
What to Serve with Pickled Sushi Ginger
When you find young ginger in the grocery store, you know what to do now! I hope you enjoy this homemade pickled ginger recipe.
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Pickled Sushi Ginger (Gari)
Video
Ingredients
- 8 oz young ginger (you can increase by up to 50% for this recipe; if you use regular ginger, it will be VERY spicy and you must boil it longer to reduce the spiciness)
- 2 tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt (3–5% of the ginger‘s weight)
For the Sweet Vinegar (Amazu)
- 1 cup rice vinegar (unseasoned) (rice vinegar is mild compared to other vinegars; if you use another type, add more sugar to taste)
- ½–¾ cup sugar (I use organic cane sugar; use white granulated sugar for a clear pickling solution that showcases the ginger‘s pink color; DO NOT USE LESS SUGAR than specified because the ginger will not preserve well)
- 1 tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients.
To Prepare the Ginger
- Using a knife (you can also use the back of the knife or a spoon), scrape off the brown spots and thin skin of 8 oz young ginger.
- Using a peeler, thinly slice the ginger. You can also use a mandoline. I prefer to use a peeler as it slices very thinly.
- When you can‘t slice the ginger anymore with the peeler/mandoline, use the knife to slice the rest thinly.
- Sprinkle 2 tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt on the ginger slices and set aside for 5 minutes. The salt helps remove the moisture from the ginger so it can better absorb the pickling solution.
- Meanwhile, bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Once boiling, blanch the thinly sliced ginger for 1–2 minutes. If you want to keep it spicy, take it out after 1½ minutes. Tip: If you are using regular ginger (not young ginger), blanch it for 2–3 minutes to remove the extra spiciness.
- Drain the ginger slices in a sieve. Let them cool slightly so you can handle them with your hands.
- With your clean hands, spread out the slices in a single layer over a large Japanese bamboo sieve (called bonzaru 盆ざる) or paper towel/wire rack. Set aside until it‘s completely cooled and dried out a bit more.
- Once cooled, squeeze the liquid from the ginger slices and put them in a sterilized airtight jar.
To Make the Sweet Vinegar (Amazu)
- In a small saucepan, add 1 cup rice vinegar (unseasoned), ½–¾ cup sugar, and 1 tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt. Tip: DO NOT USE LESS SUGAR than specified because the ginger will not preserve well. The least you can use is ½ cup of sugar, and it is still quite tangy. If you prefer the taste of store-bought sushi ginger, use the higher measurement of sugar indicated.
- Mix and bring it to a boil on medium heat. Cook the vinegar mixture until the strong vinegar smell has evaporated and the sugar has completely dissolved.
- Remove from the heat and let it cool slightly because the just-boiled liquid could break the glass jar. Pour the hot vinegar mixture into the jar with the ginger slices. Using clean chopsticks (or any utensil), mix it well together. Close the lid, let it cool completely, and refrigerate.
- After 4 hours or so, the ginger will turn slightly pink (see the photo below). I recommend waiting until the following day or a few more days to enjoy.
To Store
- Keep the pickled ginger in an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to one year. Always use clean utensils to remove the pickled ginger from the jar to avoid contamination and to help them keep for a long time.
Nutrition
Editor’s Note: This post was originally published on August 11, 2015. The images and content have been updated and a new video is added in June 2021.
Hi, I tried this recipe but I wasn’t sure how long to boil the vinegar. The smell seemed strong even though the liquid reduced by half. How long do you recommend cooking the vinegar, and is it ok if there’s still a slightly strong vinegar smell. Thank you!
Hi Jade! Did you use rice vinegar? Because rice vinegar is more mild than other types of vinegar. I highly recommend using it. The vingar smells strong when you pour, but after you cook, the really strong smell goes away. It’ll be still vinegar smell though.
If you’re not used to vinegar dishes, you might feel it’s strong vinegar smell, but compared to the smell when you pour the vinegar, it should be more mild. You just need to dissolve the sugar, and letting the strong vinegar smell evaporated. Some people don’t even cook the vinegar part… but I think it helps to remove that strong smell and dissolve sugar. 🙂
Thank Nami!
It was much better this time =)!
Thank you for your feedback, Jade! 🙂
Thank you for giving your readers this recipe for gari, Nami! I’m so happy to have it and can’t wait to try it. I live also in the SF Bay Area, in Mountain View, and we have many Asian Markets here, so finding the young pink tipped ginger is easy when it’s in season. Not only do I love gari with sushi, but I have a funny memory. When I was pregnant with my son, during that first trimester, the only food craving I had was for gari! I could eat an entire jar in two days. It was great for nausea and just the taste was sooo delicious to me then.
Hi Leslie! I had bad morning sickness that I couldn’t hold food in my stomach, and I used to eat ginger candy (best one was from Thailand), so I can sort of relate your craving for gari! Haha entire jar in 2 days! Your son will enjoy gari in the future. 🙂 . Hope you like the homemade gari!
Hi Nami, Thank you very much for sharing this recipe. I have been looking for young ginger for a long time and finely today I found it. They even had the branches in. The pickled turned out wonderful !
Hi Angela! Congratulations on finding young ginger! So happy you made homemade pickled ginger. Aren’t they delicious? MSG and preservative and food color free! 😀
A good substitute is Peruvian ginger. It is small so not tough like mature ginger. However it doesn’t have the pink buds. I find it at Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, and the organic section of my grocery store. It will do in a pinch. For pink coloring that’s natural, a piece of skin from a red plum will add color. Think along of the lines of beni shoga pickled in plum brine (ume-su) but for color only. I’ve made umeboshi many, many times. I also make my own ume-su from regular plums then puree the solids and make a plum paste. Just brine them and let them ferment on the counter. Sometimes I add a bit of citric acid to aid in the fermentation process and to add tartness. My mother was a whiz in the kitchen and I learned from her to improvise. She grew up during WWII in Japan and they had to make do with what was available. Oftentimes, there wasn’t much.
Hi Chieko! Thank you so much for such a helpful input! I’ve seen those Peruvian ginger, and good to know they are good substitute! And the pink coloring – thanks for sharing it too! Now I think about it, maybe many variations of food were invented/introduced during the time when there wasn’t much. 🙂
Many Japanese settled in South America around WWII so it makes sense ginger is grown there. I feel to be successful in the kitchen, any kitchen, is to be able to make do with what’s available! Love your website. Thanks so much! I make ika no shiokara. Would you be interested in doing something like that? I have HD quality photos. I think your following would be interested, especially if it’s paired with rice, saki, beer. I’m also making a different shiokara from whitebait. If presented properly, it may be attractive to non-Asians!. My cousin in Japan always laughs about the stuff I make because she doesn’t think Americans would like them. Lol!
Wow you’re such a great cook! I’ve never tried making Ika no Shiokara. I’m inspired by you! Haha yeah, your cousin is funny but she is right. I’m hesitant to share Monjayaki too. I think everyone will think it’s vomit… LOL. I was hesitant to share Hijiki too but I shared it. 😀 Thank you for your comment!
thank you have not found a recipe for pickled ginger… but I have a question… don’t have an Asian market locally here in Arizona. Would I be able to use what is in the regular markets?
Hi Delena! Fresh ginger is less spicy and it’s more mild, so when you make this pickled ginger, it’s not as strong as fresh ginger. I’m a bit afraid that regular ginger is too spicy for you. Fresh ginger is also very seasonal, so even here where we have Japanese and Asian grocery stores, we can’t always find it. 🙁 If you spot “pinkish” ginger, with soft skin, make sure to grab some for this recipe! 🙂
Hi Nami,
Thanks for sharing such a great recipe.
May I know if we can replace rice vinegar with another vinegar like apple vinegar?
Hi Yuliana! I recommend rice vinegar as it’s mild and that’s the vinegar we use in Japanese cooking. If you can’t get it somehow, maybe apple cider vinegar is okay, but I hope that’s not overwhelming the ginger taste. 🙂
Yummy! Can’t wait to try this =D Miss that delicious pickley-Ginger bite! Yes….I just ate it straight *One piece for sushi, one piece for me* ;P hehe
Nami, would this work out ok without adding the sugar? So pickling in just the vinegar and salt?
Thank you 🙂
Hi Alejandro! If you like the sushi ginger (gari), I recommend adding the sugar. There is a balance between vinegar and sugar, and if you don’t include sugar, I think it’s way too spicy and sour. I personally don’t think I’d enjoy it. 🙂
Thank you so much for posting this recipe.
My husband and I miss Japan food. We lived in Japan for near 20 years.
My pickled ginger that I made didn’t turn pink and it is very spicey. Too spicey for me.
Hi Julie! First question is… did you use young ginger? They are not as spicy as regular ginger and it tastes more mild. I think it is a bit too spicy to make this recipe with regular ginger. The young ginger has pink area (shown above). Did you include it? Also, if you’re not a fan of spicy taste, you can increase the boiling time (Step 2). Hope this helps!
We love pickled ginger, and I wasn’t aware that the color comes from the tips of the young ginger! Thank you for sharing the recipe.
Hi Donna! I actually didn’t think that many people didn’t know about how it’s colored and I’m glad I included the explanation. 🙂
Thanks for posting this recipe, Nami! I’ve always loved nibbling on pickled ginger, not only with sushi but whenever I”m looking for something with a clean, tart taste. I also used to eat pickled ginger when I was pregnant and suffering from morning sickness. It seemed to help the nausea and lack of appetite. I’ll still have a little ginger when my stomach is upset. Not too much, just a pinch to settle the rumbling and discomfort. 🙂
Hi Hisaye! I had bad morning sickness for both kids, so I did ate ginger candy! I forgot about that. 🙂 Thanks for reminding me the great benefit of ginger!
Thanks so much for this! I plan to try it soon since shoga is not available in my neighborhood.
When I get shoga from the sushiya that is white does that mean it is made from old ginger?
Can you tell us where to buy amazu or a brand to look for? Or how to make it?
And while I am asking questions–can you tell me if there is a difference between Mirin and Marukan or if they are just different brands? I’ve tended to use one or the other interchangably but wonder if I should know more about them in deciding which to use.
Hi Ruth! When you see dark brown ginger skin, they are no longer young. Young gingers are always pale yellow, really light color (you can describe it as “white” too). They are young ones.
I make amazu myself and the recipe is above, in the recipe box 🙂 The ingredients are listed under “Amazu”.
Mirin is a condiment (like soy sauce, ketchup). You can read more about Mirin here:
https://www.justonecookbook.com/pantry_items/mirin/
Kikkoman, Marukan or Mizkan are the biggest Japanese brands that sell condiments. They are about the same, so I usually buy when one of them are on sale. In Japan there are so many brands and types within the same brand to choose from, but if you live outside of Japan, you just get one kind. 😀
I hope this helps! 🙂
I just love your recipes! They are informative and easy to understand. I appreciate the do measurements as well.
Appreciate your time & efforts
Hi Marva! Thank you so much! I have readers from different parts of the world, and hope my measurement works for everyone. 🙂 Thanks for your kind words!
Thanks for this recipe! I normally don’t like regular ginger as much, but I love pickled ginger. I really appreciated your explanation of the pink color—what a great piece of knowedge to impress people with. 🙂
Hi Kimmi! Aww the natural pink color is subtle, not strong pink like food coloring pink. 🙂 The sweet and sour flavor of this pickling liquid is quite addicting. 🙂
Can I substitute stevia or some other sweetener for the sugar?
Hi Genus! Sure! I hope you enjoy this recipe! 😉
Thanks Nami for sharing this pickled ginger recipe as I have been patiently waiting for it.
Hi Joannie! Aww thank you for waiting this recipe. I had hard time finding young ginger with pink tip, and finally found them when I was back in Japan this summer. I just had to make a blog post with this recipe! Thank you!!