Hello internet!! Hope you're doing well. Thanks for all the great bits of information. Now, will ya do me a favor? Please, pass along the following recipe! It was a pain in the @$$ finding a decent recipe for Ginger Syrup. I took my curiosity to the Streets (aka twitter), and asked some distant friends (aka people I'm stalking) how to make the stuff. One esteemed mixologist in particular, Jamie Boudreau of Vessel, wrote back...
@eldoradobar lots and lots of ginger. 2:1 sugar:water. add peppercorns and lemon zestAWESOME!!! But, what about the directions, Mr. @JamieBoudreau? Or Measurments? I didn't care. Confident I could figure this out, I was off... I grabbed some ginger from EL||D's fridge, the sauce pan, the electric stove, some unrefined sugar, and lemon... No Pepper, though... Who cares! I was determined!
I peeled the ginger and gave the ginger root a quick slice job, then lobbed it in the pot with the water and lemon peel. After cooking that down for a bit, I fine-strained the now ginger-ish water and added the sugar, stirring until dissolved. Booyaa!! Well, not quite... It tasted like molasses! no ginger flavor, at all!! I was bummed, but not defeated...
This morning I popped outta bed on a mission!! I was going to finish this recipe if it was the last thing I did!!! Why? because my integrity was at Stake!!! :)) but also because the syrup would function as a base for a ginger ale (which costs a pretty penny these days! even for the super-processed crap they sell - wtf). I figure a major function of being a proficient manager is making the most of the work environment so staff can spend more time welcoming and serving patrons. The syrup would help monetarily, as well as help reduce the time needed to make a cocktail (no more muddling and fine straining ginger!).
Sorry for the detour... where was I? Oh yeah -- REVENGE!!!
...Out of front door --> straight to whole foods --> immediate right into produce isle --> 2 lbs of organic ginger root, X --> organic lemons, X --> peppercorns, X --> organic cane sugar, X --> Peanut Butter Puffins and a 22 oz of Damnation, X!!! (I'm a total impulse buyer) --> Home...
here was my recipe:
3 (PACKED) cups thinly sliced ginger root - peel and all
4 cups water
2 Tbsp whole peppercorns
Zest of one lemon
3 cups Sugar
Notes: lob all ingredients into a sturdy, thick bottomed pot over low heat... simmer with lid on for an hour. Fine strain water, separating leftover ginger out the pot (I used a french press - VERY helpful!). The water had reduced to 3 cups... Then I added sugar and stirred on low heat until the grains were completely dissolved. I only used 1:1 sugar:water - Sorry, Boudreau - the unrefined sugar contributed a deterring flavor. Booyaa? YES! But, how does it taste? I think it's pretty dope! It has a distinct spiciness and ginger flavor, but I haven't tested it in a cocktail, yet...
What should I try it with? Obviously, a mule and a mojito right!?!
What unique ginger cocktails do you love?
Now, this recipe isn't exactly finished. In fact, it isn't remotely close to being finished. I still need to refine it to the point that anyone on the staff can easily create the concoction and replace the syrup behind the bar. But that's a completely different beast of a post. Oh, and just received this from Boudreau:
@eldoradobar Cook everything in boiling water. Add sugar. Stir until dissolved. Take off heat and let steep
Well, I guess I might be back to the drawing board. In the meantime, I wanna extend some gratitude to Jamie! Without people like him, and this here innerweb thing, El Dorado would be just another beer and shot disaster. Instead, I can comfortably/confidently ask my heroes quetions (you know you're in a weird place when your heroes are bartenders) from my desk at home and get recipes to the eventual success of EL||D! Props Internet! Hopefully another bar manager will find this post and use the recipe to their advantage. If you have any cool recipes, syrup or not, pass 'em along! I'm always experimenting. One of those ideas could very well be on EL||D's next menu revision! And while you're at it, give this recipe a try and lemme know how ya like it!
have a great weekend, y'all
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