Photo by Kristine Brown
If you are interested in making your own herbal medicines or handmade gifts, infused oils are the perfect way to begin. They are simple to create, absolutely decadent to use and the whole process will make your house smell like heaven.
This recipe is for Ginger Oil. It will give you a little zing of heat, on your body or in your belly.
This recipe was shared with us from Ananda of Amrita Apothecary on Poppy Swap.
We’ll be honest! Fresh Ginger Root Oil is one of the hardest infused oils to make because Ginger is so juicy. But with the magic of a crock pot and a little patience, this heartwarming, inexpensive oil can be treasured by anyone. The fresh oil is gingery, golden, and deeply but gently warming.
GINGER OIL
2 cups Ginger: roughly chopped or sliced fresh ginger root
3 cups oil: Olive, Coconut, Sesame, Jojoba, Palm, or animal tallow/lard work best
1 crock pot, (or yogurt maker) very well cleaned of any food or liquid debris.
2 days of time!! when you’ll be mostly home (this ingredient can be a rare find!)
1 mason jar with clean lid
strainer
cheesecloth or muslin
Place ginger into crock pot on lowest setting of your crock pot. Cover with the oil. Leave it on heat for two days and monitor it so as not to let it boil or burn the oil. It should never get hot enough to bubble.
The trick to keeping moisture out is to leave the cover slightly ajar to allow the evaporation of water from the ginger root. Remember, the more water in your plant material, the more likely it is to mold. You want to keep as much moisture out of the oil as possible!
Decant by straining your oil through cheesecloth or muslin.
Be sure to “complete” your oil by leting it sit for a day. This will assist any natural separation and you’ll be able to pour the oil off. It will take some patience but its well worth it. You always have the option to use the dry root or an essential oil but you will not have the same glorious results that you will get with using a fresh root.
What to do with your Ginger Oil?
~Treat your cold feet to the warm protection and circulatory support of ginger oil before you put your boots on for winter snow shoveling
~Massage it into stiff aching joints, arthritis or onto the abdomen for menstrual cramps or stomach upset
~Rub into sore muscles before or after athletics for help with sports recovery
~Make a ginger-eucalyptus chest rub salve
~Massage congested breast tissue and lymph glands
~Add it to a bathful of hot water and epsom salts
~Give it away to an aching elder
Remember it’s Ginger!
~Add it to a tamari salad dressing (if you used edible oil)
Cheers to your cozy ginger toes!!
You can read more about Ananda and her Herbal passions here.
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It was his encounters with the Reishi mushroom that inspired James to explore the rainforests of Washington. Lucky for us he never left! James is an explorer of all things wild. Wild water, wild food, wild medicine and wild nature! He is the manager of our Community Map and Social Media team on Poppy Swap.
Kiki is an East Coast transplant living in the deep cedar forests of the Pacific NW. In her life long study of Chinese Medicine, she has studied with herbalists all over the world but it was her love affair with the local Mugwort growing on her small island that brought her to her passion for local herbalism. She is the Creative Director for Poppy Swap and shares her hand~spun moxa and mugwort products through her Poppy Swap shop Moxa NW.
Originally from Northern California, Kristie moved to Westcliffe, Colorado to LIVE her dream life. Cultivating a garden in the Rocky Mountains, sharing her fields with her horses, dogs and feline friends she stays constantly inspired to learn and grow. Kristie is the social butterfly of Poppy Swap, as the Marketing Director and Event Coordinator. She is currently studying herbalism with Aviva Romm and offers her own line of herbals through Spirit Horse Herbals on Poppy Swap!
Natalie is a Traditional Herbalist whose roots are firmly planted in the South. Although she was born and raised in Tennessee, Natalie has spent the past 24 years living and loving life in North Florida. Natalie provides consultations as well as classes and is one of the founding members of the North Florida Holistic Network, a Non-Profit organization which is dedicated to promoting holistic and sustainable practices. She sells her herbal products on Poppy Swap as The Family Herbalist.
Rebecca is a Scottish girl who lives in the wilds of Los Angeles. She spends her time cooking wild foods, concocting magic healing potions, painting, and running her herb business, 
After years of activism in Vermont, Susan moved to her family's home in Fryeburg, Maine with views of her beloved White Mountains where she grew up, to dig in the Earth, learn from the healing plants and trees, and replenish her spirit. The first thing she did was put in a large, organic garden that has grown and evolved over the years into a beautiful and enchanted space, a mix of flowers, healing herbs, veggies, "weeds", rocks, crystals, and many surprises. Her land is bordered by huge white pines, large maples, and the old course of the Saco River. After years of sharing her creams, salves, and other herbal creations with family and friends, she created Gaia's Garden Herbals to offer them to the public. Everything is made in very small batches with only the best ingredients, often from her garden or wild-harvested nearby, and lots of love.
It sounds like this can be left alone while steeping… so I’m wondering about the note that one should be home most of the time? Is that really necessary? I don’t normally worry about having liquids in my crock on low. Thanks in advance for your feedback.
Hi Margarat!
Thanks for your question. You know, basically it comes down to what you are personally comfortable wit. We always promote the practices that are the MOST SAFE. Its the internet lol. Just remember, hot oil is not chili!!! Glad the recipe inspired you! Make sure to come back and tell us about your oil!! xox Kiki
Over the last few days, I made this ginger oil. I tried the “warm” setting on my crockpot, but it got too hot, and it was bubbling slightly. I took it out of the crock, and heated it in a mason jar on a candle warmer for three days. I punched holes in the lid to let the moisture out. I let it rest for a day, but the oil remained cloudy. Finally, I poured it through a coffee filter. It dripped down SOOO slowly, I could hardly be patient! But now I have three cups of beautiful, sparkling golden gingery oil. Ohhh the possibilities! Thank you
Do I really need to wait for 2 days? I’m dyinnggg to see. Heh this really isn’t any kind of experiment for me to try because I’m super impatient. So I started at 8:30 pm in a crock pot. Like the post above I had to take it out of the crock pot and put it on the stove top (don’t have a candle warmer) It is 4:00 pm the next day. This morning around 8:00am I noticed the stove top was off and the oil looked cloudy and I thought that was… odd… and I was off from the beginning because I only had like a little over a cup of chopped ginger and put in 1 1/2 cups of oil, but it didn’t cover all the way so I added another half cup. So it’s been almost 20 hours… But lovely instructions, I just have a need for chaos obviously. Wish me luck!