Ginger Processing and Applications in Vietnam's Food Industry: A Comprehensive Review
Abstract
Ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe), a perennial herbaceous plant belonging to the Zingiberaceae family, has been used for centuries in various industries, such as foods, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals, due to its health-beneficial and aroma compounds. Vietnam plays a significant role in the global ginger market, ranking 4th in terms of ginger cultivation area and contributing approximately 5% of worldwide production (Ginger Market Size, Share, Price Trends and Forecast 2023-2028, n.d.). The present review focused on the preliminary processing of ginger, as well as different processing techniques like drying dried ginger powder and ginger starch), distillation (essential oil), extraction (oleoresin, wine and liquor), and fermentation (pickle and candied). A comparison is drawn between the traditional and modern methods to achieve a higher yield of ginger essential oil and ginger oleoresin. Additionally, other applications of ginger in food preservation (seafood and post-harvest products), food flavoring (instant ginger tea, jelly, beer, and liqueur) and the utilization of ginger residue are also discussed. This study provides an overview that highlights the diverse production processes of ginger products while emphasizing the utilization of semi-finished or by-products of ginger for other food-related purposes.
