Galangal is a plant – four actually – from the same family as ginger that is commonly used in Asian cooking and herbal medicines. As such, galangal and ginger are often mentioned in the same breath and you may see them referred to as substitutes for one another.
If you have powdered galangal on hand, you can add fresh ginger to powdered galangal to better mimic the taste of ginger alone. Use a 1:3 ratio of powdered galangal in place of the fresh galangal required and then use a 1:2 ratio of ginger to fresh galangal required instead. And if you have no powdered galangal on hand, it’s best to add up to 1/4 of a teaspoon of fresh lemon juice to the fresh ginger to best match the taste. Fingerroot and lemongrass are also commonly used as substitutes, in soups specifically in the case of lemongrass.
What is Galangal?
Galangal is a plant that is part of the ginger family commonly used in Asian cooking and into medicine, particularly due to its strong, pungent flavor and smell. Galangal is often compared more to pepper than ginger and it is also denser and whiter than ginger.
The strong taste of galangal makes it ideal in many foods that contain other strong flavors like curry, chili pepper or lemongrass as it won’t get hidden by those other ingredients. In that regard galangal is a spice that complements other flavors rather than overpowering them. Ginger on the other hand has a pungent smell that will open up nasal passages and has a warm, sweet, pepper taste and can take over the taste of food if it’s not used sparingly.
Taste of Galangal
Galangal has similarities to ginger but one can’t say that they are the same. The smell of galangal might be described at once as encompassing ginger, pepper, lemon and other citrus fruits. The taste is similar to ginger until the heat kicks in. Galangal is a spice of course and has a stronger taste than ginger which is why you will only read about galangal being used in appetizers, main courses and herbal drinks but not in desserts, unlike ginger.
But which galangal are we even discussing here? Galangal actually refers to a total of four plants who each have distinctive names, flavors and uses.
Four Galangal Plants
Ask different people what galangal tastes like and you may get several different answers. Peppery taste. Like ginger but hotter. Similar to ginger with a hint of cardamom. Flowery with a hint of lemon. A strong but medicinal taste. While people may have different taste buds and perceive things differently it may also have to do with the fact that galangal is actually four different plants, not one.
Here they are in more detail.
Greater Galangal
Also known as Alpinia Galangal, Lengkuas, Laos, and Blue Ginger. This is the galangal you will typically find in South Asian kitchens and restaurants. You often find Laos Powder in ground powder form which is popular in soups and other cooking applications. While you’ll get more flavor out of the fresh root of the galangal, the powder is convenient for storage when you’re in a pinch and need it right away and don’t want to purchase it fresh each time.
Common Uses: Thai curries and soups, tea, and for medicinal uses. Laos (galangal powder) is traditionally used in Thai and Indonesian cuisine and is handy for storing and using immediately when needed with no preparation required as it is already ground. It has been used in traditional Chinese medicine for centuries due to anti inflammatory and pain relief properties among others.
Lesser Galangal
Also known as Alpinia Officinarum, it isn’t as strong as Greater Galangal in terms of taste although some feel it offers a strong but more medicinal taste that Greater Galangal. It is native to China and is also grown in Japan, Thailand and Vietnam. Lesser Galangal is believed to have superior health benefits over Greater Galangal in the form of galangin which is a flavonol.
Common Uses: Also used in cooking but tends to be commonly used in medicinal applications due to its high level of galangin. Research shows its wide use particularly among herbalists in Europe to treat dyspepsia biliary symptoms, bowel spasm and angina.
Chinese Ginger
Also known as Fingerroot, it also has other local names in Thailand (Krachai) and Indonesia (Temu Kunci) among others. It is also grown in China as well as Malaysia. Confusingly, Chinese Ginger is also often referred to as Lesser Galangal which can make things confusing.
Common Uses: While fingerroot is often used in soups, pastes and even as a vegetable in Indonesian and Balinese cooking, it also has a long track record of use in Chinese medicine. Fingerroot has a wide variety of medicinal uses based on its perceived anti-allergic, antibacterial, anticancer, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-ulcer and wound-healing properties.
Kencur
Also known as Aromatic Ginger and Sand Ginger among other names. It is found largely in Indonesia as well as China, Taiwan, Cambodia and even India.
Common Uses: Popular in Indonesian dishes like Urap, kencur is also widely used for medicinal purposes in the country. Kencur is commonly used in Indonesia in alternative and herbal medicines and specifically in their traditional Jamu health drink.
Galangal vs Ginger
Galangal is commonly used in Asian cuisines specifically in Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, China, Cambodia and Indonesia. While galangal is part of the ginger family, the two have very different tastes.
Galangal has a hotter taste than ginger and as a result, you tend to only see galangal used in food and drinks whereas ginger or ginger flavoring is also commonly used in desserts ie. gingerbread, ginger cookies, ginger cupcakes, etc.
While galangal can be substituted for ginger, they aren’t direct substitutes for another on their own. In a pinch there are several other options to consider using instead.
Galangal Substitutes
As we spoke about above, you can substitute ginger for galangal but you won’t achieve the exact same taste. Here are several options that you also may consider:
Powdered galangal with fresh ginger: Powdered galangal (Laos powder) isn’t as strong as fresh galangal but it’s better than simply substituting it for ginger alone. Using a 1:3 ratio of powdered galangal in place of the fresh galangal and then using a 1:2 ratio of fresh ginger in place of fresh galangal will yield similar results as using fresh galangal only.
Fresh ginger and lemon juice: If you have no galangal on hand of any kind, you can use fresh ginger with 1/4 of a teaspoon of fresh lemon juice added to best mimic the taste of fresh galangal. Adjust to desired taste and total amount required.
Chinese ginger: Although it is a galangal itself, you may see Chinese ginger sold as just that under its own name and if available, substitute it for galangal. It is sometimes referred to fingerroot and tends to get lumped in with ginger as a result rather than galangal.
Lemongrass: Particularly for soups, lemongrass may be used as a galangal substitute. Lemongrass is also commonly used in teas and as it’s a herbal plant, is commonly found in the fresh vegetable section in grocery stores.It has long leafy green stalks and somewhat resembles spring onions visually.
Galangal Summary
Because galangal actually refers to four different plants, they are often referred to generically as simply galangal. You can also find numerous references to each specific plant since some types are used more frequently in certain Asian countries than others for both cooking and beverage preparation as well as for medicinal reasons.
When shopping for galangal depending on where you live you may simply find galangal referred to generically. Cooking recipes may tend to generically refer to the plant too rather than specifying which one you require. In general terms, you can use any one for cooking purposes.
Fresh galangal will tend to be stronger and more pungent than powder (Laos) so you may need to use more powder than fresh galangal as a result. In general terms, Greater Galangal (Alpinia Galangal) is the one you’ll tend to come across most frequently for cooking.