Healthy ginger ale is so refreshing and very quick and easy to make on a hot day. Homemade is so much better for you too!

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Yes there is a healthy version of the popular soft drink ginger ale!

If you’ve been wishing for a healthy alternative to the grocery aisle, sugar laden soft drink, try this tasty version. You can make this entirely sugar free, or you can add sweetener, if you want that sweet flavor. 

I have been writing about ginger and the health benefits of ginger beer as well as how to make it, for a couple of weeks! So do check out my post about the best ginger beer and how to make your own carbonated brewed soda starter, a ginger bug. Home brewed ginger beer is a super healthy drink which I love to sip on all summer long and I love the idea of drinking something that is good for me and contains probiotics to boot! 

However, what if you’re too busy to mess with brewing sodas and keeping a ginger bug starter going every day, or what if you suddenly expect company and you don’t have enough of your priced ginger beer, but you want to offer some healthy drinks. 

Well, there is another ginger drink that has a lot of the same benefits and is much quicker to make from start to finish. All you need is 3 ingredients plus sweetener if you prefer it sweetened. 

Try making your own healthy ginger ale from scratch!

This ginger drink combines the health benefits of ginger with the ease of using an already carbonated bottled soda water. Add some lemon juice and you’ve got a super tasty, refreshing ginger ale. You might not even miss the sugar. I sure don’t. 

However, you can sweeten it up if you like and even better, with healthy choices for the sweet ingredients. One of the benefits of homemade is that you can make it as you like. You’re not limited to what is offered on the store shelves. Yay! You’re free to experiment and to add your own twist to your offerings.

I’m offering two versions for making this healthy ginger ale below. One choice is to make a concoction with the ginger root, to extract more flavor and to increase the health benefits that ginger can impart through simmering, but it will involve an extra step. Then there is a quick version, which simply has you grate ginger root and use it fresh in your drink.

Take me to the Recipe

What you need to make your own healthy ginger ale:

Equipment:

• Just a glass or a larger container if you’re making it for a crowd.
• A grater for the ginger if you make the quick version.
• Cutting board and a knife if you make the simmered version.
• A strainer

Ingredients:

This can get a little more complex, because of all the choices you have. But basic ingredients per serving are

• a small piece of fresh ginger root
• half a lemon
• carbonated water
• some ice if you like
• sugar or other sweetener if you want it sweet.

Ginger: 

Use a small, fresh piece of ginger root per serving, maybe ½ an inch or so, grated or sliced depending on your preference for the method of making it. If you want, you can also purchase some ginger juice to have on hand for an even quicker version.

Lemon or lime:

One lemon or lime is enough for 2 servings, juiced. Fresh is always best, but you can use bottled lemon juice or lime juice if you like or if you can’t find organic citrus locally. In any case, try to find a natural and organic lemon or lime juice that has no preservatives in it. 

Carbonated water:

Also called seltzer water, club soda, or soda water. Use the kind that has no flavorings or other additives. You could also use mineral water, which is naturally carbonated. 

Optional Sweeteners:

In general, the more sweetness you add to your diet, be it no calorie, low calorie or regular, the more your body will crave sweet things. So it is a good idea to limit sweet ingredients, even if they don’t have calories. That said, here are some options:

No-calorie sweetener

If you are on a low calorie diet and prefer to add a sweetener, try stevia for a natural no-calorie option. Or you might want to check into monk fruit extract. I don’t know much about it, but it is often listed as a natural option for a natural non-caloric sweetener. 

Caloric sweeteners:

There are many choices for sweeteners that are more desirable than your white sugar or high fructose corn syrup out there. Both are highly processed, with all the good things removed and most likely come from GMO and pesticide laden ingredients. Try to substitute instead with more healthy, whole sweeteners that contain some fiber, minerals or other nutrients.

Evaporated cane juice is a less refined version of cane sugar, that still contains some molasses and it is a more natural choice for a sweetener. Use organic if possible, to keep pesticides out of your diet. Evaporated cane juice tastes much like regular sugar, but slightly more complex and less empty.

Panela, sucanat, jaggery or rapadura, are great whole sugar options with nutritional value. They are the same thing with different names, used in different cultures. These are a cane sugar product, where the cane juice has been evaporated without refinement. Thus they contain concentrated minerals and vitamins and all the molasses. It is a great substitute for commercial dark brown sugar in baking.

Coconut sugar is also a whole, minimally processed natural sweetener with minerals and nutritive value.

Honey is a great option, but only if you choose raw, unfiltered honey. If it is processed or over-heated, you don’t really get any of the benefits that honey is famous for. 

Maple Syrup is the boiled down sap of maple trees. Nothing is added or taken away. Quality can vary, but it is essentially the same product accross the board. Through boiling, any minerals and nutrients that the sap contained are now more concentrated and this makes maple syrup a more healthy choice for a sweetener.

Let’s make the Healthy Ginger Ale Recipe

Step one – Prepare the ginger root

Quick version: If you are making the super quick version of this ginger ale, grate the ginger root and mix it with a small amount of water. Strain through a piece of muslin or a strainer into a glass, pint jar or a large container if you make a lot. Squeeze out all the juice you can. If you don’t mind the little pieces, you can also just grate your ginger into the cup and drink it with the little bits floating in it.

Simmered version: thinly slice or dice the ginger root. Use about an inch of the root per cup of water. If you’re making a gallon of ginger ale, you’ll want to start with 4 cups of water here. For just one quart, you’ll need one cup of water.

If you use some type of sugar, add that at this time too. Bring to a boil and simmer covered on low for 5 – 45 minutes depending on how strong you want it and how much time you have. Simmering increases the benefits of the ginger root!

Cool to room temperature. If you’re using honey for a sweetener, this is a good time to add it. You can now strain the ginger water and refrigerate it or use it right away. When ready to use, add a half cup to a drinking cup or a pint jar. If you make a gallon, pour 4 cups of it into the container.

Step two – add some ice cubes

If you like it icy cold, add some ice cubes, or place your jars into an ice filled cooler to keep it chilled without diluting.

Step three: Add Lemon Juice

squeeze half a lemon or half a lime per pint of ginger ale and add the juice to your jar. Alternately you can use about 2 teaspoons of bottled lemon juice per pint. Or, for a gallon, use 4 lemons or limes.

Step four: Add the carbonated water

Fill your container with carbonated water and enjoy. Place a slice of lemon on the edge of your cup for a nice presentation.

Tip: If you don’t have carbonated water at home, try this with just plain drinking water. It is very good even without the carbonation, just for a refreshing drink with ginger’s temperature regulating benefits.

This is all there is to making a healthy ginger ale! I don’t know about you, but I love having this healthy version of a soft drink to get refreshed on a hot day. You’ll feel much better after drinking it too!

Tips: 

Use ginger juice to make an even quicker healthy ginger ale or if you can’t find any fresh ginger root.

Use bottled lemon juice or lime juice if you can’t get fresh lemons or limes. But check the ingredients. A lot of bottled lemon juices contain additives. 

Use plain water if you don’t have carbonated water in the house and you want a refreshing drink. It makes very refreshing ginger and lemon water.

I’d like to make a suggestion that you try a ginger switchel to rehydrate in place of Gatorade or other sugary energy drinks. This is a great option when you work hard in the hot weather and need to rehydrate and to replenish some lost body fluids with Electrolytes. I’ve been wanting to write a post about my ginger switchel, but have not been able to get to it yet. But do check out link above for a good recipe you can use right now, while it’s hot outside! This is so much better for you than any store bought electrolyte drink!

Let me know how you liked this homemade ginger ale in the comments below! I hope you get to try it and enjoy it on a hot day!

What to read next:

Health benefits of ginger beer Learn all about the awesomeness of ginger. Health benefits you can gain for your body when you include this versatile plant into your daily health regimen. Improve your well being get healing with many chronic issues.

Best ginger beer recipe: fizzy, delicious, healthy! Create your own non-alcoholic ginger beer from scratch, using ginger bug. Customize with your favorite add-ons. Enjoy a fizzy summer drink that is so much better in taste and for your body, than grocery aisle soda.

Ginger bug recipe puts exciting fizzy sodas on your table! Meet my friend the ginger bug and learn how to get one started for yourself. She’s the vital ingredient to making old fashioned home brewed non-alcoholic ginger beer that will rock your socks off!

Switchel Recipe – A refreshing electrolyte drink for hydration during summer activities.

Fermented Ginger Honey – Keep this potent fermented health food on hand. Use the powers of Ginger and Honey in a tasty syrup form that you’ll love.

Fermented Garlic – Lacto-fermented garlic paste is kind of a special food. It’s the ultimate convenience food and health supplement. But besides that, it gets better as it ages. Just like a fine wine.

Fermented Chili Paste – Here is a great way to preserve your end-of-the season harvest of green peppers. This paste will last all year in your refrigerator to use as a condiment, seasoning, or topping.

Fermented Hot Sauce With Cantaloupe – How to make a delicious fermented hot sauce that is great with meat, fish, eggs and on sandwiches. What a great way to use some cantaloupe and spicy peppers. 

Make your own chevre cheese from scratch How to make super versatile, creamy, spreadable cheese that can be used as a dip, or spread, for baking, for savory or sweet shakes, fresh or aged. Replace store bought cream cheese with this healthy version, which is loaded with probiotics and nutrition!

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Organic bottled lemon juice
Organic lime juice
ginger juice
Evaporated cane juice
Panela, sucanat
Coconut sugar
Honey