Gingerol
Overview
Ginger
Ginger is the rhizome of the plant Zingiber officinale, consumed as a delicacy, medicine, or spice. It lends its name to its genus and family . Other notable members of this plant family are turmeric, cardamom, and galangal....
. Chemically, gingerol is a relative of capsaicin
Capsaicin
Capsaicin 2CHCH=CH4CONHCH2C6H3-4--3- ) is the active component of chili peppers, which are plants belonging to the genus Capsicum. It is an irritant for mammals, including humans, and produces a sensation of burning in any tissue with which it comes into contact...
and piperine
Piperine
Piperine is the alkaloid responsible for the pungency of black pepper and long pepper, along with chavicine . It has also been used in some forms of traditional medicine and as an insecticide. Piperine forms monoclinic needles, is slightly soluble in water and more so in alcohol, ether or...
, the compounds which give chilli peppers and black pepper
Black pepper
Black pepper is a flowering vine in the family Piperaceae, cultivated for its fruit, which is usually dried and used as a spice and seasoning. The fruit, known as a peppercorn when dried, is approximately in diameter, dark red when fully mature, and, like all drupes, contains a single seed...
their respective spicyness. It is normally found as a pungent yellow oil, but also can form a low-melting crystalline solid.
Cooking ginger transforms gingerol into zingerone
Zingerone
Zingerone, also called vanillylacetone, is a key component of the pungency of ginger. Zingerone is a crystalline solid that is sparingly soluble in water, but soluble in ether....
, which is less pungent and has a spicy-sweet aroma.
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