How to Make an Essential Oil from Ginger

Essential ginger oil is commonly used to treat the symptoms of the common cold and flu. Although you can purchase essential ginger oil at your local health food store, it is quite expensive. You can easily make your own ginger oil for far less than the retail cost in no time at all.

1. Chop up some fresh ginger until you have the equivalent of 1 cup of chopped ginger.


2. Rinse the chopped ginger in cold water, and then strain out the remaining water using a common household strainer.


3. Allow the ginger to dry thoroughly, this will usually take a couple of hours for the remaining water to evaporate.


4. Use a cheese grater to shred the chopped ginger into small pieces. You should do this over a large bowl to catch the small pieces as they are shredded.


5. Pour 2 cups of olive oil into a small baking dish.


6. Add your shredded ginger in with the olive oil, and then stir until the ginger and olive oil are thoroughly blended together.


7. Turn your oven to 200 degrees and allow it to preheat until it has reached the desired temperature.


8. Place the pan with your ginger and oil into the oven, and allow it to cook at 200 degrees for about an hour and a half.


9. Place a piece of cheesecloth over the top of a glass bowl, and secure it in place with a large rubber band.


10. Remove the ginger oil from your oven, and allow it to cool for about a half an hour.


11. Pour the ginger oil over the top of the bowl with the cheesecloth attached slowly so that the oil is able to penetrate through the cheesecloth, leaving the pieces of ginger on the surface of the cheesecloth you have secured.


12. Use a funnel to pour the essential ginger oil you have made into a glass bottle.


13. Store your essential ginger oil in a cool dark place to help preserve its life.