Our ginger ale and orange juice recipe makes a refreshing drink. It’s tangy, sweet, gingery, and really fizzy.
What Is Ginger Ale?
Ginger ale is a non-alcoholic, ginger-flavored carbonated beverage sold in cans or bottles. It’s often drunk as is, but we prefer making non-alcoholic cocktails out of it, like this one.
Since we’re preparing a sweet drink, we picked the golden kind instead of pale dry for its sweetness. Ginger juice (from about a knob of ginger) is also added because we feel it needs to be more fragrant.
You can make ginger ale at home with a few simple steps, but for convenience, we’re using canned goods today.
Ginger Ale and Ginger Beer
To put it simply, the beer is the one with alcohol in it, while the ale doesn’t contain any.
If you’re thinking, “That’s strange,” so are we, because the usual ale has a higher alcohol content than beer. Ironically, ginger ale is an exception and we, too, don’t understand how it got its name.
Originally, this carbonated drink was fermented with yeast, and the product often contained both alcohol and carbon dioxide. So, it used to be an alcoholic beverage back in the day.
Now, the drink is not fermented, but rather, carbonated by dissolving carbon dioxide directly in the liquid. Since fermentation doesn’t take place, the drink does not contain a single particle of alcohol.
Ginger beer, on the other hand, has always been a product of fermentation, and used to be 11% alcohol! For some reason, regulations have been passed and they are now only 0.5%.
Is Ginger Ale and Orange Juice Healthy?
1. Benefits of Ginger Ale
Ginger has been widely known for its medicinal benefits throughout the ages. It can help treat nausea, reduce muscle pain, soreness, and more.
It also contains decent amounts of vitamins and minerals.
However, we’re not going to sugarcoat this— ginger ale isn’t as nutritious as real ginger. Assuming the ginger ale brand makes ginger ale from real ginger, there is still very little ginger.
This is why we include ginger in our recipe. It adds a stronger fragrance, warmth, and definitely more nutrients.
Despite its low ginger content, we still wanted to share this ginger ale and orange juice recipe. It’s still a tasty beverage and better than other sodas because of the nutrition from real ginger and orange juice.
2. Benefits of Orange Juice
Orange juice is packed with ascorbic acid, often referred to as vitamin C. One cup of orange juice can assure you of 75%-100% of the nutrient’s DRI (Daily Recommended Intake).
Vitamin C, along with flavonoids and carotenoids found in orange juice, is considered an antioxidant. They are substances that help your cells recover faster when damaged.
Orange juice is also a good source of vitamin A, folate (vitamin B6), and magnesium. The body needs them in small amounts, but they are important nonetheless.
For more ideas on mixing drinks with orange juice, include it as the best mixer for vodka or try our healthy Morir Soñando, typically an orange juice and condensed milk beverage, but we mixed in low sugar alternatives.
How to Make Ginger Ale and Orange Juice
Before we start, make sure all your ingredients are prepared and measured out. You can use our article to help you know the best ways to juice oranges.
Step 1: Juice the ginger
Juice your ginger and collect the juice in a large pitcher.
Step 2: Mix the drink
Fill pitcher with sugar and orange juice, and stir until the sugar dissolves.
Step 3: Top with ice and ginger ale
Add ice and slowly pour the ginger ale in.
Step 4: Serve
Stir gently and serve.
Note that you can omit or add in other ingredients to make a completely different drink. For example, including rum in place of ginger ale makes a delicious drink perfect for any celebration.
Check out our top 10 ginger juice recipes for more ideas!
Calories in Ginger Ale and Orange Juice
This refreshing beverage yields around 62 calories per serving. More than 90% of the calories are from fresh orange juice and ginger ale.
To reduce the calories, you can omit the sugar or use less-sweetened ginger ale. If you somehow find a sweet orange, then the sugar doesn’t need to be included at all.
Is It Bad to Drink Ginger Ale Every Day?
As with most soft drinks, it is bad to drink ginger ale (with sweeteners) too frequently.
“Blood sugar spike” is a common term you’ll see in articles regarding the downside of sodas. As the sugar in these drinks is delivered without fiber, our body absorbs it very quickly.
This raises the level of glucose, a.k.a blood sugar, in your bloodstream, and it is bad for your health if it happens consistently.
You can feel the “spike” as a sudden surge of energy, which then goes away a few minutes after and leaves you tired.
However, drinking ginger ale every day is possible. Moderate consumption is key.
One can of ginger ale is usually 12 fluid ounces in volume— meaning lots of sugar. You don’t need to drink all of it.
Use it in healthy recipes like this one, and you’ll reduce your added sugar intake.
Also, by drinking it with a fiber-packed meal instead of “just because,” you’re doing the body a favor.
Other drinks are less taxing on your system and can be regularly incorporated. Like this immuno-boost drink with pomegranate or our pineapple and freshly squeezed orange juice. These are full of health benefits that will help to improve your diet.
How Long Does Ginger Ale and Orange Juice Last?
Since ginger ale is a kind of carbonated drink, this “cocktail” gets duller and duller as it sits. We recommend drinking it right after making for the best experience.
Ginger Ale and Orange Juice Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups ginger ale
- 1/2 cup orange juice
- 0.5 oz ginger
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 cups ice
Instructions
- Juice your ginger and collect the juice in a large pitcher.
- Fill pitcher with sugar, orange juice, and stir until the sugar dissolves.
- Add ice and slowly pour the ginger ale in.
- Stir gently and serve.
Nutrition
My family loves it! Thanks!