Fresh ginger has a deliciously sweet and fragrant aroma and a fresh, citrus slightly spicy flavour. It has a distinctive knobbly appearance, and is actually the root of the plant and is sometimes referred to as root ginger. Ginger has a pale brown skin and a light yellow-coloured fibrous flesh. It is thought to originate from south-east Asia or India, (and was one of the first eastern spices to be taken to the West Indies; by 1547 it was being exported from Jamaica to Spain) and is an essential ingredient in a wide variety of Asian cuisines, particularly Chinese, Thai and Indian.