I can't help you out with the crystalized ginger, but the way I preserve mine is to simply peel it, slice it into 1/4 inch slices and then put the slices in a jar and cover them with vodka and keep the jar in the fridge. The vodka will not affect the flavor of the ginger, but it will preserve it for a very long time this way. I use the slices as needed, they will mince up nicely for any recipe, and will also sometimes add some of the vodka that has been infused with the ginger flavor to the recipe. Just be sure to replenish the vodka to keep the ginger slices completely covered.

Thanks for the email with the link to the question. I probably would not have seen it otherwise. Our kitchen is still functioning as new. Got to thank our amazing Amish cabinet craftsmen - a shout out to Ayr Cabinetry in Indiana and yes they ship all over the country :) The cutting board still works perfectly and it is sooooo useful. When closed, you really can't see it's there at all. Pop it open and pull it out. Here it is pulled all the way out which shows the notch cut into the back. Not sure you need it but it does give you a few more inches of leverage when the board is pulled out and that is always a good thing, no? Here I took out the top drawer so I could get the camera in there. You can see the tracks the board sits in as well as the push mechanism in the back. And I'm embarrassed but I have NO idea why it looks dirty. Hope that answers all your questions. The only thing I would add is too keep the board and tracks clean otherwise the board could stick.

I had a long and detailed post on my Liebherr experience which of course got deleted before I could post....SIGH. Bottom line-- I have mixed review on my happiness quotient after owning a Liebherr for 13 years. Overall-- yes, lives up to its claims for quietness, longevity of dual compressors, freshness of food, nice layout. I do like the little alarm for open door, and the temperature readout. Keeps temp well after all these years! But: some quality problems nonetheless make me less than thrilled. Some no big deal (replaced freezer bin and fridge bin which cracked after the years, but this was okay since they were not hard to find nor expensive to replace; but better would be not cracking at all!) Others I'm not sure how they compare--gasket/seals have cracked and split after this long in service and need replacing. But I didn't lubricate, do other people do this with theirs? They don't look that easy to replace as the ones I am familiar with from older fridges that can be screwed in, I have to investigate this further. This alone wouldn't be real cause for complaint at this age but read on... Problems that are harder to fix and make me wish the quality were somewhat longer lasting --- small piece of plastic on the front framing is chipped off and noticeable, hard to explain where this is, it is not the seal, not the stainless (obviously), but a silver plastic framing piece. Noticeable and hard to see how to replace, it looks welded on? No idea how this happened. But it is consistent with the not super quality of the plastic interior bins that needed replacing. Worse yet: small rust spots on the front of the 'stainless' steel. I haven't ever ever used weird chemicals on it. Seems like it is coming from within? Dealer I spoke with says this is rare. Yah. Well. I didn't *do* anything to it! Of course it is long out of warranty. I have no idea how to fix this--dealer (not my dealer, place I bought it from is out of business now) gave me the number of 'a guy he knows' to get on the list for fixing this, but I couldn't reach him, didn't return my message. I'll try him again, as the 'guy' route is usually the best if you *can* get ahold of 'the guy'. Also, small dent in front door (mop handle? no idea, but it could be because the door swing has always been a bit crazy, guests tend to fling/slam it too wide open) and scratches to front stainless from kids sometime putting letter magnets on it when they were little and moving them around. Should this type of activity cause scratches? Don't know, maybe so, but not terribly impressed. My kids are not rowdier than usual, but they did after all touch it with magnetic kid things at some point. Alls I can say is that the Miele stainless dishwasher looks like new after 13 years, the Miele stainless cooktop has taken a lot more pummelling and looks better than the Liebherr at this point 13 years later. So the very attractive styling of Liebherr, the gentleman (lieb-herr), is compromised at this point by rust pin spots, a dent and little scratches, chipped plastic bit on front. Yeah, it's old, but would a subzero or Miele look like this at this age?, I don't know, but I do know my Miele dishwasher, washer, dryer, cooktop, even vacuum look great after decade plus of service. And the vacuum gets flung and banged around, a fridge sits there! Liebherr looks...old. Also functionally-- the auto defrost is not super fantastic. As I said, it does work, and work after 13 years, that is something! But, the normal dripping down the back inside --can't let stuff touch that or it will ruin produce that touches it. Hole in back gets plugged and you have to jab at it with a toothpick. Not too glamorous l Freezer gets ice build up on bottom inside and needs too frequent defrosting. I'm not in love with all this. I take it mostly 'normal' function for Liebherr design. I didn't get an ice maker so that never failed. Not sure what is better, but I'd love to get something that captures the pros of Liebherr without the cons. I will be moving soon and buying so anyone with recs, please advise! I may start a new thread... but that's my Liebherr report from a longtime owner. I'll come back and post model if I find that info... but it's a freestanding 30 inch fridge over 3 drawer freezer model.

Repairs update: The big noise was because the diaphragms were frozen up. They are two holes located in the middle of the door. We had a full shelf blocking them, plus while messing around with the ice maker we have been trying out various temperatures. Apparently too for the door to close properly, there can be nothing that extends even a bit off the edge of a shelf. All those things probably contributed to the icing over. Repair person thawed the holes with a steamer and noise is gone. The door also doesn't take as long now to "release" after it suctions itself closed, so that is much more acceptable. With the ice maker they are not sure what is wrong because all the glides and the drawer are installed correctly, and nothing appears to be damaged. They just don't reach the switch. They're going to put in new glides and hopefully that will fix it. Parts are ordered and it will be about a week.