Preheat the oven to 200°C (180°C fan/ gas mark 6).
Beat the butter and the sugar into the mixing bowl ensuring the mixture is consistent.
Next add the egg into the mixing bowl and mix thoroughly.
Add the remaining dry ingredients (baking soda, ginger root ground and rice flour) into a mixing bowl and make sure the mixture is evenly distributed. (You can also add a pinch of salt here, but this is optional.)
Sprinkle your surface and rolling pin with about 1 tablespoon of flour and roll out the dough to about ½ cm thickness.
Cut out the gingerbread men shapes in the dough using your own gingerbread cookie cutter.
Transfer the shaped cookies onto baking trays keeping them at least 2 ½ cm apart.
Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes.
Check to see if the cookies are fully cooked by placing a wooden pick/ cake tester into the middle of each. If they come out clean, then you are good to go onto the next step!
Let the cookies cool in the baking tray for about 5 minutes and then transfer them onto a wire rack and leave them until they are fully cooled.
