Fizzy and tart with a little hint of sweetness. Detoxifying, probiotic, full of enzymes and acids that your body utilizes and needs. Cheap. Easy to make. Am I making a case for kombucha yet?
Kombucha
(Adapted from Nourishing Traditions)
Ingredients
- 1 Kombucha Scoby (ask me for details)
- .5 cup kombucha liquid from previous batch
- 4 bags organic black tea
- 1 cup white sugar
- 3 quarts filter water
Instructions
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Bring filtered water up to a boil in stock pot.
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Take off the heat, then add the sugar and tea.
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Allow cooling completely then transfer sweet tea to a gallon-sized glass jar.
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Add in the kombucha scoby and 1/2 cup kombucha liquid from a previous batch.
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Cover the jar with a clean dishtowel and allow to sit at room temperature, undisturbed, for a minimum of 9 days.
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After this fermentation time, remove the scoby and 1/2 cup of liquid from the jar and reserve for the next batch of kombucha.
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Bottle the remaining liquid and either store in the refrigerator, or at this point add in your flavorings (such as pureed fruit, vanilla extract, chia seeds, lemon juice, ginger slices, whole berries--whatever you like!), cap the bottles and let the flavored bottled kombucha sit out on the counter for a few more days to get extra fizzy. Will keep indefinitely!
Common Questions
What is the white blob growing on top? This is a new scoby! Let it continue to grow and keep it in future batches. If you want to help a friend start brewing kombucha, then give them this scoby. If it’s big, feel free to cut it in half.
I want to take time off from brewing. What do I do? Keep your scobys, put them in a glass mason jar (or other glass container), cover with their brewing liquid, put a lid on the jar, then put in the fridge. Each batch is different, but I think that you can safely store a scoby in the fridge for up to 2 months without it dying. You can stir in some extra sugar if you are worried that the scoby is not getting enough to eat while it is in the fridge.
Can I put my scobys in plastic containers? You can, but just for short-term use, like putting a scoby and some liquid in a baggie to gift to a friend. Brewing and storage should only happen in glass containers, in order to retain the purity of the kombucha liquid.
Josh Katt
I was pointed in the direction of your very fine blog by one Teddy Kim of Twin Town Crossfit, and stumbled upon this Kombucha recipe… my girlfriend and I have been wanting to make some Kombucha ourselves, but are in need of a donor Scoby in the greater Twin Cities area. You don’t by chance have one, do you?
Thanks! and keep up the great posts!
Liberty TONEy
Is this the unflavored kombucha that we add the vanilla, and molasses to make cream soda?
Lucia Hawley
Yes, it is the unflavored kombucha that then has vanilla and molasses added!
Christie
Help! I forgot to reserve .5 cup kombucha liqUid from my last batch! Is thete something else i can use in its place?
Lucia Hawley
No frets! That 1/2 cup from the last batch helps to inoculate your new batch. Depending on how big your scoby is, there’s potential that it clung on to some of its own liquid that carried over to the new batch when you plopped it in! If you’re really worried, you could go out and buy a bottle of plain kombucha and pour 1/2 cup of that into your new batch. Let me know how it goes!