Kombucha, a fermented sweet tea, is full of antioxidants and a great replacement for soda pop if you are trying to kick that habit. It is SO easy to make. The only special ingredient you need is a kombucha SCOBY (a "mushroom" of certain bacteria and yeasts). You can buy these online, or get a baby SCOBY from a kombucha-making friend.
Ingredients:
1 gallon water
4 bags green tea
4 bags black tea
1 1/4 cups white sugar
1 kombucha SCOBY
Directions:
1. Boil water.
2. Add sugar, stirring til dissolved. Turn off heat.
3. Add tea bags and let steep at least 10 minutes.
4. Remove tea bags and let tea cool to room temperature.
5. Transfer to glass jar and add SCOBY. Cover.
6. Let ferment 7 days.
7. Remove SCOBY, strain any floaters.
8. Refrigerate and enjoy!
Notes: It's best not to let the SCOBY or fermented kombucha come into contact with metal, so use a glass fermenting container. I do use a metal spoon to test the kombucha before I put it in the fridge- this doesn't affect the taste and I think such minimal exposure is okay. It's also okay to use a metal spoon for stirring the sugar and water, before it comes into contact with the mushroom.
I tend to be lazy/forgetful, so I just leave the teabags in until the water cools, combining steps 3 and 4.
If mold is growing on your mushroom, DO NOT DRINK THE KOMBUCHA. I've never had mold in my four years of brewing though, so it's fairly uncommon.
If there are any fruit flies in your brewing kombucha, dump it out and start over. It probably won't kill you yo drink it, but who likes drinking maggots? Not me. This actually did happen to me one time, which was disappointing but not the end of the world.
After a few cycles of brewing, your 'mama' mushroom will grow a lighter-colored, fresher-looking 'baby'. If you want, you can discard the mother and use the baby, or you can keep using the mother and also use the baby to make two batches simultaneously (which you will need to do if other people in the family get addicted to this wonderful stuff!).
Store mushrooms (covered with kombucha tea) in a pint-sized mason jar with plastic lid, in the refrigerator. They will keep this way for a long time. Supposedly you're supposed to "feed" the mushroom with sugar every so often, but I never do. I use my mushrooms again before they loose their yeasty properties.
Making babies: If you let a glass of kombucha sit out long enough, it will form a little baby of its own! I think this is pretty cool.
Adding flavor: A lot of people (myself included) add fruit, ginger, or other flavorings to the fermented or fermenting tea. My favorite thing to do is throw a handful of blueberries into the jar before it goes in the fridge. After a day or two, the flavor of the blueberries permeates the kombucha for a wonderful flavor fusion.
Using over-fermented 'bucha: Sometime you might forget about a batch of kombucha and let it ferment for too long. It will taste like vinegar. This is okay though, because it can be used exactly like vinegar for marinating and other purposes. Or, you can steep some fruit in it and call it a "shrub". Yummy.
Happy brewing!
-Bethany
Ingredients:
1 gallon water
4 bags green tea
4 bags black tea
1 1/4 cups white sugar
1 kombucha SCOBY
Directions:
1. Boil water.
2. Add sugar, stirring til dissolved. Turn off heat.
3. Add tea bags and let steep at least 10 minutes.
4. Remove tea bags and let tea cool to room temperature.
5. Transfer to glass jar and add SCOBY. Cover.
6. Let ferment 7 days.
7. Remove SCOBY, strain any floaters.
8. Refrigerate and enjoy!
Notes: It's best not to let the SCOBY or fermented kombucha come into contact with metal, so use a glass fermenting container. I do use a metal spoon to test the kombucha before I put it in the fridge- this doesn't affect the taste and I think such minimal exposure is okay. It's also okay to use a metal spoon for stirring the sugar and water, before it comes into contact with the mushroom.
I tend to be lazy/forgetful, so I just leave the teabags in until the water cools, combining steps 3 and 4.
If mold is growing on your mushroom, DO NOT DRINK THE KOMBUCHA. I've never had mold in my four years of brewing though, so it's fairly uncommon.
If there are any fruit flies in your brewing kombucha, dump it out and start over. It probably won't kill you yo drink it, but who likes drinking maggots? Not me. This actually did happen to me one time, which was disappointing but not the end of the world.
After a few cycles of brewing, your 'mama' mushroom will grow a lighter-colored, fresher-looking 'baby'. If you want, you can discard the mother and use the baby, or you can keep using the mother and also use the baby to make two batches simultaneously (which you will need to do if other people in the family get addicted to this wonderful stuff!).
Store mushrooms (covered with kombucha tea) in a pint-sized mason jar with plastic lid, in the refrigerator. They will keep this way for a long time. Supposedly you're supposed to "feed" the mushroom with sugar every so often, but I never do. I use my mushrooms again before they loose their yeasty properties.
Making babies: If you let a glass of kombucha sit out long enough, it will form a little baby of its own! I think this is pretty cool.
Adding flavor: A lot of people (myself included) add fruit, ginger, or other flavorings to the fermented or fermenting tea. My favorite thing to do is throw a handful of blueberries into the jar before it goes in the fridge. After a day or two, the flavor of the blueberries permeates the kombucha for a wonderful flavor fusion.
Using over-fermented 'bucha: Sometime you might forget about a batch of kombucha and let it ferment for too long. It will taste like vinegar. This is okay though, because it can be used exactly like vinegar for marinating and other purposes. Or, you can steep some fruit in it and call it a "shrub". Yummy.
Happy brewing!
-Bethany
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