How To Make Kombucha (At Home Tutorial)

How To Make Kombucha (At Home Tutorial)

Ohhh kombucha. The latest trend in the foodie/drinkie world.

There are so many things popping up these days, I don’t ever know what’s here to stay, and what’s here just because it looks good on Instagram.

I sure hope kombucha is here to stay because I have to admit, the bottled stuff takes a pretty picture. The home-made stuff? Not so sexy…

Aside from the aesthetically pleasing nature of bottled kombucha, lets talk about what it IS, exactly.

What the Hell is Kombucha?

Kombucha is a health drink, made by fermenting tea, sugar, and the kombucha culture together. Unsurprisingly, it was first drank by the Chinese over 2,000 years ago (they are SERIOUSLY on top of their health game).

The kombucha culture that I mentioned before is usually called a SCOBY – it is a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeasts. YUM. As the combination of the tea, sugar and SCOBY are fermenting, the culture digests the sugar, and over time it produces organic acids, enzymes, probiotics, and vitamins.

What are the Benefits?

1. Detoxification & liver support

2. Improves digestion

3. May help fight against cancer

4. Supports the immune system

5. It’s a delicious alternative to soda and other sugar laden drinks

How to Make Kombucha

1. Begin by boiling 1 quart (1L) of water in a kettle or saucepan. Once boiling, add in 2 black or green teabags, and 1/4 cup of sugar. Steep for 15 minutes

2. Pour the tea into a large glass jar. The jar should have a fairly wide circumference. Let the tea cool down to room temperature.

3. Once cooled down, place the SCOBY culture in the tea with the opaque side facing up. Cover with some sort of cloth (kitchen towel or a cheese cloth both work) and store in a warm place (I store mine in the cabinet above our fridge).

4. How long to let the kombucha ferment depends on how acidic you enjoy it. The longer it brews, the more acidic or vinegar-y it is. Generally between 10-12 days is perfect for me. You will also notice a new SCOBY starting to form on top of the liquid. Once you’ve completed the fermenting process, you can either compost that SCOBY, or pass it on to a friend to make their own!

5. Refrigerate your newly made kombucha. You can bottle it and add flavoring to it – fresh raspberries, ginger, juice, etc. The first time I made mine it turned out way more acidic than I expected, so I mixed it with orange juice. It was the perfect addition!

**Note: If you don’t have your own SCOBY, you have a couple of options.

1) You can do what I did, and pick up a free one from someone offering them on Kijiji (every time they make a batch they have an extra one to either throw out or give away)

2) Buy one from a health food store

3) Make your own from scratch, just like from this tutorial from The Kitchn

What About You?!

• Have you ever tried kombucha?
• Have you ever made your own?

Original article and pictures take borntosweat.co site