So Kombucha has become a staple on our town lot farm. It has many uses and for us it replaces the need for wine, beer, soft drinks, and other beverages. We often use it in our Müsli in place of orange juice. It provides probiotics for our gut health as it is a living food. It’s fun to make and it’s cheap.
We make it in 4 and 5 gallon batches but here is a starter recipe for a gallon at a time so you’ll need a wide mouth jar. Do not make it in a jug or other narrow neck vessel as you won’t be able to get the Scoby out. You will have to find someone who makes Kombucha to get your Scoby and starter sweet tea. Ask around – it’s out there. Maybe in the home of a friend you haven’t met yet.
– boil 1 gallon of water
– then add 1 cup of sugar and 5 tea bags
– steep 20 mins
– remove tea bags (you can save these and make a bottle of iced tea)
– let cool completely before adding the one cup of starter sweet tea
– cut the Scoby to fit the top of the fluid level of your jar and set it in
– cover with a tea towel and set in a dark place for about 2weeks
– taste – should be bubbly and just a bit sweet – most of the sugar will have been consumed by the scoby
– now it’s time to bottle and do a second ferment if you’d like (we always do)
– remove scoby and 1 cup of tea for the next batch (for which you’ve readied another gallon of tea)
– there are dregs in the bottle, don’t disturb those as they have live culture in them
– have bottles ready with juice alone (we use apple juice) or juice and fruit (berries, mango, etc.) or herbs (ginger, etc.) of choice, for your favourite flavour of kombucha (or just the apple juice is good too. I think my favourite is beet kombucha … probably because GT used to make it and they called it “Heart Beet”
– for the juice – 1cup for for a 1.4L bottle – we use old GT Kombucha bottles – or 1/4 in a 750ml bottle
– then put in the fruit (how ever much you want)
– siphon off or ladel out the tea* to fill the bottles leaving a head space
– seal to ferment – burping daily (don’t let it explode) to release excess CO2
– you could drink right away but it won’t be as fizzy as it will within a week or two
– once you reach your desired fizz, refrigerate to stop fermentation and preserve carbonation
– repeat the procedure to keep your brews going…
– … the Scoby grows and expands with each batch of kombucha but you won’t have to remove some of it for quite awhile – you’ll do so when it get thick and the bottle (original first layer becomes quick brown)
– ENJOY!
