Hello Friends!

Today we are talking about How to make Kombucha. First, let’s define what it is. Kombucha is a fermented tea that is rich in probiotics and other beneficial compounds that can aid in detoxification, digestion, and immune function.

You can buy kombucha at the store, but it’s much less expensive to make it at home. I go in seasons with kombucha. For a number of years, I brewed three gallons at a time and we loved having it on hand. Then I took a break for a few years – and now I’m back to brewing just one gallon at a time. It’s always important to listen to your own body to see if you do well with Kombucha or not.

If you’d like to make it at home, here’s what you’re going to need:

SCOBY: (Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast)
The SCOBY is a living organism that eats up the sugar and turns the tea into a probiotic-rich beverage. You can get a SCOBY from a friend who makes kombucha – or you can purchase a SCOBY online. I’ve done both. If you’re getting one from a friend, be sure they have a healthy SCOBY and use sanitary brewing practices. I bought my most recent SCOBY at www.kombuchakamp.com

Each time you brew a new batch of kombucha, your SCOBY grows another layer. As your SCOBY continues to grow, soon you’ll have enough share it with a friend - or you can compost it.

Container: Glass or porcelain (not plastic or metal); no metal spigot. I like to use a vessel with a spigot, but you can use a jar without one. I don’t recommend it because it’s more difficult to work with, but it can be done.

Covering: cloth – not too thick, not too thin. Not cheesecloth – the weave isn’t tight enough and can let fruit flies into your kombucha. I like to use a handkerchief – it’s the perfect size and thickness.

Rubber band or string – to secure the covering to the vessel

Tea: Black & Green (camililias senensis) No flavored tea. I like CHOICE brand organic tea. I use ½ English Breakfast Tea and ½ Oolong tea.

Sugar: refined cane sugar.
Not honey. Not maple syrup. Not agave. Not anything but sugar. Costco has 10 lb bags of organic cane sugar.

Starter Tea: 10% (1-2 cups for a one gallon)
Each time you start a new batch, leave a bit of tea in the vessel to help the next batch get started. If you are using a vessel with a spigot on it, I just leave whatever is below the spigot – about 2 cups for a one gallon container.

How to make kombucha

Acquire a SCOBY and starter tea
Get from a friend or www.kombuchakamp.com

Wash container with a little soap and rinse THOROUGHLY to make sure there is no soap residue. (The SCOBY won’t like that).

Then give the container a quick RINSE with VINEGAR

Rinse hands with vinegar before handling SCOBY

Make sweet tea
Bring one quart (4 cups) of water to a boil in a soup pot. Then, turn off heat and add 8 tea bags to the water. Cover and steep for 12 minutes. Then, remove the tea bags with a tongs – squeeze the bags to get all the tea out. Stir in one cup of cane sugar and let it fully dissolve. Then add 3 quarts of room temperature water to the pot to cool off the mixture to make a full gallon of sweet tea.

Pour into container with SCOBY and starter tea
Once the sweet tea is cool, set the vessel in the sink and carefully pour in the sweet tea. You can put the SCOBY in before or after.

Let the tea ferment for 5-15 days
I always put a red “K” on my calendar on the day I start a new batch…that way I can quickly see how many days it’s been since I started the brew. The time it takes to ferment will vary based on how big your SCOBY is and the temperature.
The bigger the SCOBY, the faster the fermentation.
The warmer the temperature, the faster the fermentation. Ideal temperature is between 68°- 78°F.

The easiest way to tell if your kombucha is ready is to taste it! If you have a spigot, you can easily take a taste and see. If it’s still sweet – it’s not done. It should be a little zippy and tangy.

Bottling

Once your kombucha is ready, you can put it in glass bottles and store it in the fridge. Bottles from store-bought kombucha are great to save and use for this. Glass canning jars also work great.

Some people like to add fruit and do a 2^nd Fermentation – meaning you add a little fruit to each bottle of kombucha and leave it out on the counter for another 2-5 days with the lids on. The kombucha will eat the sugar from the fruit and become fizzier – but be careful! Now that there are covers on the jars, there will be carbonation building up in the bottle which is great because it makes it fizzy – but you don’t want the bottles to explode. I’ve never had that happen (thankfully), but it can happen. I like to play it safe and burp the bottles each day – which means I get the fun fruity flavor, but not as much carbonation – but don’t have to worry about the bottles exploding!

Once the second fermentation is complete, you can refrigerate and enjoy! And then you make another batch of sweet tea and repeat the process.

Additional Tips:

Start slow! 2-4 oz. at first. You want to ease the new probiotics into your microbiome. You can drink up to 16 oz. day once you are accustomed to it – listen to your body.

If you choose a container with a spigot, note that kombucha is not safe with any kind of metal except 304 grade stainless steel. Brass or aluminum is dangerous and should not be used. Get a food grade plastic spigot or make sure it’s 304 grade stainless steel.

A good PH level is anywhere from 3.3 down to 2.9. When I first started brewing kombucha, I wanted to make sure everything was just right so I bought the strips to check it. Once I got familiar with the process, I stopped checking.

Never refrigerate your SCOBY. It likes room temperature.

For more information on brewing kombucha – or to order a SCOBY, I recommend www.KombuchaKamp.com – there is a wealth of information on this site.

Kombucha is an enjoyable way to work more fermented foods into your life. And it’s definitely an interesting science experiment too!

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Lord, we thank you for the variety of interesting ways you have provided for us to nourish our bodies and keep us healthy. Thank you for loving us and providing all we need from day to day as we live for you and make Your kingdom our primary concern. In Your name we pray, Amen.