Recipe to help you get started with kombucha

Kombucha is a drink made by fermenting sweet tea (or less traditionally, other sweet liquids) using a SCOBY (microbial “mother” culture) from a previous kombucha. The SCOBY eats the sugars in your sweet tea, the digestion producing bubbles of carbon dioxide.

By fermenting the tea in two stages, first, in an open container, and second, in a closed one (to keep the gas produced in the liquid), you get a flavourful, probiotic, carbonated beverage.

Recipe

1st ferment (in open jar)

1,5 L boiling water
1 cup sugar
2-4 tbsp tea (unflavoured)
~100-200ml starter liquid and SCOBY

Mix sugar and boiling water until the sugar dissolves. Add tea and let infuse for at least 15 minutes.

When the sweet tea is cooled to body temperature, pour it into a sterilised container and add SCOBY to transform it. Cover with cloth.

~5-7 days later

Set aside 100-200 mL starter liquid and the SCOBY in order to make your next batch of first ferment. Use the rest for 2nd ferment…

2nd ferment (in closed bottle)

~2 tsp sugar or some fruit (has its own sugar) per liter depending on your personal preferences.
Optionally, add any flavouring (herbs, ginger, stone-fruit pits, strawberry tops, apple peels)

Funnel your 1st ferment into a swing-top bottle.

Add flavour (see above) and close lid.

2 days later

Make sure to “burp” your bottle, meaning to open the lid and let out the gas. Taste the kombucha at this point and if you like it, put it in the fridge. If you want it fizzier or more sour, try letting it ferment longer, for example up to ~7 days.

How to care for your SCOBY Daughter (troubleshooting)

The gelatinous layer we think of as SCOBYs come in all shapes and sizes… their shape reflects the area where your kombucha liquid meets the air. Their thickness is based on how long you let them grow The strands that you may see floating around in the liquid or hanging from the SCOBY – those are also part of your microbial starter culture, so never fear them.

A healthy kombucha is one that starts to produce bubbles ~1-2 days after you feed it. The liquid will become vinegary over time and you may see a new layer of SCOBY forming on the liquid’s surface (if you haven’t jostled the jar too much).