If kombucha were a disease, I’d have a severe case of it. Most of my friends know me as the ‘Kombucha Queen,’ and if anyone in my community wants to start making their own kombucha, they literally turn up at my front door.
Kombucha is a fizzy probiotic drink or fermented sweet tea made using a Scoby (AKA a symbiotic colony of yeast and bacteria, not as gross as it sounds) placed in a sugar and tea mixture and left to ferment at room temperature for 1-2 weeks. Then bottled for a further 1-2 weeks to encourage carbonation.
Originating first in Northeast China around 200BC, the antioxidant-rich brew is packed with gut-friendly probiotics as well as B vitamins, enzymes, and organic acids.
It’s the only cold drink I have in my fridge, it saves me money, and helps me battle stomach inflammation and illness. Ready to make your own? That was a rhetorical question. Of course, you are!
You will need
(makes 1 liter)
- 1 Scoby – you can find these at health food stores, online (try Gumtree) or ask a friend who brews their kombucha own to give you one
- 2 x teaspoons of loose leaf black tea OR 2 x plastic free tea bags (you can also use flavoured tea bags)
- 1/3 cup of sugar
- ¼ cup starter liquid – also available from health food stores or a friend
Tools
- Tea strainer or sieve
- Funnel
- 1.5L glass jar (no lid)
- 15cm x 15cm fabric pieces (an old t-shirt, fabric, or tea towel)
- 1 rubber band or piece of string
- Glass bottles (with a firm cap for bottling)
- Measuring jug
How to treat a scoby
- Always wash your hands and utensils before interacting with it
- Never put a sealed lid on the vessel it is in
- Never allow it to come into contact with warm or hot water
- Mouldy? Throw it in the compost bin ASAP
Stage 1
- Boil 1 litre of water
- Pour water into your measuring jug
- Add tea, flavoured tea, and sugar and mix well
- Leave to sit until room temperature
Stage 2
- Pour cooled mixture into the glass brewing jar (remove tea bags if using)
- Add starter liquid and mix well
- Add scoby to the mixture
- Place fabric on top of the jar and secure with a rubber band or string
- Move the jar to a warm, safe spot (e.g., back of the pantry or on a shelf) where it will not be bumped or touched
Leave to brew for 7-14 days. This is dependant on your climate and the season. Warmer climates or rooms will brew faster.
Stage 3
- Remove the fabric from the brewing jar
- Remove your scoby and separate it from the newly formed scoby that have grown (gift your new scoby to a friend or start two batches next time!)
- Place your two scobies in a container of kombucha/starter liquid in the fridge, or leave on a plate while you prepare the next brew
- Using your tea strainer, pour the freshly brewed kombucha through a funnel into your bottles
- Put your newly bottled kombucha in the fridge and leave to chill for 8 hours until drinking
Alternate method
If you are adding fresh fruit to flavour after bottling, place the fruit in each bottle, then leave to sit in a warm place for 3-7 days before refrigeration.
