Would you drink something that had been in close contact with this? I would, and do! This is a scoby, otherwise known as a symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast. When combined with the proper amount water, sugar, and black tea, you get a delightfully tart brewed tea known as kombucha.
This month I started brewing my own kombucha. It's cheaper, tastes great, and I love having access to this energizing fizzy tea in the morning. I'm going to say something that is offensive to a lot of people, but here it goes. I HATE COFFEE. Hate it. I really dislike how coffee tastes, and since coffee breath is such a prevalent issue in our society, I don't feel like I should drink coffee and add to the problem. Instead I try to be part of the solution to end coffee breath, by not participating. All of this to say, kombucha is a great morning drink option for me.
I am not even going to attempt to get into all the details of why kombucha is good for you, but if you are interested in learning more, this a great article read. Here is my short list of it's benefits.
• Aids in digestion
• Promotes a healthy gut
• Helps with immunity
Let me be shallow and say, I don't care so much about those benefits as I do about the taste, and the fizziness of it. It's so fizzy! Kombucha may not be for you, Andrew hates it and refers to it as "trash juice," but in the words of The Little Einsteins "Try it, you might like it!"
Before committing to the whole brewing process, I would recommend you go to Whole Foods and buy a bottle. That will save you some time and money. If you already love kombucha, then maybe consider making it yourself! It is insanely simple, a child could do it.
What you need
1 cup sugar8 bags black tea - go for unflavored or English Breakfast
2 cups starter tea from last batch of kombucha or store-bought kombucha (unpasteurized, neutral-flavored)
1-gallon glass jar or two 2-quart glass jars Paper Towel Small funnel
Ingredients
3 1/2 quarts water - aka 14 cups
1 scoby per fermentation jar - I bought mine here
Supplies
Stockpot
Rubber band
Bottles: Six 16-oz glass bottles with plastic lids, 6 swing-top bottles, or clean soda bottles
Instructions
Note: Avoid extended contact between the kombucha and metal both during and after brewing. This will affect the flavor of your kombucha and weaken the scoby over time.
Step One: Boil your water. Add 3 1/2 quarts or 14 cups of water to your stockpot and turn up the heat! Once it is boiling and bubbling, pull it off the heat and stir in the cup of sugar until dissolved. Then, add your 8 tea bags. I like to tie mine around a spoon and just let them hang out. You'll steep the tea until the pot has completely cooled.
Step Two: Add your starter tea. Once the tea is cool, add 2 cups of the starter tea. This comes from either a previous batch, or a store bought bottle. If you continue brewing kombucha on your own, you'll always hold some back to use for the next batch. The starter tea makes the water acidic and keeps bad bacteria from setting up shop.
Step Three: Transfer to jars. Using your handy dandy funnel, transfer your tea to either one large gallon jar, or two half gallon jars (If you use 2 jars, you will require 2 scobys). Now it's time for the scobys to go for a swim. Gently slip then into the tea, then cover the top with a paper towel and rubber band to fasten it.
Step Four: Ferment. And now you wait. Place your jars in a cool dry place out of direct sunlight, like a pantry or cupboard, and let them ferment there for 7 - 10 days. I am on a 7 day kombucha cycle, and I brew every Thursday. Basically, the longer you let it ferment, the sweeter the tea will be.
Step Five: Flavor. After around the 7 day mark, taste you kombucha daily until it meets your taste test. Now we are going to transfer it to smaller bottles and flavor it. Before you do that, remove the scoby and go ahead and repeat steps 1 - 3. It's best to have a batch continuously brewing so your scoby isn't out of a job for long. Back to flavoring -- I flavor with fruit, and so far I have used strawberries, blueberries, peach, basil, and grapefruit juice. Place your flavorings or juice in the bottom of your small bottles then add the kombucha.
Step Six: Second fermentation. Once you transfer to your small bottles, you put them back in the pantry for another 2 - 4 days. This is where they carbonate and get those delightful fizzies! After 2 -3 days, place the bottles in the fridge - this will stop carbonation - and then consume within a month.
That was the condensed list for kombucha brewing, but if you have additional questions I highly recommend reading this article from www.thekitchn.com.
Tips & Tricks
• Glass Bottles - The flip top bottles can be a list pricey on Amazon so I've been buying Argo Tea from Sprouts. Not only are the original contents really tasty, this is a fabulous, reusable kombucha bottle that only costs about $2.50.
• Scoby - I bought my scoby on Amazon, but chances are you already know someone brewing kombucha, and I guarantee they have an extra. Scobys multiply like rabbits, so if you are in the Tulsa area and need one, hit me up!
Happy brewing everyone!
xoxo Sallie
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