Make Your Own Kombucha & SCOBY

 Make Your Own Kombucha and SCOBY

Kombucha: Kombucha is a fermented black tea. The bacteria and yeast eat the sugar, and produce a super charged probiotic drink.

SCOBY: Symbiotic Colony of Bacteria and Yeast. It is the (sort of freaky looking) rubbery layer that forms on the top of your kombucha. 

 Ingredients:

* Black Tea. 8 tea bags or a 1 gallon tea bag. Do not use herbal or flavored teas. I have read that you can use Green Tea or White tea, but I have not tried this.

* 1 cup Sugar.

* 16 ounces of Kombucha. Unflavored & unpasteurized. This can be from the store or from a friend.  If you can't find unflavored at the store, just buy one with the mildest flavor you can find.

* Gallon (4 quarts) of (Non-Chlorinated) water.  Chlorinated tap water will kill the yeast and bacteria that forms the SCOBY.

* Gallon Size Jar. Or a sun tea pitcher with a tap.

* A few large mason jars with tight fitting lids.  

* Fruit and flavors of your choice.

You don't need fancy equipment to make kombucha. You will need a big jar - gallon size will work best, but it can be smaller if that is all you have. If you need to use a smaller jar, adjust the amounts accordingly. 

At first it may seem like a lot of work, or too complicated- but it is not. Give it a try, it is totally do-able.

To start your kombucha:  

1.  Fill a pot with:

2 quarts of water

1 cup of sugar

8 tea bags. Plain black tea. Don't use herbal tea or flavored.

2. Bring the water to a boil, remove from heat and steep for 10 minutes.

 3. Add 2 quarts of ice water to make 1 gallon of tea.

4. Stir in 16 ounces of already made unflavored kombucha. This can be from a friends batch or store bought.

5. Pour the tea mix into your jar.

6. Cover with a cloth and band or tie in place. Don't put on a sealed lid - your kombucha needs to breath.

Your jar will need to sit in a warm place, but out of direct sunlight. My house is cold - 60ish degrees - so I sit mine on a heating pad and wrap in a "sweater". This helps the temperature stay consistent. You can use any kind of heating pad, but one designed for a lizard cage or for sprouting seeds, is nice because it is the perfect temperature, it stays on continually and it is made of plastic. But there are tons of washable heating pads out there that don't cost much. Depending on the temperature of the environment, your SCOBY will grow faster if warm and slower if cooler. 

  

7. After one week you will see a layer of off white/brownish slimy looking stuff begin to form, this is your new SCOBY! As a fair warning - it is not pretty! It took me a bit to get accustom to looking at it and to visualize drinking what was beneath it. Touch it, smell it, taste your tea - you will get over it pretty quickly, especially if you are excited about making your own kombucha!

 

 

Your first batch may take 2 weeks, and taste a bit too vinegary - I used mine and thought it tasted fine but I've heard some say that the first batch is not always good to drink. After one week, start tasting it. To me it tastes like sweet, mild apple cider vinegar mixed with sun tea. You know what I'm talking about if you have had kombucha before. The cool thing about making it yourself, is that you are in control of the flavor

8. After a week or two, you will now pour your tea into another big jar or multiple smaller ones (with tight fitting lids) depending on how many flavors you want to make. Make sure to keep 2-3 cups of tea and your SCOBY in the original jar. 

You will repeat the beginning steps to make your next batch - but this time you will have your starter liquid and your SCOBY ready to go! The following batches should only need to ferment for a week before moving to the 2nd fermentation.

This will begin the 2nd fermentation.  

Now you can add fruit and flavors. Add what ever you want. You can try my "Cherry Lime Kombucha" here *link coming soon. 

Puree up some fruit. I love to use frozen fruit run through my mini chopper. Pour it into your new jar with your tea, seal the lid and sit out of direct sunlight for one week. During this 2nd fermentation it is creating the carbonation.

 

 

After this - the sky is the limit! Make what ever tastes good to you. Literally, use anything that tastes good. 

 

* If the ratios of sugar and tea are off, then you run the risk of growing mold on your SCOBY. If you see white spots or fuzzy spots - that look like mold then it is likely mold. If this is the case then it is time to start over This being said, it is a good idea to make a SCOBY hotel. This is a jar that you will put extra SCOBY's in, with some tea. That way if something happens to your active SCOBY, you have a back up - or one to give your friend that wants to make kombucha too now that they see you making your own!.