Make your own Kombucha

For anyone not yet under the spell, kombucha is a probiotic fermented sweet tea drink that you can buy, but more fun to make your own.

It has a slightly sweet/slightly tart refreshing flavour and should have a nice fizz to it. It takes approximately 7 days to convert and another 2 days if you want to add fruit, resins, flowers, herbs and so on.

It requires only 3 ingredients-

Black or green tea (bags or loose)

Sugar

SCOBY (symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast)

We are now thankfully becoming more aware of the infinite benefits of healthy gut bacteria, or microbiome.

When we have an overload of the unhealthy bacteria , usually due to a diet rich in processed foods, sugar and even too many unnecessary antibiotics, losing weight can be difficult, we are prone to headaches, colds, constipation, hormonal disturbances, depression(some say certain cancers) and skin issues, like eczema and acne.

So are you up for trying it out?

Here's how I do it.

Make a large pot of tea using 8 teabags in 2 litres of boiling water. You are looking to make a really strong brew.

add 1 cup of sugar (I've found white works best. in this instance)

1 SCOBY kept aside, until brew has cooled (available online or from a nice friend who already makes it)

Once your brew has cooled to no higher than room temperature, add the sweet liquid to the SCOBY in a large glass jar and cover with a piece of muslin and a rubber band.

Leave for 7 days, if you like it sweetish or longer, if you like more tart. Taste as you go.

Add your brew to clean glass bottles and refrigerate. You can drink it like this. or begin adding your fruit etc. I've experimented with frankincense resin, fresh aloe flesh and lavender flowers and stocks. However, one of my favourites is pear and raspberry. You only need a few pieces to give a taste explosion.. its trial and error, but a lot of fun.

Hope you'll give it a try and let me know how you get on.

Or if you're a seasoned KOMBUCHER, share your recipes and wisdom with us, as I'd love to have a go at a coffee version.

Once bottled, burp it every couple of days, or you may end up with a fizz bombe!

​Jean X