If you’re anything like me, you’re always on the look out for easy and quick ways to introduce more healthy products into your diet and life. Eating fermented foods is one key step to better health.

It’s one of my favorite fermented foods.

It’s everywhere these days.

It’s easy to make at home.

It’s exploding with probiotics.

Kombucha!

A lot of people have been asking me about it lately and wondering how they can get started on their own. I’m long overdue for a quick DIY guide.

Here it is folks!

What is Kombucha?

Kombucha is a fermented tea drink. It’s made by brewing tea and letting it ferment for a few days or weeks with the help of a “Mother” yeast culture. Because it’s a fermented beverage, it’s loaded with amazing probiotics. Much like yogurt, kefir, tempeh, and sauerkraut, kombucha’s probiotic benefits are essential for the health of your gut and your whole body.

Including this refreshing beverage in your daily or weekly diet is another great way to add some beneficial friendly bacteria to your life!

Why should I drink it?

Our whole state of health begins in our digestive tract.

Our intestines (guts) are responsible for absorbing all nutrients that you eat. If there is damage here, and you aren’t able to absorb nutrients, you can quickly develop deficiencies in many important minerals and vitamins. Your body will be quick to get sick or develop deficiency related diseases.

Our guts are also linked to the neurotransmitters and hormones that send signals to our brains. When your gut is damaged or unhappy, you will be too. There are very few reactions and functions in the human body that do not start with the gut. As you can tell, a healthy gut is key to a healthy body and mind.

For more information about what kombucha is and why you need to try it, check out these FAQ.

How do I make it at home?

After your first batch, making Kombucha takes 10-15 minutes every 5-10 days. The quick, easy process explained below makes Kombucha easy for anyone to try at home!

What you need to get started:

• One gallon sized glass jar or bigger. No lid needed. A punch or juice container like this one is perfect.

• 5 or 6 swing top 750ml glass bottles– if you want to carbonate and flavour your kombucha. If you don’t want to do this, any bottles or jars with lids will work fine.

• A SCOBY. This is the mother yeast that does all the magic in fermenting. The best way to get one is by finding someone in your local area who brews kombucha and can pass it along to you. Contact me for help finding one. I am always happy to share mine if you live near! Each SCOBY continues to grow new ones and can easily be passed on to friends and family. You may also be able to buy one online.

• A clean bowl or jar to store your SCOBY until you’re ready to use it. The SCOBY needs to breathe and eat when it’s not in use. Keep it stored in some starter tea and at room temperature until ready to use.
• Clean wooden spoons.
• Tightly woven cloth for covering your fermenting jar. Tight enough to keep out any bacteria and flies, but also able to let your kombucha breathe. A clean cotton dish towel or coffee filters work great.
• An elastic band to secure the cloth on top of your jar.
• The recipe ingredients:
  • 4 Liters of distilled clean water
  • 1 cup of white sugar (Do not try to substitute with other types. The SCOBY eats the sucrose from the white sugar in order for it to live and process your tea. There is very little left after brewing)
  • 8 tea bags. Black, green, or a mix of both work great. Use only PURE tea without added flavors.
  • 2 cups of starter tea. This is the tea that should come along with your SCOBY from a previous batch.
  • One SCOBY
  • Fruit, juice or herbs to flavor- optional

How to get started:

1. Bring the water to a boil in a large pot.
2. Remove from heat and stir in the sugar.
3. Once the sugar is dissolved, add the tea bags to the pot.
4. Leave the tea to steep until it’s at room temperature. You can put the pot in a sink of ice water or in the fridge to speed up this process.
5. Once it’s at room temperature, remove the tea bags and discard of them. Transfer your tea to your clean fermentation jar.
6. Stir in your starter tea
7. With clean hands, place your SCOBY in your jar. It may float on top, sink to the bottom, or float suspended in the middle of your jar.
8. Cover your jar with fine cloth and secure with an elastic band.
9. You are now ready to place your kombucha at room temperature out of direct sunlight so it can do it’s magic.
10. Ferment for 5-10 days. Start tasting it after day 5 or 6. It’s ready when you think it tastes good. Everyone has different preferences for the taste. The longer you leave it the more vinegary it will taste. You may notice a new SCOBY growing on top of your tea. This is completely normal!

What to do when it is ready:

Option #1: Transfer to clean jars and store in the fridge for enjoying

• With clean hands, remove your SCOBY from the fermentation jar. Place in a clean bowl with a cloth covering.
• Remove 2 cups of your kombucha and store it with the SCOBY for your next batch.
• Strain and transfer the remaining tea into clean jars or bottles to drink right away.
• Store your kombucha in the fridge to ensure it does not continue to ferment or carbonate.
• Don’t forget to get your next batch on the go same day or within a few days.

Option #2: Flavour and carbonate your kombucha during a second ferment

• With clean hands, remove your SCOBY from the fermentation jar. Place in a clean bowl with a cloth covering.
• Remove 2 cups of your kombucha and store it with the SCOBY for your next batch.
• Clean and sterilize your swing top bottles with hot water and soap
• Add a few spoonfuls of flavors to your bottles- you don’t need much. Some of my favorites are:
  • Blueberries
  • Raspberries
  • Mint
  • Lavender
  • Hibiscus
  • Ginger and Lemon
  • Basil and Lemon
• Pour kombucha into each of your bottles leaving 1-inch headspace in each.
• Close your bottles and store at room temperature for 1-2 days.
• During this time your kombucha is being flavoured AND carbonated. The lack of oxygen to your kombucha allows the minerals and probiotics to naturally create gas (aka carbonate).
• IMPORTANT: because the gas is building up, please be sure to “burp” your bottles 1-2 x per day to remove some of the pressure. If you don’t, you may have a very messy kitchen bomb on your hands. Until you get the hang of which flavors are more “gassy”, I recommend leaving your bottles in a bucket or bathtub during this processes. Through my own experience, the most gassy flavors are blueberries, raspberries, pineapple, orange and ginger, and hibiscus.
• After 2 days you will need to strain out the chunks from your bottles. Using a fine mesh strainer and a funnel, simply transfer your kombucha to a spare bottle or mason jar. You can use your flavorings for smoothies!
• If you have lost a lot of carbonation in this process, simply leave your bottles for another day at room temperature before transferring to the fridge to enjoy.

Your finished kombucha will last up to a month in your fridge (although mine is easily gone in a week).

Special notes & tips:

• Batch size: you can double or half the recipe above by simply changing the proportion of ingredients. Your SCOBY can brew both big and small batches.
• SCOBY growth: as you brew, your SCOBY will grow new “babies” on it. Science is so cool! These can safely be left on or taken off and composted/given to a friend to start their own batch.
• Cleanliness: remember to sterilize all jars and keep your work space as clean as possible. You are handling delicate friendly bacteria and extra care should be taken not to contaminate your tea.
• Taking a pause in brewing: if you aren’t ready to make your next batch of kombucha for 2-3 days, you can store your SCOBY in starter tea at room temperature in a bowl or jar. Cover and secure with a breathable cloth. If you are going away or not able to make your next batch for more than 3 days, simply brew a batch of kombucha and leave it brewing while you are away. After about 2 weeks, the batch will be too vinegary to drink, so simply toss this batch and start fresh when you are ready. This way, your SCOBY can continue to eat and breathe while you are away.
• How to enjoy: If you are new to kombucha, try a few ounces in a glass once a day to see how your body reacts. You may experience improved digestion or slight abdominal discomfort while your body gets used to the tea. My favorite way to enjoy kombucha is mixed 1/2 and 1/2 with sparkling water to create a spritzer.

I LOVE teaching people to get started on their own. Please post ANY comments or questions below and I will do my best to guide you along. You can also contact me here or come on over to my VIP Facebook community and join in the conversation.

You can also find the FAQ and Recipe here for more information.

Love & Kombucha,

Dani