Kombucha – How to make it and the benefits of drinking it
Kombucha is a probiotic drink we make predominantly with loose leaf white or green tea (Sencha). Our source of tea is www.solarisbotanicals.ie in Galway. A Kombucha culture or scoby is a combination of candida friendly yeasts and bacteria. It is generally creamy white in colour, although when brewed in black tea it will darken in colour due to the tannins in the tea. Kombucha cultures regenerate every time they are used to brew and produce a new “baby” scoby, which can be used to brew the next batch, unused scobies will sit in our scoby hotel (sweet green/black/white tea) in the fridge.
How to make Kombucha – Our Basic Recipe
Ingredients:
• 1 litre of water
• 1/3 cup (80ml) or 55g sugar
• 4 teaspoons loose leaf tea or 2-3 teabags, black/white tea or green tea
• Kombucha mother (scoby)
• Some people also use ½ cup mature acidic kombucha. I think this is not essential.
Method:
Bring 1 litre of water to the boil
Dissolve the sugar and add tea, cover and infuse for about 20 minutes.
Strain the tea into a wide glass container (1.5 l) and allow the tea to cool to room temperature or below 30 Celsius.
Add the mature acidic kombucha (if you have) - optional
Place the kombucha mother in the liquid with the firm opaque side up
Cover with a muslin and store in a warm spot (ideally 21 -29 Celsius), out of direct sunlight.
Label (date, ingredients etc.)
Looking after:
• Ferment for a minimum of 4– 7 days, (often depends on the temperature), you will notice a new skin forming on the surface of your kombucha, this is your new “baby” culture/scoby.
• Taste the liquid with a straw, if it is still too sweet, let it sit for a little longer until it reaches the desired acidity.
• Strain the kombucha through a plastic sieve, take the mother and the new scoby out and store your mature kombucha in the fridge.
• Start your next batch using either the new or the old mother for fermentation.
• The original mother culture can be used until it is exhausted, then put it on the compost heap.
Note: Surplus scobies can be stored in a scoby hotel in the fridge (strong black/green/white tea with sugar in a glass jar with lid.)
The benefits of Kombucha, especially in the summer
Kombucha contains vitamins, minerals and electrolytes
When we sweat in the summer heat we not only loose water, but also important electrolytes. Kombucha has plenty of them, Na, K and Mg and drinking kombucha refuels us with water and minerals.
Kombucha is probiotic
After a barbeque of burgers, sausages and chops drinking kombucha is beneficial as it can help with digestions, because of the many probiotic bacteria and yeasts
Kombucha helps to detoxify
Glucuronic acid is the most important acid in kombucha. Our liver produces Glucuronic acid to detoxify and cleanse our system, which has a positive impact on our skin. Especially important in the summer when our skin has to deal with UV radiation from the powerful sun.
Kombucha has Vitamin B in abundance
B vitamins are important for our protein metabolism and kombucha contains nearly all B vitamins including Vitamin B 12 good for nerves and muscles, which we need for all outdoor activities.
Kombucha helps to improve your energy level
Improve your energy level for all outdoor activities in the summer with kombucha. Fermenting black tea helps build iron and the caffeine is good for energy.