Kombucha is a fizzy, fermented, sweet and tart beverage that really is just made out of tea and sugar! Kombucha is like the beverage version of making sourdough bread. Naturally occurring bacteria and yeast in our environments grow together to ferment the tea. You can see the growth as a SCOBY (symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast) during kombucha production. Kombucha contains probiotics for great gut health and is also another fun beverage to have when you don’t want to drink just water!
Because fermentation can vary based on the amount of sugar, temperature, and amount of SCOBY, the amount of time for fermentation to get your tea to kombucha may vary depending on your kitchen conditions!
Ingredients
Tea – green or black
Sugar – just the classic, white, refined sugar
Water
SCOBY – you can grow the SCOBY over time by just using tea and sugar, but I would recommend buying a SCOBY online or find a friend that is making kombucha as a strong, healthy SCOBY may take quite a bit of time to develop.
Process
Kombucha is generally made in two fermentation steps. The first fermentation gives you plain kombucha, which is ready to drink if you like plain kombucha. I like adding fun flavors, so I always go to a second fermentation, adding flavors and juices. The second fermentation also gives your kombucha that fun carbonation!
I always brew my kombucha in glass jars. I’ve never tried in any other material container, but I’ve heard that flavors can leach from other jar types into your kombucha, so I’ve never risked it.
First Fermentation
Here’s how I recommend mixing your kombucha for the first fermentation.
You’ll need:
Black or green tea
Sugar
Water
SCOBY + kombucha starter (plain kombucha that came with your SCOBY or reserved from the last time you did a first fermentation)
To make the tea mix:
Dissolve 200 g of sugar with 2 liters of hot water. Steep 8 bags of green and/or black tea or 4 tsp of loose leaf tea overnight.
The next day, combine the kombucha starter with the tea mix and add in the SCOBY. Cover the jar with a breathable top (like a kitchen towel, cheesecloth) and leave to ferment in a room-temperature, dark place. This may be as quickly as a few days up to a month before your kombucha ferments! After a week, you can taste your kombucha every few days until it is sour to your liking. If that’s where you want to stop, stop! You can drink your kombucha now, just make sure you save about 1 cup and the SCOBY to make your next batch!
Second Fermentation
Depending on how sour your first fermentation went, the amount of flavorings or juice you add may differ! You can also brew additional flavored teas to add if you want a stronger kombucha. I recommend using a flip-top glass bottle or a glass growler. These will help get your kombucha fizzy after this second fermentation.
I generally will mix a ratio of 75% kombucha to 25% flavoring, juice, or tea… since I usually end up forgetting about my kombucha and it’s really sour by the time I get to the second fermentation…
Some fun combinations:
- honey & ginger
- guava
- lychee
- passion tea lemonade
After you’ve mixed your flavored kombucha for second fermentation, close your bottles, and store for 1-2 weeks at room temperature, opening them every few days to release some pressure. After 2 weeks, I recommend transferring them to the refrigerator to slow the fermentation process. You can keep them in the fridge all the way up until you want to drink it!
Want more fermentation? More yeast? Have some Sourdough or My Favorite Focaccia.