kombucha

kombucha is a yummy tangy refreshing drink. it uses a "mushroom" or "mother" (scoby or symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast) placed in a sugar and tea mixture, this will make a fizzy acidic good for you drink. there have been may attributes given to kombucha but it is said to aid the body's natural cleansing process & it helps boost the immune system. here is how i make 'bucha.

(finished kombucha tea and scoby's)

the first thing i do is make the tea. i use both organic black and green tea. so i get a quart of hot water add 4 tea bags to it. i let this sit until it is room temperature. take the tea bags out and mix with 3 more quarts of water and add 1 cup of cane sugar. i take about a cup of this mixture and set aside, the rest is placed in a container that can hold a gallon, mine are made of glass. metal should not be used! the container should also be wider than it is tall, but i do also use a gallon pickle jar.

(a daughter in a glass container waiting for a new tea and sugar mixture)

your mother and kombucha tea should already be separated, with about one cup of the kombucha tea set aside. this cup of kombucha tea is mixed with the tea and sugar mixture and then the mother placed in. when your mother is done brewing it will have made another scoby. these can be separated from each other. i put the new scoby in a quart jar with about a cup of tea/sugar mixture and k tea. these can go in the fridge and eventually given to a friend!

(mother in a new mixture of tea and sugar, waiting to be covered and placed in a dark spot)

(these are 2 of my kombucha brewers covered and on the top shelf of my pantry)

in 7 to 10 days i will check on them and taste them to see if they are ready. if they are i start the whole process again.

but what about the finish tea?, you ask. well here's what i do:

the tea is transferred to 1/2 gallon jars. they are left on the counter for a couple days for their second brewing. this will give the tea it's fizziness. i will also add fresh or frozen fruit during this brewing.

(green tea kombucha with raspberries on the counter during second brewing)

(blueberry kombucha tea. i don't let them set in this window, but i thought the color was really cool.)

i use the canning jar lids because once i can no longer push down their button, i call the tea done. i strain out the fruit, if there is any and i place the k-tea in the frig. it's ready to drink! my family likes it cold, i don't mind it room temperature.

(finished k-teas. green tea, black tea and blueberry in the front)