Video: How To Make 1 Gallon Fermented Kombucha Tea

Kombucha is a fermented tea (probiotic beverage) that provides beneficial gut bacteria, improves digestion, increases energy, alkalizes, detoxifies, and boosts your immune system. But it’s very expensive to buy!! So I make my own and you can make your own too, it’s really easy once you get it down. I can brew a batch in under 30 minutes that will produce 7 or 8 bottles for under $1 per bottle. You will pay almost $4 a bottle at a health food store. And I can tell you home made is far more delicious than store bought. So it’s totally worth 30 minutes of my time every few weeks.

LET’S GET STARTED!!

There Are TWO Primary Steps To Making Kombucha

1. First fermentation in which you brew you master batch.

2. Second fermentation – bottle it, add flavoring i.e. juice, and set aside to “2nd” ferment for 2 more days. This step adds carbonation 🙂

Supplies You Will Need:

• White Vinegar to sanitize your hands and dishes. VERY IMPORTANT

• 1 gallon water (MUST be RO or Distilled)

• 1 Gallon Glass Jar (no lid needed)

• 8 quart stainless steel pan (cannot be metal or aluminum)

• 1 wooden spoon (MUST be wooden)

• Organic Cane Sugar (1 cup per gallon)

• 1 quart measuring cup (to measure out water)

• 1 measuring cup (to measure out one cup of sugar)

• Organic green tea bags (7 for each gallon of kombucha)

• 16oz Raw, organic, unflavored kombucha tea – let sit out a few hours until it’s room temp

• 1 SCOBY (you can buy on line or ask a friend for a SCOBY)

• Paper bag (cut out the bottom so you can place it over the jar)

• Coffee filter and rubber band to cover the opening

• Flavoring i.e. organic juice, organic frozen berries, fresh ginger, lemon juice…

Step 1 Instructions: Very important to do this in order

1. Sanitize all dishes and your hands with white vinegar and rinse before you start
2. Bring 2 quarts of water to boil
3. Turn off burner completely
4. Add 7 bags of organic green tea
5. Steep for 15 minutes
6. Remove tea bags
7. Stir in one cup sugar using wooden spoon and dissolve completely
8. Add 2 quarts of room temp RO water to the pan of sugar tea you just made. This will bring the entire batch to a temperature that can handle the SCOBY and not kill it.
9. Place SCOBY in gallon jar
10. Add ROOM TEMP raw kombucha to gallon jar
11. Pour room temp sugar tea from pan into gallon jar
12. Place coffee filter over the top of your gallon glass jar with a rubber band to hold it on there. It prevents any airborne (gnats) things from getting in.
13. Slip a paper bag with the bottom cut out over and around your kombucha brew, and place it in a location in your house that is between 69-80 degrees. Do not disturb or move once it is placed or you could ruin your batch.
14. Let sit for 14 days, you should see a new SCOBY form. Every new batch will create a new SCOBY. So you will have what looks like a stack of pancakes over time. They never die and you only need ONE. So you can either give one away to a friend, or throw them away. A few are fine, but as they pile up they take too much room in your jar.
15. After 14 days your brew should be ready for flavoring and second fermentation.

Step 2: 2nd Fermentation- bottling and flavoring (view video)

1. Take 7 or 8 empty 16oz size bottles, and add 2oz organic juice to flavor. Put the bottle caps on tightly, and set them all in a cabinet for 2 days to “second ferment”. This will flavor them and make them carbonated like soda.
2. After 2 days refrigerate and drink!! They last up to 3 weeks in the refrigerator.

All the best to your health!

Catherine Rudolph, CNC
Certified Nutrition Consultant
FoodsThatHealYou.com