Kombucha

Niki_Fitz

I'm curious about kombucha after trying it last week and loving it.

Does anyone drink it regularly? Does anyone make it? I'm just learning about fermented foods and have always enjoyed them; anyone have opinions on the benefits as a probiotic?

Tionne31

I was routinely drinking kombucha for all the supposed health benefits and I was making it. I have a scoby motel that is in my pantry that is doing its thing, I have kept it only because if you allow it to ferment long enough it turns in to ACV so I use it for that purpose when I run out. Initially I felt amazing drinking it and it satisfied my carbonation obsession. However, it led to my first and only yeast infection in 33+ years and I had to discontinue my use as it was the most horrific experience ever.

Tried30UserNames

I like it. I used to make my own. I like it plain with about half water/half kombucha, but most people like flavored. My scoby died when I moved into my apartment and I can't grow another one despite repeated tries. I also can't make sourdough here. I'm a little afraid as to what that says about my apartment that cultures won't grow.

I use this recipe: https://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/video-thursday-how-to-make-kombucha/

It's pretty easy to grow a scoby to make your kombucha. Boil some water. Add organic tea bags and sugar. I usually make about 1-2 cups fairly strong tea and add maybe 1/4 cup or less regular white sugar. After the tea cools pour the sweetened tea into a mason jar of appropriate size.

Buy a bottle of plain, organic, unpasteurized (raw) kombucha at the store. I usually try to find a bottle that has a lot of those strings (scoby snot) at the bottom. Pour the kombucha into the cooled, room temperature tea. Cover the jar with a dish towel or cheesecloth and rubber band to keep out bugs. Put the jar aside for a few weeks. Mine always seemed happy in a dark walk in closet, but never thrived if I put it in a small kitchen cupboard or left it on the counter. I guess it liked the air circulation and darkness of the bigger room.

A scoby should grow. It will probably take about 3 weeks, more or less. It will grow faster in a hot summer and slower in cold winter. It may be at the top of the jar or it may float around or be on the bottom. Technically, what you've got in that jar is now kombucha, but it won't taste good. Throw that first batch of tea away and make another batch with the Scoby you've just grown.

When making kombucha, I've always decided mine was ready when it smelled like kombucha. If it smelled too sweet, I knew it needed longer to ferment. If it smelled to vinegary, I'd probably left it too long and it would taste better if I diluted it with more water.

As for health benefits, I don't know. It gives me lots of energy even if I use decaf tea.

Strawblackcat

I usually drink about 28 oz of it a day or so. I do make my own, but I must admit that I really like some of the local ones in my area. The place I work at actually has kombucha on tap, which I love. My current flavor of choice is one that's flavored with organic cold brew coffee.

It really seems to help me with my digestive problems. I try to eat or drink something fermented with each meal, so kombuch is a easy way for me to accomplish that.

eep223

I used to make it and loved it. I just don't want it often enough to keep up with it, though, so it fell by the wayside. If you enjoy doing that, you should try making your own yogurt too! I like it so much more than store-bought.

icemom011

I make my own, and do second fermentation with fruits, juices, etc, trying different flavors to keep it interesting.

Niki_Fitz

Thanks everyone for sharing. I like that some people have brewed it successfully. I think I might try. @Tried30UserNames thanks for those specifics on brewing. The scoby part intimidates me!

Niki_Fitz

@tionne31 that's too bad that it made you sick...

Here's another question: do fermented items run some risks for bacterial issues or are they generally safe? When you brew at home, do you sterilize everything?

Tionne31

Yes they run the risk for bacteria production. You must sterilize everything very well. You must handle your scoby with freshly washed hands, I normally have a container with vinegar in it and after washing my hands and touching nothing else (I don't dry them) I place them directly into the vinegar and then handle the scoby. I hope this makes sense. There are several pictures online of what bad/spoiled scoby looks like to help you. I hope this helps and wish you the best on your Kombucha making journey!!

Skipjack66

Can someone tell me if you're supposed to drink the stuff on the bottom of the GTs bottle? It says don't shake- so I don't. But then all this sediment is on the bottom at the end and so I just throw out the last inch. It seems like a waste at four bucks a bottle. Thanks

JeromeBarry1

I have been making kombucha for several weeks and drinking about a 1 cup each day.
I make it in a 1 gallon jug with a spigot at the bottom. It's basically an iced tea dispenser that I picked up at Wal-Mart. When I want to harvest the kombucha, I open the spigot and collect the kombucha. I leave some of the kombucha in the gallon jug to acidify the new tea, which I add immediately after harvesting. I have never touched the mother. It just rises and falls in the jug as I harvest kombucha and replenish with tea.

I have not added additional juices to experiment with flavors and tastes.

I was doing it wrong for a time by collecting the finished kombucha in a 1 gallon jug which did not have a sealing lid. This allowed volatiles to evaporate and escape, and whatever that is called produced a very vinegary taste. I recently collected the finished kombucha in canning jars of 1/2 gallon and 1 qt capacity, and promptly screwed the lids on tightly. I've been consuming from the 1 qt jug for a few days and this batch of kombucha is much more pleasant tasting. The 1/2 gallon jug has been sealed with kombucha and kept in a cabinet at room temperature. I expect it will be under high pressure when I attempt to first open it, so I'll be careful.


@skipjack66, that stuff in the GT's bottle isn't sediment, it's baby SCOBY. If your GT's is either plain or ginger flavored, you can use it to start making your own kombucha.

JeromeBarry1

wellnesschaser wrote: »

@tionne31 that's too bad that it made you sick...

Here's another question: do fermented items run some risks for bacterial issues or are they generally safe? When you brew at home, do you sterilize everything?

There are many different fermented items. It seems that kombucha is the one most at risk of contamination.

Kefir, on the other end of the scale, is strong enough that Russian doctors use it as a disinfectant. Kefir conquers e. coli.

JeromeBarry1

eep223 wrote: »

I used to make it and loved it. I just don't want it often enough to keep up with it, though, so it fell by the wayside. If you enjoy doing that, you should try making your own yogurt too! I like it so much more than store-bought.

Speaking of which, I've been trying to make my own yogurt with varying degrees of success for several months. My most recent batch was an effort to make my own greek yogurt, not by straining whey from regular yogurt, but by using powdered milk to make first a very dense milk and then converting that to yogurt through the regular inoculation and temperature maintenance method. It worked.

I wanted to make 1/2 gallon of Greek yogurt. This was a function of my equipment. I intended to use a crock pot and a probe-type thermometer to monitor the temperature. My crock pot was so large that the thermometer could not reach 1 qt of milk, but could reach 2 qts of milk in the pot. I used 4 qt's worth of Great Value non-fat powdered milk along with 2 qt's worth of NIDO powdered fortified whole milk. The resultant 'milk' was quite thick. I inoculated it with a tablespoon of a plain yogurt (with live active cultures), held it at 110F-115F for 8 hours by carefully monitoring the thermometer, keeping the crock pot covered in towels, and occasionally turning the pot on to "keep warm" for a few minutes to raise the temperature back to the fermenting range. It was easier done than just described. My yogurt product, after 8 hours, was thick, creamy, and delicious!

icemom011

Skipjack66 wrote: »

Can someone tell me if you're supposed to drink the stuff on the bottom of the GTs bottle? It says don't shake- so I don't. But then all this sediment is on the bottom at the end and so I just throw out the last inch. It seems like a waste at four bucks a bottle. Thanks

Yes, you can drink all of it. Shaking is not recommended because it will cause a mini explosion, kind of like shaking soda can and then opening it. But you can gently swirl it around after you drunk some, and consume every last drop

icemom011

Tionne31 wrote: »

Yes they run the risk for bacteria production. You must sterilize everything very well. You must handle your scoby with freshly washed hands, I normally have a container with vinegar in it and after washing my hands and touching nothing else (I don't dry them) I place them directly into the vinegar and then handle the scoby. I hope this makes sense. There are several pictures online of what bad/spoiled scoby looks like to help you. I hope this helps and wish you the best on your Kombucha making journey!!

I just wanted to put my 2 cents here. You really don't have to sterilize everything. Cleaning your jars with soap and rinsing really well is enough. Especially if soap you're using is antibacterial. Traces of it, it left behind, will kill the scoby. Washing your hands in vinegar is a waste of time and effort. Clean hands are sufficient, again, rinsed well so no soap left on them. Yes, scoby can turn moldy, and then you would have to discard tea and scoby. To prevent that, when setting up your tea, you must check the acidity level. It should read below 4.0. So ph meter is very important. It assures that itea will ferment correctly instead of spoiling. Making your own kombucha is fun and easy, takes a little time, but sooo worth it! I've been doing it going on a year, we drink a couple of bottles a day. Give it a try, op.

WickAndArtoo

Love kombucha, it's the only carbonated drink I like and I would drink it everyday if I could! I don't make it because we travel so much but if we didn't travel for work I would absolutely make my own! I've never really noticed any health benefits other than it settling my stomach and feeling refreshed, but that's just me

icemom011

JeromeBarry1 wrote: »

eep223 wrote: »

I used to make it and loved it. I just don't want it often enough to keep up with it, though, so it fell by the wayside. If you enjoy doing that, you should try making your own yogurt too! I like it so much more than store-bought.

Speaking of which, I've been trying to make my own yogurt with varying degrees of success for several months. My most recent batch was an effort to make my own greek yogurt, not by straining whey from regular yogurt, but by using powdered milk to make first a very dense milk and then converting that to yogurt through the regular inoculation and temperature maintenance method. It worked.

I wanted to make 1/2 gallon of Greek yogurt. This was a function of my equipment. I intended to use a crock pot and a probe-type thermometer to monitor the temperature. My crock pot was so large that the thermometer could not reach 1 qt of milk, but could reach 2 qts of milk in the pot. I used 4 qt's worth of Great Value non-fat powdered milk along with 2 qt's worth of NIDO powdered fortified whole milk. The resultant 'milk' was quite thick. I inoculated it with a tablespoon of a plain yogurt (with live active cultures), held it at 110F-115F for 8 hours by carefully monitoring the thermometer, keeping the crock pot covered in towels, and occasionally turning the pot on to "keep warm" for a few minutes to raise the temperature back to the fermenting range. It was easier done than just described. My yogurt product, after 8 hours, was thick, creamy, and delicious!

Mmmm, homemade yogurt. Sounds delicious!

bbell1985

I made it a couple times. Pretty gross to make. I like kombucha but I rarely want to drink calories so I don't have it. When I'm feeling unwell I'll get some. I have no idea if it's a placebo or what but it makes me feel a little better when I'm...woozy/off feeling.