Kombucha -- Has anyone made it?

[heabrook]

Hi,

We were given a kombucha starter to make our own kombucha. I was wondering if anyone has made it because all of the directions that I find tell you to use black, white or green tea. Do you have to use tea or can you just use water?

Thanks. I hope someone here has made it before. If not, then I guess I will just use some type of tea... :)

We buy raw kombucha but I do not know how they make it. I am going to contact them and see if they will tell me or at least give me some idea.

[veganman]

Hi Heabrook -

I used to make it all the time. Here is what I did:


Boil 8 cups water for 10 minutes to sterilize
Add 1 cup raw organic sugar and stir to dissolve.
Add 2 Tbsp Green, Black, or White tea. I also used chamomile with some success, but don't know that that would slowly kill the kombucha baby. Let sit for 30 minutes.
Remove the tea bag and let cool.
Pour into 1 gallon glass jar and add baby.
Cover with a clean porous towel and rubberband. Put brown paper bag over and let sit for 2 - 3 weeks to your taste.
After harvesting, pour in glass bottles and store in the refrigerator. We also add ginger juice at this stage.


Make sure everything is sterile and don't let the baby come into contact with metal.

I think that is it - let me know if you have other questions. :)

[heabrook]

Thanks so much veganman. I am going to try that. I would like to use chamomile rather than a tea with caffeine but, from what you said, it seems like it works better with black or green tea.

[veganman]

I had just read in a couple of places that it would produce a less-than-viable baby. Maybe do the other teas until you have a couple of extra babies to experiment, then try the chamomile.

The kombucha from the chamomile turned out fine. I don't know if there would have been any long-term affects because I stopped drinking it at about that time.

[mrsalf97]

You can use decaf green tea. I'm getting my first culture tomorrow. Celestial seasonings has decaf green tea and there are no staples in the bags.

[Conscious Midwife]

WHAT IS KOMBUCHA????????????????

[Conscious Midwife]

BUMP :D
I still need to know what it is?!?!?!?!?

[mongomango]

BUMP :D
I still need to know what it is?!?!?!?!?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=405477&in_page_id=1770

[Chickadee]

The tea & sugar used play a major role in your Kombucha. Here are a couple of links with good info.

http://www.sulis-health.co.uk/kombucha/kombucha.shtml

http://www.geocities.com/kombucha_balance/#No%20SCOBY

[Sheryl]

It's a bacteria / yeast culture that you grow on sweetened tea. Many think it's a muchroom, but it just looks like one!

I've never tried it, but do know there are heaps of books about it. Some consider it raw (if unpasteurized), but I think it's more that it can be LIVING, even though it was made from non raw ingredients. From what I've read it doesn't grow well on raw sweeteners.

[flyingpositive]

Hi heabrook,
kombucha is great! Gets a little expensive buying it at HFS all the time though. Here is a website that gives very thorough detailed instructions (including pictures at each stage). www.kombuchatea.co.uk Hope it helps!!

[KombuchaCHIC]

I love kombucha and make it all the time. Yes, you do need tea to make it, that is what kombucha is partially...a fermented tea beverage. Here is my recipe.

Boil 3 qts of water, then add 1 cup of sugar and let it continue to boil for about 5 minutes. Take off heat and add 5 tea bags, (preferally black or green) and let steep for 20 minutes. Remove the tea bags and let the tea mixture cool completely. Transfer to a large glass jar or bowl and add the kombucha mushroom shiny side up. Pour your kombucha starter tea over this and cover with a breathable cloth and secure with an elastic band. Keep your kombucha out of direct sunlight while it is fermenting and try not to move it around too much. It will take about 7-15 days to ferment, depending on how cold or hot the location is. If it is warmer, it will tend to ferment faster. It should be around 70-75 degrees. When the kombucha is ready, (you should taste test it to your preferences) bottle it up, or transfer to a pitcher, and enjoy! You can gently seperate the kombucha mother and baby, (the baby will grow on top) and store these in the fridge in some kombucha tea.

Good luck,
Heather

[sptygl]

can somebody tell me the health benefits of this???????/ :confused: