DIY Kombucha Recipe with Sweetened with Raw Honeyh Raw Honey

by Lisa Johnson
Kombucha is all the rage. One finds kombucha in every health food store and local grocery store. Let's break down what Kombucha is and how to make it at home. On the base level, it is a fermented drink that consists of sweetened tea and a SCOBY.

What is a SCOBY?

SCOBY is an anachronism for “symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast.” The SCOBY is the catalyst in the fermentation process. It is also called, “The Mother” because it is consistently used in generations of kombucha batches. Like a sour dough starter (bread fermentation), each batch uses the original SCOBY to create a new SCOBY. Think of it as a sourdough starter, but for kombucha!

I recommend that Kombucha be made in one gallon batches. Here are the steps I follow.

The Kombucha Process

The first step in the process is cleanliness. This is a product that oneself and/or their family is consuming. All equipment should be sanitized that comes into contact with the kombucha. Starsan is a great sanitizer for an easy sanitizing system.

The Tea

The SCOBY is the catalyst of the fermentation and the tea is the base for the Kombucha. A loose black tea like Adagio’s Ceylon Sonata is perfect for the base tea.

First, bring two quarts of water to a boil. Then, steep the tea. I fill my tea infusers with 12 grams of tea per quart.

The tea must then cool to room temperature. Once the temperature is met, one cup of honey or organic sugar is added. This is the food for the SCOBY to grow.

The Waiting Begins

A SCOBY must be present to start the fermentation process. It maybe purchased from an organic SCOBY website or if a friend wishes to share a SCOBY to begin the process.

In a gallon glass container with a food grade spigot, the cooled sweetened tea is poured into the container. Another two quarts of room temperature bottled water is added.

The SCOBY is placed on top of the sweetened tea to float. A dish towel held in place by a rubber band covers the top. Place the container on top of a warming mat to maintain a constant room temperature. This needs time to ferment.

Flavoring the Kombucha

When the fermentation has reached an end point, it is time to bottle and flavor the kombucha.

The first step is to draw off a cup of the starter kombucha liquid. Then the SCOBY is removed to a holding dish (note that a new SCOBY layer has formed on top of the existing SCOBY).

The liquid is strained into a pourable container.

The sanitized bottling container must have a very tight lid. The flavoring of the kombucha is added into the bottling container.

Two tablespoons of Adagio Bee’s Lee Ann Townsend’s Raw Honey – Black Teas add a sweet taste to the kombucha.

Another nice addition is a 6 oz can of pineapple juice.

Then the strained kombucha is added to the bottle.

Leave enough head space in the container. Tightly close the container.

Set in a room temperature setting away from sunlight to continue the fermenting process.

When it is complete, refrigerate after opening.

Feeding the SCOBY

The SCOBY must be fed for the next fermentation cycle.

Another quart of sweetened tea must be made. The cleaned glass container with the food grade spigot will again be filled with the tea.

Remember to add the quart of bottle water. This time the reserved cup of kombucha from the last batch is added.

Finally, the SCOBY is floated on top. The towel is placed to cover the container. The container is returned to the heated mat for the next fermentation.

Fermentation at Home

Making kombucha at home is easy once the fermentation process is learned. Of the utmost importance is a cleaning! Make sure you have a sanitizing system to keep the food safe throughout all of the steps.

An organic SCOBY and the finest ingredients make a delicious kombucha that can be enjoyed at home.