JayasheeI am on a fermentation kick with all of this sourdough and kimchi! Determined to cut down on my kombucha spending, Rick got me a kombucha shop kit for Christmas, and I’m here to tell you it is worth the effort! If it’s your first time brewing kombucha, I would recommend purchasing a kit because it’s super cost effective and comes with a scoby. If not, I’ve linked to individual ingredients below. Kombucha is a vegan staple, and with good reason. It’s an amazing source of probiotics which help keep your gut bacteria healthy, and it’s also rich in antioxidants. We brewed our most recent batch with yerba mate which boasts having a more even delivery of caffeine due to some powerful alkaloids and lots of minerals. Plus it’s delicious AF. This is how we made it:
Hibiscus Yerba Mate Kombucha
Ingredients:
1 Scoby
1 cup kombucha starter
3 tbsp yerba mate
1/2 cup dried hibiscus flowers
1 cup organic evaporated cane sugar
12 cups filtered water, divided
Directions
Chill 8 cups of water ahead of time.
Bring 4 cups of water to a boil. In the meantime, add the yerba mate and hibiscus into a cotton tea bag. Steep the tea mixture for 10 minutes, then remove your tea and discard the leaves. Mix in your sugar and stir until it is completely evaporated. Pour your tea mixture into a gallon jar and then top with the chilled water.
With a jar thermometer, check the temperature of your water. You want your temperature between 68-84 degrees so you don’t harm your delicate bb scoby.
Once your tea is in the correct temperature range, add in your scoby and starter and give it a gentle stir. Top your container with cotton cloth and seal it with a rubber band. Keep those bugs OUT! Place your container in warm place out of direct sunlight and with good airflow.
Let your kombucha brew for about 7-14 days. Letting your kombucha brew for 14 days will yield a fizzier kombucha and the bacteria will eat more of the sugar so you don’t have to! If you can’t handle a tart kombucha, I would suggest testing a small amount around day 7-9.
When it tastes delicious, you should hide it away in the back of your fridge so no one else can find it but you.
Bottle that bucha and don’t forget to save a cup of your starter with your scoby and new little baby scoby for the next batch!
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