Kombucha

Basic Kombucha Recipe - India Edition

It took my friends and family a good amount of time to get used to the boozy-tart taste of Kombucha, but now it is a favorite! I have a friend who demands I serve him Kombucha and only Kombucha every time he visits and gets really disappointed if we’re out of it. Some of the cafés in Vadodara have started serving Kombucha and the owners said that it was difficult to sell in the beginning. I am glad they got their customers and have continued to keep it on their menus. Here is my recipe of Kombucha. A few billion living things add the magic in this recipe.

This recipe makes 3 liters.

Ingredients:

1 SCOBY
1 cup kombucha starter liquid
11 cups of filtered water
10 tsp tea leaves(I use plain wagh bakri)
1 cup sugar

Method:

1. In a large sauce pan, bring the water to a rolling boil.

2. Transfer half the water to a clean 3l jar, add sugar to it and mix to dissolve with a clean spoon.

3. Turn off the flame. In the remaining water in the pan, add 10 tsp tea leaves and let it brew for 3 minutes.

4. Strain the brewed tea into the jar and let it cool to room temperature. Cover it with cloth or loosely with its lid.

   

5. Once completely cooled, add the SCOBY and starter liquid to the jar, cover with a clean cloth and rubber band and let it ferment in a dark, not too warm spot for 7-10 days.

6. Start tasting the Kombucha from day 7 onwards, it gets too sour too soon in Indian Summers. If your SCOBY is used to your weather, it might take full 10 days to be ready.

   

   Ready batch of Kombucha, the color changes to a lighter amber shade after fermentation.

7. Save 2 cups of Kombucha and SCOBY in a jar or make another batch with it. Bottle the rest and store in refrigerator. Serve chilled.

8. Flavoring: (optional)
   I always do a second ferment and flavor the Kombucha before consuming. Add up to 10% of fruit juice and/or pulp in a flip-top glass bottle and let this ferment for 2-3 days, then move it to the refrigerator.

   

   mint-orange flavor bottles ready for second fermentation

9. Some of my favorite flavors - ginger-lemon, ginger-mint, lemon-mint, ginger-basil, apple-ginger, apple, pineapple, pineapple-mint, orange, jamun, orange-mint.

Notes/Tips:

1. SCOBY is easily available on amazon. If you know me and live in Vadodara, let me know and I can send you a SCOBY and some starter liquid to help get your first batch started.

2. If you have tea bags, I have used Tetley by Tata with the same recipe and you can sub 1tsp with 1 teabag.

3. Make sure the tea is completely cooled before adding the SCOBY.

4. Help your future self, always label your ferments!

5. Keep a baking sheet or a plate under the bottles to prevent accidents.