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Penny Allen's Kombucha

Kombucha is a fermented drink made from sweet tea. It is said to have many health benefits when consumed regularly. Our fermentation shed at the school keeps our Farm Shop continuously stocked up with Kombucha of all different flavours.

750ml (1 1/3 pints approx./generous 3 cups) boiling water

2 teaspoons loose leaf tea or 2 teabags (green, white or black -organic is best)

150g (5oz/generous 1/2 cup) organic caster sugar

1.25litres (generous 2 pints/5 cups) filtered water

250ml (9fl oz/generous 1 cup) Kombucha

1 Kombucha SCOBY (Symbiotic Colony of Bacteria and Yeast)

Equipment - 3 litre Kilner jar or large Pyrex bowl or similar. Measuring jug

(Don’t use a metal container when brewing kombucha)

Make the tea with 750ml of boiling water in teapot or bowl. Let this sit for a few minutes to infuse.  Strain the tea into your brewing vessel.

Add the caster sugar and stir to dissolve.

Add the filtered water and stir again. The temperature of the sweetened tea should now be tepid and you should have just over 2 litres (3 1/2 pints/scant 9 cups) of liquid.

Add 250ml of Kombucha and the Scoby.

Cover jar or bowl with a clean cloth tied around with string or an elastic band. Don’t be tempted to put a lid on it because the Kombucha Scoby needs air to thrive.

Put in a warmish place for a week to ten days. It should be out of direct sunlight and somewhere it won’t have to be moved. After 5 days you can use a plastic spoon to take a taste and after 7 – 10 days it should be ready. The taste you are looking for is a pleasing balance between sweet and sour.

Bottling

Lift off the Scoby and put it in a bowl with 250ml of your just brewed Kombucha and cover this with a plate or bowl while you bottle the rest.

Pour the brewed Kombucha into bottles through a funnel (makes 2 1/2 x 750ml bottles), or into another large Kilner jar. You can then store this in the fridge and enjoy as it is, or you can do a second ferment to add flavour and extra nutritional benefits!


Second Fermentation

To each bottle you can add a handful of any of the following:

  • Fresh or frozen (defrosted) raspberries.
  • Fresh or frozen (defrosted) strawberries and 1 teaspoon raw cacao
  • 1/2 apple and a small beetroot chopped
  • 1 ripe peach sliced

Let this sit for 24/48 hours at room temperature with a lid on and then strain out the fruit (or vegetables) and bottle. Store in the fridge and enjoy. Delicious!

This is a recipe by
Penny Allen
View all my recipes

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