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Day Three- Save the Humans (Kombucha)

By on April 26, 2010 in ferments, giveaways, Greenie-ness, Save The Humans
Alright, what the heck is Kombucha?  Kombucha is a living health drink made by fermenting tea and sugar with a kombucha culter turning it into a glass of full of vitamins, minerals, enzymes and health giving organic acids which are said to remove heavy metals from the body.  

The result tastes like something between sparkling apple cider and champagne depending on what type of tea you use.

What you will need: 

1. A Kombucha Scoby (symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast) pancake or mushroom (which it is not but is sometimes referred to as one.  It is also called a mother and with every batch a new scoby will grow attached to the mother which is called a baby.

2. 2 cups of “starter tea from a previous kombucha tea batch (or you can use organic vinegar if this is your first batch)

3. 5-6 bags of of tea (I use mostly green tea) or one spoonful of loose tea

4. One cup of sugar

5.  3 quarts of good water, not chlorinated, distilled or good well water.

6. A one gallon or larger glass container, a sun tea jar works great.

7. clean cotton cloth, paper towel or coffee filter to cover the mouth to the jar and a rubber band to hold it in place.

Lets get started:  Boil your water but do not over boil you just want to get it to a boil and then you are done.  Over boiling destroys the oxygen and carbon dioxide that your scoby will need.  

Next, steep your tea.  Some people steep for a few minutes some overnight, it is up to you.  

Add the sugar and mix to dissolve.  Now set it aside until it is room temperature.  You will kill your scoby if you add it to hot water and I am sure you don’t want to kill your mother. 

Add your 2 cups of starter tea or vinegar and then add your scoby.  It may sink, float or go on its side.  It is OK.  A scoby will grow to fit whatever size or shape container you put it in.  

Cover your jar with the cloth and rubber band to keep out organisms including fruit flies who love kombucha! Put it away in a nice quiet place where you won’t disturb it for 6-8 days.  Around day 3 you may notice a whitish film is developing on the surface of your tea.  This is not mold it is your kombucha baby and you will get a new one every time you make a new batch.  

On or around day 6 you can try your kombucha by dipping a straw in covered by your finger to soak up some liquid into the straw.  Try it and if you like it then you are done.  If you are brewing in a sun tea jar you can just use the spigot.  Once it is to your liking you are ready to drink your kombucha.  If you let it go too long, it will continue to ferment and you will end up with vinegar which you can use in any way that you can use vinegar.

Take your mother out of the jar and separate it from the baby by peeling it apart.  Put on a clean plate and pour out your finished kombucha.  There may be some brown sluggy looking stuff at the bottom.  This is used up yeast and is safe to drink but some people filter their tea before drinking it.  Start your new batch and add your baby (and mother if you like) to it or you can just start two batches of kombucha.  You can also give the mother or baby away so someone else can become a kombucha friend.

Enjoy!!



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Save the Humans Day Two- Milk Kefir

By on April 23, 2010 in ferments, giveaways, Greenie-ness, Save The Humans

Yesterday we discussed water kefir but today we are going on the kefir most people know (if they know about it at all).

Kefir is really easy to make.  The first thing you will need to make kefir is kefir grains.  They are not really grains, they look like little heads of cauliflower and feel gummy in your hand.  These grains are living organisms which produce a fermented milk drink which some people compare to yogurt although it is very different and much, much better for you.  Yogurt is good for your gut, but kefir is like yogurt on steroids good for your gut.

You cannot buy kefir grains at any store, you can only get them from someone who makes it and has excess grains.  Many people sell their excess grains online or you could ask a tree hugging friend (like me).  As you make kefir batch after kefir batch your kefir grains will grow and multiply a little during each batch and then you too will be able to provide this life changing drink to other people.  You can buy Kefir at the store though real kefir is not bottleable (is that a word?).  It would explode the bottle so it’s just another one of those things that make you go hmmm.

OK, back to how to make kefir.  In a large glass container,  you add 1/2 cup of kefir grains to 6-7 cups of milk.  Whatever kind of milk you drink should be OK including soy milk, rice milk, coconut milk or any other type of milk alternative.  Organic milk, raw milk and homogenized milk (the regular milk you can buy at any store) all ferment and work to make kefir.  Cover your jar with a cloth and rubber band or a jar lid.  Do not screw the lid on too tight, you want the gases to be able to escape.

Next put your jar somewhere and after 12 to 24 hours, your kefir will be ready to drink.  I keep mine in a kitchen cabinet.  Next, you should take a plastic or wooden spoon and gently mix the kefir to mix up the solids and liquids and make it easier to strain.  Get your plastic strainer (no metal) and put it over a bowl to catch your finished kefir.  Put your grains, which stayed in the strainer, back into your container and fill with milk. Repeat forever or as long as you want to make kefir.  (Dirty secret:  I do not wash my grains, I just put them back in the container which I rinse with plain water but some people don’t even wash the container)  You may notice a substance on your grains which is a little slippery, this is called kefiran and this is the good stuff that keeps your gut healthy.

Your finished kefir will have a pleasantly sour taste and lots of people drink it just like that but in my home we add stuff to give it flavor.  Our two favorite ways to make it are putting strawberries and a little honey or turbinado sugar in the blender.  The other way we love it is a big scoop of orange juice concentrate, honey, or turbinado sugar and a teaspoon of vanilla, it tastes like a creamsicle.

But Tricia, what do I do if I go on vacation?  Well, us farmers don’t really go on vacation very much but if we did we would just put our grains with fresh milk in the fridge where they go to sleepy time.  If you plan on keeping them there longer than one week, change the milk every week or two at the most.  Your kefir grains will live as long as you do if you take care of them.  Enjoy!

Tomorrow, I will be blogging about the last of life changing ferments… kombucha.  Stay tuned for the information and to find out who the winner of the giveaway is.

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