Who likes kombucha? The process of making kombucha beverage

Kombucha is a beverage that has been very popular lately. It’s texture resembles a sparkling tea. I drink it because it is believed to help with various disorders in the gastrointestinal system.

As it sometimes has an odd smell, we usually enrich it with various spices and ingredients such as mastic, or turmeric, or lime zest.

Basic preparatory steps:

· You must have 2-3 large glass bowls (of 4-8 ltrs) open on the top so that your hand can enter. Also, the bowl you will utilise, as well as the rest of the equipment used, should be cleaned with vinegar. Your hands too.

· The water used should also be boiled.

· You procure a kombucha mushroom either from a store with biological products, or from a friend who has already cultivated it. You can also produce one by using vinegar and yeast.

· A couple of cheese cloths and elastic bands.

· Glass bottles for storage (I have more than 20 bottles so that there are enough for future cultivations)

Ingredients for the basic preparation of the beverage: 1 ½ - 2 ltrs water, 4 spoons of black tea (alternatively 4 tea bags of black tea), 1 cup of white sugar, 1 kombucha mushroom

Now, on to the preparation: in the clean glass bowl, I put the hot water, the tea bags and the sugar and stir till the sugar melts. I let the water get cold and I remove the tea bags. With my clean hands I put the mushroom in the tea-water. I cover with cheesecloth very well (use an elastic band) and place it in a cool place or cupboard, with no odours, for 7-14 days. The timing depends on the temperature of the place. You understand that the beverage is done, once the mushroom covers the entire surface of the tea-water – that is, once it has consumed the sugar.

With my clean hands I take out the mushroom, once the beverage is ready, and keep it in a clean bowl for future use (saved along with ½ cup of the beverage). I cover it with cheesecloth. Sometimes kombucha mushroom produces a second brother-mushroom. This can be stored in the fridge for future uses or given away. Each kombucha mushroom can be used c.10 times.

I transfuse the beverage in clean bottles, store them outside the fridge for 2-3 days and then into the fridge. Once you put them in the fridge the brewing stops. While they are kept outside of the fridge there is brewing taking place; that is why you should be extra careful not to have an explosion of the bottles. At the stage of transfusing the beverage in the clean bottles you can use various spices in order to give different flavours: use mastic powder, or 5-6 cloves, 2-3 cinnamon sticks or 1stsp of ginger root sliced, or a stick of lemon verbena, or any other ingredient you like. Also you can add flavors at the stage of serving kombucha tea. Just improvise!

I hope I have managed to transmit the entire process that we do at home, with my poor English. If you have any questions don’t hesitate to ask!

Enjoy!