---
title: Kombucha
tags: []
up: "[[recipes]]"
---
# Kombucha

**Kombucha** is fermented tea, often flavored with fruit or spices.

The **pellicle** is the cellulose mat
that grows on the top of the kombucha during first fermentation.
the pellicle is often referred to as the **SCOBY**
(Symbiotic Colony of Bacteria and Yeast),
but this is not accurate.
During fermentation, the SCOBY lives in the pellicle _and_ the tea.
**Only the SCOBY is necessary for creating a new batch,**
which is why its possible to use store-bought kombucha as starter tea,
although adding the pellicle does help speed things along.

## Recipe

### First Fermentation

1. Bring 2 cups of water to boil.

2. Remove from heat
    and add 4 tea bags or 4 tsp. tea leaves.
    Set a timer for 15 minutes.

3. Add 3/8 cup sugar and stir until dissolved.

4. After 15 minutes, strain out the leaves
    and add the hot sweet tea to a glass jar.

5. Add 4 cups of cool water to dilute the tea
    and bring the temperature down to 70--90°F.

6. Add the 1 cup of kombucha and the pellicle
    leftover from the previous brewing.

7. Cover the jar with a coffee filter and secure it with a screw band.

8. Let ferment for 7--9 days at room temperature (70--85°F)
    in a shaded spot with some airflow.

#### Notes

* Decaf tea is not recommended,
    the SCOBY feeds on all nutrients in the tea, caffeine included.

* Ignore recipes that call for vinegar.

### Second Fermentation

1. Set aside 1 cup of kombucha and the pellicle for the next brewing.

2. Stir the remaining kombucha.

3. Add 1/2 cup of pureed or juiced fruit to a 16 oz glass flip-top bottle.

4. Add the kombucha to the bottle, leaving about an inch of head-space.

5. Let ferment for 2--3 days at room temperature.

6. Refrigerate until fully chilled before serving.

#### Notes

* To keep from making a mess, only ever open when fully chilled.

* If after refrigerating the kombucha is not sufficiently carbonated,
    it can be left at room temperature for a day or so to ferment more.
    Fully chill in the refrigerator before testing.

* Ignore recipes that direct you to "burp" your bottles during second fermentation.
    It's pointless and slows carbonation.
    Don't use shitty bottles and there's no risk of explosion.

## Quick Maintenance

1. Remove the pellicle from the jar
    to a temporary vessel.

2. Stir or swirl the kombucha
    to distribute the culture
    before filling