Fermented Drink for Gut Health

Kombucha Recipe for improved immunity + gut health”The active substances of Kombucha assist the whole body system through its friendly metabolistic properties.”

Popular in the East for over 2,000 years, Kombucha has made its for being the “Immortal Health Elixir”. Made from sweetened tea that’s been fermented by a symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast (SCOBY). It’s an incredibly easy, home brew of health that you introduce in to your daily health regime.

During the fermentation and oxidation processes, the scoby goes through a diverse chemical reaction as it feeds on the sugary tea. In exchange, it produces other incredibly valuable substances that contribute towards its health benefits, and is therefore an actual tiny biochemical factory. Some of which include:

• glucuron-acid
• lactic acid
• vitamins
• amino acids
• antibiotic substances, and other products

The active substances of Kombucha address the whole body system. Through its friendly metabolistic properties, it can reestablish a normal condition in the cellular membranes without any side-effects and thus promote one happy camper. Let us use these natural powers for maintaining our vitality, activity, as well as our mental and physical capacities.

Consider Kombucha and all other fermented foods your daily dose of pro-biotics, good bacteria, said to help with:

• Gut health e.g. constipation
• Immune conditions e.g. rhinitis
• Candida e.g. thrush
• Arterioclerosis
• General well-being
• Brain fog
• Joint health e.g. osteoarthritis
• Detoxification
• Mental Stress

This month, I have been playing with seasonal flavours that arrived in my Veg Box from Riverford but the joy of having a home brew is that you can get totally creative! So use the recipe below as a guideline but let those creative juices flow with your own Kombucha batch.

For more information, please visit: Acupuncture.com and Kombucha Kamp.

Recipe

Kombucha tea is really easy to make and perfect for home brewing. Below is a list of equipment you’ll need to get started.

4 litre kilner with tap (alternative sizes may be used, just alter the recipe accordingly. I always find it easier to pull off the liquid with the tap nozzle too). Sterilize before use.

Plastic or Wooden spoon for stirring.Below is a list of ingredients needed for making the initial base to kombucha tea.

Active Kombucha Scoby

Tea Bags or Loose Tea (can be black, green or white)

Pure, organic cane sugar

Starter tea

Unfluoridated/unchlorinated water (filtered from a good source)
Kombucha tea can be made inside different sized glass vessels. I always find it easiest to make it in a kilner jar with a tap and a clip seal top. Here are details of different quantities of ingredients according to the size of glass jar you are using. Feel free to alter the ingredients according to size that you are using.

Method

Combine hot water and sugar in a glass jar. Stir until the sugar dissolves. The water should be hot enough to steep the tea but does not have to be boiling.

Place the tea or tea bags in the sugar water to brew

Cool the mixture to room temperature The tea may be left in there for up to 30 minutes.

Remove the tea bags or completely strain the loose tea leaves from the liquid.

Add starter tea from a previous batch to the liquid.
Add an active kombucha scoby.

Cover the jar either with a tight-weave towel or coffee filter and secure with a rubber band. Alternatively, you may just leave the top loosely sealed if this is a clip seal jar. It’s really important that the liquid can breathe as the fermentation process will produce gas and could cause your jar to explode!

Allow the mixture to sit undisturbed at room temperature, out of direct sunlight, for 14-21 days. The longer the kombucha to ferment, the less sweet and more vinegary it will taste.

Pour kombucha off the top of the jar for consuming or pour it through the tap. Retain the scoby and 20% of the liquid from the bottom of the jar to use as starter tea for the next batch.

The finished kombucha can be flavored and bottled, if desired, or enjoyed plain.

Once the kombucha has finished culturing, remove the scoby and enjoy it plain or add flavoring. There is no limit to the flavoring possibilities. Just be aware that a tightly sealed bottle will need to be burped 1-2 x per day as it will be very fizzy and could explode. I like to use seasonal fruit so recently I tried “Yin & Yang”: Mint, Kiwi & Lemon!