Nele Brügge
Researcher and PhD Student at DFKI and the University of Luebeck
nele.bruegge [AT] dfki.de
Basic Black Tea-Based Kombucha Recipe
Fermented tea drink, brewed with black tea, sugar, and a scoby that hopefully got a cool name B-)
Ingredients
- 1 l water
- 10 g black tea (or 2 tbsp loose leaf)
- 150-175 g white sugar
- Some unflavored kombucha (from previous batch)
- 1 scoby
Instructions
- Bring water to a boil in a clean pot. Remove from heat and add the black tea. Allow tea to steep for about 15 minutes. Remove tea bags, then stir in sugar until dissolved. Let tea cool to room temperature.
- Pour the cooled sweet tea into a large glass fermenting jar (at least 1 gallon capacity).
- If available, add some unflavored kombucha (starter liquid). Gently place the scoby on top of the tea mixture.
- Cover the jar with a clean cloth or paper towel secured with a rubber band. Let ferment at room temperature (21-24°C), out of direct sunlight, for 6–10 days. Begin tasting after 6 days.
- Reserve 2 cups of finished kombucha to use as a starter for the next batch (scoby hotel :)). Bottle the remainder for drinking and refrigerate.
- Tip: You can add fruit or herbs and bottle for another 2–5 days for a “second fermentation” to carbonate and add flavor. I especially like ginger and lemon or raspberry.