[Foodie Friday Recipe] Apple Ginger Kombucha

Enjoy this healthy and tasty beverage as a healthier alternative to sugary sodas! Here’s how to make your own apple ginger kombucha…
If you’re looking to kick the soda habit for the New Year, kombucha makes a great substitute! It’s delicious, full of healthy probiotics, and remarkably easy to make at home.
I’ve been making kombucha for a few months now, and though I love it just plain, when I get a little tired of it I like to kick things up a notch with some tasty flavorings. My favorites so far have been the cinnamon apple cider and the ginger versions that I tried a few weeks ago, and this apple ginger kombucha recipe looks like a great combination as well! Apple and ginger pair perfectly together with the sweet tang of kombucha, and the ginger gives it a nice warming element that’s so nice in the winter months.
If you already have a batch of regular kombucha brewing, you can skip the first part of the recipe and just go on to the secondary fermentation (Step 4) once your kombucha is ready.
This makes a one-gallon batch of apple ginger kombucha, but for a smaller batch, just cut down the ingredients appropriately.
Apple Ginger Kombucha Recipe
Yield: 1 Gallon
Time: 10 min. prep time + 10-12 days brewing time
Ingredients:
- 3 1/2 quarts water (NON-chlorinated!)
- 1 cup granulated sugar (organic preferred)
- 6 bags organic black tea
- 2 bags organic green tea
- 1 cup starter tea (kombucha from a previous batch)
- 1 SCOBY
- 1 gallon jar
For the Secondary Fermentation:
- 5 (16-ounce) glass airtight bottles
- 1 clean plastic bottle
- 12 tablespoons apple juice
- 12 slices fresh, peeled ginger (2-inch knob of ginger root – approx.)
Instructions:
- In a large saucepan, bring water and sugar to a boil. Add black and green tea bags, and remove from heat. Let steep 15 minutes. Remove tea bags, and let sit until cool, about 30 minutes.
- Pour cooled tea into gallon jar. Add starter tea and SCOBY. Cover jar with a paper towel or a coffee filter, and secure with rubber band.
- Set aside, covered, for 7 days at 70°F, out of direct sunlight.
- Secondary Fermentation: Pour tea into 5 glass bottles and 1 plastic bottle using a funnel. Add 2 tablespoons apple juice and add 2 slices of ginger to each bottle.
- Seal and set aside at room temperature for 3-7 days. When plastic bottle feels tight to the touch, the kombucha is ready to be consumed. Open with caution, as contents may have pressurized!
Recipe Source: CookingLight.com