For this post, I just want to share about Kombucha. I didn't know anything about Kombucha until I saw some Instagram post of the fashion people that I follow; Chriselle Lim. But, I didn't really bother much. Then, I also saw in my friend's instagram and path, seems it's a very unique stuff. Again, I didn't bother.
Out of curiosity, I met with Jesslyn when I was in London and she shared with me some stuff. That's where she mentioned again about Kombucha. I was reading how to make it but seems it's quite difficult to get the ingredients in Singapore, especially the Scoby. Even though it may exist, but it could be just expensive. So, she gave me her scoby and a little bit of Kombucha to fill the jar with scoby.
Kombucha
These are the steps that I did to make Kombucha:
1. Brew tea in a jar
You may only use black tea, green tea or rooibos tea. Do not use any other kind of tea as their herbs could kill the bacteria that helps to grow your Kombucha.
2. Add sugar
Add lots of sugar. Again, this is my habit, I don't have any measuring, I just pour the sugar and make sure it's sweet. It's best to avoid any metal contamination to your tea. You may spin the jar, twirl and make sure the sugar are mixed well.
3. Cool down
Let the tea cool down to room temperature, you may have to wait about up to 2 hours. Or if you are in a rush, you may cool it down in freezer about 20 minutes. Make sure to keep an eye on it!
4. Add SCOBY
Just put the scoby in the jar of room temperature tea.
SCOBY
5. Add previous batch Kombucha OR Apple Vinegar
As I had the previous batch, so I used it and it works well. Further more, the SCOBY grows!
If you only have the Scoby, you may want to add Apple Vinegar as the starter. Your first batch taste will be a little bit weird and a bit nasty but the second batch will be back to normal taste.
6. Cover the jar lid with cloth and rubber band
After all done, cover the top and keep it in the room temperature and dark place. For me, I place it inside a cabinet in the kitchen. As for my friend, she put it on top of her fridge. Either or, whatever that may suits you.
To grow SCOBY:
I read few articles on how to grow SCOBY. There are few ways, but I'm just gonna share with you on how I did and it works for me.1. By mixing the brewed tea and Kombucha (without any SCOBY)
You may follow the steps on the above, however do not add SCOBY - perhaps you may not have. But you HAVE to ADD the previous batch of Kombucha. I did about 1/2 brewed tea and 1/2 Kombucha.
I left it for 7 days and I had about 1/4 inches of SCOBY.
In some articles that I read, some Kombucha may not grow especially if you purchase it from a store. In States they were controlling the amount of yeast as it may have alcohol contained, hence it's very difficult to grow the SCOBY from Kombucha store-purchased. If you get the Kombucha from your friend whom regularly make Kombucha, then go ahead to do this step.
2. Make a SCOBY hotel
If you have like few SCOBY and don't know where to keep it yet you just want to brew a little bit. Scoby hotel is a great alternative, besides to keep the Scoby, you may grow it too.
I just put Kombucha (pure Kombucha - no additional fresh tea / flavor) into a container and keep it in my room temperature cabinet.
Left if for a week and it grows about 1/2 cm, it's quite slow but at least it works
Few FAQs about Kombucha:
What is Kombucha?
Kombucha is a fermented tea, lightly effervescent sweetened black or green tea drinks that are commonly used as functional beverages for their unsubstantiated health benefits.
It's also considered as a probiotic beverages.
How does it taste like?
For the first time, of course it is weird. I found it like a spoilt sour-sweet tea with some soda. It does sounds disgusting right? But, after few times, my tongue is able to adjust to its flavor.
What is SCOBY?
SCOBY is Symbiosis Colony of Bacteria and Yeast. Ikr, it sounds like what? A colony? But trust me, these stuff are the one that fermented the tea. I'm not really good with science but the Kombucha could be made as the SCOBY eats the sugar (sweet) in the tea and turns into sour flavor and also some effervescent.
SCOBY "mother"
You may throw it when the SCOBY turns brown, the new one should like a broken white color. To get best result, it is always recommended to use the fresh one!
Is it hard to make Kombucha?
At first I thought it will be complicated, however the steps are really simple. Perhaps when you watch any video in YouTube will give you some slight idea how to do it.
If you would like to explore more with Kombucha, it is always best to have some reading materials. Here are my sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kombucha
http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-make-kombucha-tea-at-home-cooking-lessons-from-the-kitchn-173858
http://www.foodrenegade.com/kombucha-scoby-experiment/
I have read on some sources to get Kombucha in Singapore however seems it is not too popular yet and also could be quite expensive. If you are based in Singapore and would like to get a Kombucha and SCOBY, do email me and I'll sell to you some of mine :)
'til then~
XOXO
Jess
