Looking for a healthy drink? I've got one that is sure to both quench your thirst and improve your health at the same time. Pomegranate Kombucha. If you are new to “booch” or have never heard of this fermented elixir, I assure you, the health benefits of kombucha are simply amazing. For my fellow home brewers, I'm currently brewing my fifth batch of this Pomegranate Kombucha. It is by far my favorite. I hope you give it a try.
Ingredients
- 1 gallon Filtered Drinking Water (minus 1 cup)
- 8 bags Pomegranate Green Tea
- 1 c. Organic Cane Sugar (see notes)
- 1 Kombucha Scoby + 1 c. Starter Tea
- 1 gallon Glass Jar
- 1 Paper Towel
- Large Rubberband
- 1 qt. Glass Measuring Cup with Spout
- Swingtop Bottles
- Funnel
- Nylon Mesh Strainer
Directions
- Add three cups water to medium saucepan and heat on high until boiling.
- Remove from heat and let stand 1 minute.
- Add 8 tea bags to glass measuring cup then pour hot water over top.
- Let steep for 10 minutes.
- Remove tea bags and add 1 cup sugar. Stir until dissolved.
- Let tea cool to room temperature.
- Pour cooled tea to gallon brewing vessel, add remaining water (12 cups), starter tea and then kombucha scoby.
- Place paper towel across the top of brewing vessel and secure with large rubberband.
- Ferment for 7-10 days or until desired taste.
- With clean hands carefully remove scoby and place on plate.
- Reserve 1 cup of tea for next batch.
- Strain kombucha using nylon strainer into quart measuring cup with spout.
- Insert funnel into swingtop bottles and fill with kombucha. Repeat.
- Store in refrigerator and enjoy cold.
- Start next batch of kombucha. (see notes)
Notes
I buy gallon jugs of filtered water from the store. I then pour off 1 cup, this is replaced with the 1 cup of starter tea, for an even gallon of brewed kombucha. If you live a low-carb lifestyle like myself, don't panic over the sugar content. The sugar is food for the scoby to fuel the fermentation process. The longer you ferment, the less sugar in the final product. A 10 day ferment is not going to be sweet and will yield approx. 2 grams of sugar per 8 oz. serving. It is best to ferment in a dry, temperature-controlled (not too hot, not too cold, no drafts) environment. I place my fermenting vessels on top of our refrigerator as it is slightly warm there. With each batch of kombucha a new layer forms on the scoby. You can leave it alone until it gets too big for your brewing vessel or you can peel it off and start a batch for a friend.
