Making Probiotics At Home: Kombucha Tea From Mother Culture

[TheBs2522]

Is KT is safe for kids 6yr or older and also i want to know after second fermintation how i can store KT in air tight bottle or open lid covered with cloth or towel paper Thx..

[RheumatoidArthritisx]

@TheBs2522 As far as I know kombucha is not only safe, but healthy for kids 6 and older. I don't understand the second fermentation part of your question. I ferment my kombucha tea and store it in mason jars with the lid screwed on only lightly. If you put it in an air tight bottle pressure will build up and it may fizz or even bubble over when you open it. Store in glass, not plastic or metal.

[eatforenergy]

If you want to be healthy don't use white sugar. That should be obvious. Raw cane sugar is best.

[RheumatoidArthritisx]

@eatforenergy Conventional wisdom says it isn't healthy to use white sugar, but that is because white sugar isn't good for humans. It turns out that the kombucha culture has different nutrional needs than human beings. It thrives on white sugar. By the time it has finished turning the starting tea/sugar mixture into komucha tea, there is no sugar left, only the human-healthy compounds the culture produced as it grew.

[eatforenergy]

@RheumatoidArthritisx Conventional wisdom is right again. White sugar is devoid of nutrients and is terrible for human consumption. Kombucha doesn't have different needs. Its best to use raw organic sugar that has trace minerals and other nutrients. Its the smart thing to do. We use raw for all our kombucha it works great. Give it a try!

[RheumatoidArthritisx]

@eatforenergy Actually Kombucha does most definately have different nutrional needs than human beings! However, you point is well taken about the trace minerals in raw can sugar are still being better for humans, who are consuming the end product, than the lack of trace minerals that comes from using a sugar source with no trace minerals.

[TheFOIBOS]

you should not drink with a straw like this...it's possible to enter your mouth bacteria to the scoby!not good.

:(

[RheumatoidArthritisx]

@TheFOIBOS Thanks for that tip! I had not thought of that. Using a straw was a suggestion in one of the books I read when I was learning to make kombucha.

[darthcamron210]

Would you say Silk Almond Milk is bad since it has natural flavors in it?

[RheumatoidArthritisx]

@darthcamron210 Komucha is a farily sensitive culture that has been developed for growing on tea and sugar. For almond milk, it would probably be better to use a robust culture like kefir grains that is already known to do well on just about any carbohydrate source. Kefir grain should be able to trive on almond milk, even if it has natural flavors in it.

[RheumatoidArthritisx]

@darthcamron210 Kombucha cultures are wonderful if you give them what they needs, but they probably will not do well on any kind of almond milk. Almond milk with "natural flavors" is even less likely. If you do the experiment, let me know how it turns out.

[darthcamron210]

@RheumatoidArthritisx NO I was just interested in what you think of "Silk" Almond Milk. I am trying to stay vegan and back off from "Lifeway" kefir and even cultured "So Delicious" coconut milk because of the random things they put in them. I think Hazelnut milk might be helping me....hazelnuts have a lot of folate.

[RheumatoidArthritisx]

@darthcamron210 Ahh.... I misunderstood what you were asking. Personally I don't like eating or drinking anything with vague ingredient listings like "natural flavors" because those terms are used by the food processing industry to hide so many unhealthy ingredients.

[RheumatoidArthritisx]

@darthcamron210 Good luck finding a diet that works for you. In my experience, the optimal diet is highly individual and changes over time.

[darthcamron210]

I like hemp milk and chia seeds too. I just can't gain any weight. I think honey is holding me back too.

[darthcamron210]

I've let it sit for almost 2-3 weeks and it smells a bit like apple cider vinegar but I guess you are right...natural flavors are sketchy. There is almost a scoby on bottom of the original one as big as the original.

[RheumatoidArthritisx]

@darthcamron210 You said in the video it smelled bad. If it smells like mold, decay or something gross, then your culture has gotten contaminated with something unhealthy.

[RheumatoidArthritisx]

@darthcamron210 If you culture smells a bit like apple cider vinegar and also still smells good, like something mildly fermented that would be pleasant to drink, your culture is probably just fine.

[RheumatoidArthritisx]

@darthcamron210 The scoby on the bottom and a new baby as big as the original on top, that part sound normal. In the summer heat my komubucha mother only takes 2-3 days to complete the termentation process. In the winter my komucha mother only takes 7-10 days to make a batch. I'm wondering why your scoby is taking so long.

[darthcamron210]

If I used this Tazo White Blossom tea for it, should I not use it since it has Natural Flavors in it?

[RheumatoidArthritisx]

@darthcamron210 Any teas that contains added essential oils are not good for making komucha tea. The reason is that the Komucha mother is made of 100s of types of microorganisms. Essential oils can kill many of these microorganisms, as can the chlorine in tap water or traces of antibacterial soap. If you want essential oils in your kombucha, add them to the tea after it has finished fermenting and after you have removed the kombucha culture.

[darthcamron210]

What is it supposed to smell like?

[RheumatoidArthritisx]

@darthcamron210 My kombucha culture smells like apple cider as the tea nears readiness. Others have other pleasant smells. For instance more like a good microbrewery beer. Your Kombucha culture should smells pleasant, like something you would enjoy drinking.

[darthcamron210]

will you please look at my video of my kombucha scoby and make sure it is ok.

[RheumatoidArthritisx]

@darthcamron210 From having watched your vid, I think you already know that answer! Yes, if it smells bad, it is bad.