Do Not Buy a Kombucha Starter
I’ve taken quite a liking to kombucha, and so has Sheena and a whole bunch of my friends. The only downside is that kombucha is an insane $4 per bottle. It wouldn’t be so insane if it didn’t cost almost nothing to make. So I’ve started making kombucha.
Here is the first thing I learned:
DO NOT BUY A COMMERCIAL STARTER
They are a waste of money.
I have purchased 2 starters now. One from a company that specializes in this kind of stuff, and the other from Craigslist but I believe it was purchased originally from a same or similar supplier.
My first commercial SCOBY failed completely. Now granted part of this was completely my fault in leaving it in an area which was way too cold .
My second starter is going on a week, and is producing kombucha very slowly.
On the other hand, a SCOBY that I grew from a bottle of commercial brew is going STRONG and has already produced 1 solid batch, now onto the second.
Do this:
1) Go to the store and buy a bottle of “orignal” (unflavored) raw kombucha (I used GT’s Original) with the biggest, gnarliest jelly looking blob in it and lots of yeast & sediment. Let it warm up to room temperature. $3.99
2) Boil 6 cups of water.
3) Put 1/2cup of sugar in the hot water.
4) Steep 4 bags of black tea in the water and let it cool to room temperature. Transfer to a jar.
5) Pour the blob, the yeast & sediment, and about 1-2 cups of the commercial kombucha into your jar.
6) In less than 30 days you will have a strong kombucha SCOBY, and about 2 bottles worth of kombucha that cost you $4 instead of $20.
Proceed to make more kombucha as you please.
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