Here’s the truth, before going additive-free I (Jo) was addicted to diet coke. When I was trying to quit, I used to justify it by allowing myself ‘only one glass a day’. Oh man, I used to time my fix and think about it all day until that one glass was down.
Then I quit. For good! Kombucha really helped me and I’m so thankful it came into our life.
How do you pronounce it?
Kom-boo-cha.
Where is it from?
Whilst the exact origins aren’t exactly known, it is believed to have originated from China around 2,000 years ago. It is known as the ‘Tea of Immortality’.
What is Kombucha?
It is a fermented drink which is made up of black tea and sugar that creates probiotics. The bacteria and yeast which comes from the Scoby (Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast) then commences the fermentation process. Don’t worry it’s actually not a sweet sugary drink, The SCOBY eats up the sugar as part of the fermentation process to create a drink that is acid-rich.
What are the benefits of Kombucha?
It is incredibly beneficial to your heart, brain and your gut. The main benefits are:
✚ Boosts immunity
✚ Fights inflammation in the body
✚ A powerful source of antioxidants
✚ Supports a healthy gut
✚ Supports a healthy digestive system
✚ Powerful antibacterial agent
✚ Great for the cardiovascular system
✚ Supports healthy liver function
Is it expensive?
It is if you buy the pre-made bottles from the supermarket or local store. The cost savings come when you make it yourself. You can make it for a fraction of what it would cost you to buy pre-made and it’s really easy to make.
Your biggest initial outlay is getting a good quality ceramic jar. In our experience (Jo has been brewing Kombucha for years), the ceramic jars produce the best quality and tasting Kombucha as well as an everlasting brew. We love the Durand brand for the ceramic jars which you can get from >> here. Search online for your local stockist.
If you are just starting out and don’t want to outlay for a ceramic jar until you know you will drink it regularly, then we recommend sourcing a large glass jar with a pouring tap such as what you would use for punch. Just be careful of the tap, as cheap plastic and kombucha don’t like each other, you could kill the SCOBY.
The only other cost is for the tea, we recommend using good quality organic black tea or a half/half combination of black tea and green tea. You can get organic teas from the supermarket. You will also need white or raw sugar, we like to use raw sugar given that it is less processed.
You will also need to source a SCOBY. If you know someone who makes Kombucha then we’re sure they will gladly give you a SCOBY because new SCOBY’s are grown each brew, so you often end up with lots to give away.
If you don’t know anyone who brews Kombucha, then take a look on your local Buy, Swap and Sell pages because you’ll often find people trying to offload their excess SCOBY’s on there.
Failing all that we have seen SCOBY’s for sale at health food shops, so you could check your local one.
Make sure when you get your SCOBY that it comes in a bed of pre-brewed Kombucha liquid as this will be your starter liquid.
How often and how much should you drink it?
To get the most benefit, it is recommended that you drink it daily. In terms of how much, everybody is different and you can have too much of a good thing. We are comfortable having one glass of Kombucha a day. Jo has a larger glass that her children because kids don’t need much of it to get the benefits. Start of slowing and work your way up, otherwise you’ll get a tummy ache and diarrhoea.
A great way to kick your soft drink habit
It’s no secret that soft drinks aren’t good for us, especially when they contain Aspartame (check out our blog post about that >> here), artificial colours, flavours, preservatives and a whole heap of sugar.
As stated above, I found the best way to kick my habit was to replace my daily soft drink fix with Kombucha. Because Kombucha is a fizzy drink due to the fermentation, it gives you that fizzy hit that you get from soft drinks, but without all the harmful additives and preservatives. It’s a fizzy drink that is actually good for you!
What if you don’t like the taste?
You can drink Kombucha either after the first ferment, or you can ferment it a second time by adding cut-up fruits of your choice to the bottled Kombucha. When you add in fruits it will ferment for the second time by eating up all the sugars from the fruit which will create even more fizz, as well as beautiful natural flavours. The beauty with making your own is you get to experiment and find flavours that you love.
Some of Jo’s favourite combinations are:
✚ Lemon or lime juice and fresh ginger
✚ Mixed berry
✚ Blueberries and cinnamon
✚ Lemon, Lime and Mint
✚ Apple
✚ Apple and cinnamon
✚ Passionfruit
We also like to drink it without any fruit and use our food-grade doTERRA essential oils to flavour it. Delish! To flavour with doTERRA essential oils, add one drop to your empty glass and fill up with Kombucha. Only flavour at the time of drinking.
How can you make it?
To learn how to make it, grab the downloadable recipe:
If you are a visual learner then Jo has done some video tutorials on how to make Kombucha, taking you through each step of the process (you’ll still need the downloadable recipe though). You can check that out >>> here.
Don’t be scared
Honestly, it’s so easy to make and is packed full of health benefits so why not give it a go today.
Jo x
Do you know if you can drink Kombucha if you are fructose intolerant?
Hi Susannah,
Good question. To be honest, we are not experts and It would be best to speak with your GP for your dietary requirements to be certain that everything will be fine. From having a quick look online there are certain foods to avoid that you could mix with Kombucha Tea but also some you can have to flavour.
I really hope we are useful in some way but, just best to speak with your GP first.