Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Kombucha

There are many reasons to drink Kombucha, first there’s all the benefits of detoxification, such as healthy livers and cancer prevention. One of kombucha’s greatest health benefits is its ability to detox the body. It is rich in many of the enzymes and bacterial acids your body produces and/or uses to detox your system, thus reducing your pancreatic load and easing the burden on your liver. Kombucha is very high in Glucaric acid, and recent studies have shown that glucaric acid helps prevent cancer.  Even Alexander Solzhenitsyn, the recently deceased Russian author and nobel-prize winner, in his autobiography, claimed that kombucha tea cured his stomach cancer during his internment in soviet labor camps. (And because of this testimony, President Reagan used Kombucha to halt the spread of his cancer in 1987. You’ll note he didn’t die until 2004, and that was from old age, NOT cancer.)

Next, there’s all the benefits of the glucosamines it contains, such as preventing or treating all forms of arthritis. Glucosamines increase synovial hyaluronic acid production. Hyaluronic acid functions physiologically to aid preservation of cartilage structure and prevent arthritic painwith relief comparable to NSAIDs and advantage over glucocorticoids. Hyaluronic acid enables connective tissue to bind moisture thousands of times its weight and maintains tissue structure, moisture, lubrication and flexibility and lessens free radical damage, while associated collagen retards and reduces wrinkles.
Then, there’s all the benefits of the fact that it’s a probiotic beverage, such as improved digestion, fighting candida (harmful yeast) overgrowth, and the general health and well-being associated with this. As such, it’s noted for reducing or eliminating the symptoms of fibromyalgia, depression, anxiety, etc.
Plus, it’s extraordinarily anti-oxidant rich, and you all know the benefits of anti-oxidants for boosting your immune system and energy levels.
Here are some articles about the health benefits:

Once you have decided to try this beverage or if you already have a taste for  it, next you need to learn how to make it.  It is incredibly easy to make and making it will save you a lot of money.
First you need to get the starting material.  The easiest way to do this is to purchase a kit for around $13 and gallon glass jar and you are ready to get started.  There are many places on-line to purchase a kit I like Oregon Kombucha.

The kit contains black tea, sugar and your scoby.



Next you add one gallon of boiling water to the glass or ceramic container (never use a metal container).  Add the tea bag from your starter kit or 12 regular size tea bags.  Any tea will do, I prefer black.  For optimum brewing time, remove black tea bags in 4 minutes and green or white tea bags in 2 minutes.  Stir in 1 cup sugar per gallon of water.



Let the tea cool to room temperature.  Add the entire contents of the live culture packet or scoby.  This culture packet contains a piece of life kombucha culture and some kombucha tea.  The culture is a Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast: a scoby.  The scoby will grow in the sweet tea you have prepared and change in into Kombucha.  During the process healthy vitamins and digestion-aiding natural acids are formed.  This process creates natural carbonation.

Cover the container with cheese cloth and rubber bands.  This keeps dirt and bugs out, but lets the Kombucha breath.




You can than cover your kombucha with a cloth napkin or dish towel to keep out some light and place it in a warm place, dark place.   In the summer anywhere will work in the winter find a warm spot in your house - near a heater vent, or a pilot light, on top of the water heater,in an insulated cooler with a jar of warm water.  Kombucha is best brewed at 80 degrees.  In cooler weather it will take much longer for the fermentation to be complete.  Kombucha can be ready in 7 days or take as much as 30 days.  Taste your Kombucha on day 7.  Everyday it will get fizzeir and more tart when it seems perfect for you, move it to the refrigerator and the brewing will stop.  Kombucha will last for moths in the refrigerator.  You can filter your Kombucha through cheese cloth to remove some of the sediment.

The scoby is a live organism and it will grow in your container while Kombucha brews. At first, it looks like a transparent film and then grows into a solid mass the size and shape of the container. It may be white, dark, smooth or bumpy.   It may grow in layers that can be separated.  You can use the scoby to grow an unlimited number of batches of Kombucha.  to keep it alive simply keep it covered in the Kobucha, at room temperature, with a cloth over the container, until you are ready to make another batch.  Give it a little fresh Kombucha or sweetened tea occasionally.  Each time you make more Kombucha you will grow another scoby, so feel free to pass it on to a friend so they can begin making their own Kombucha.  Share the pleasure of Kombucha.

2 comments:

  1. Wow, Sarah! Great post! I'm a huge kombucha, but I've limited myself to 1 bottle per week b/c of the expense. (I nearly cried when a local grocery store raised their price from $2.79 to $3.29 a bottle for the GT's Kombucha.) I'll have to give this a try.

    Plus, good timing, since this weekend is the Freestone Fermentation Festival: http://freestonefermentationfestival.com/

    Best,
    Crystal
    www.thekitchenmba.com

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  2. Great post. I got a hand-me-down mother once- I think you saw it - I had her around for a while...great healthy drink we can all make at home.

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