I am once again doing some research into making fermented foods...Looking at the Kombucha recipe, I see that sugar is needed...I don't use white sugar.

Can I use stevia or something else as a substitute? Ideas & suggestion on how to make this tea & recipe ideas are welcome!

Thanks!

I think you would have to use something that is chemically sugar(Stevia is not) to cause fermentation. Maybe try looking for natural fructose at the health food store?

I watched a lot of youtube vids & one lady on expert village channel says stevia & agave is okay to use. Not to use honey, which I would not do anyway. Now, to get started!

I purchased a bottle of the tea today, because I need to get the culture started growing, which I guess can take up to two weeks.

when I used to do it I used dehydrated cane juice.. worked fine... they say that the sugar feeds the culture, not you... anyways, here's a great website

[www.harmonikireland.com]

i'd like to get back into kombucha one day when I have time, it's awesome xx



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Thanks for the link, lisa.

Yep, I am excited about doing it. Also want to try making Kefir, a "natural" alternative to soda pop. Hopefully these items & more will be a great alternative & possibly a step in the right direction for some "non-raw" processed food eaters in my house...

jk,

Kefir is cultured dairy; it's like runny yogurt. I was raised drinking it. I have heard of raw people making it with nutmilk mixed with rejuvelac to culture it. That sounds absolutely awful to me, so I haven't tried it ; )

there's also 'water kefir' using the same kinds of kefir grains in sweet water- making a soda type bubbly drink. you can flavor with vanilla bean, or fruit.

I will be using the water kefir grains. Already ordered the items online. Looks like fun!

[www.cheeseslave.com]

Had my first taste of Kombucha tea today -

Organic Raw GT's brand. citrus flavor. A website I looked on says it tastes like sparkling apple cider. I would say that is true, or my definition of it would be that it tastes like alcoholic club soda...

Hmmm...I don't know what I was expecting really - maybe for it to be a bit more sweet & not so "vinegar" tasting. Not sure what all the fuss is about. All over the net folks are raving that this is great tasting stuff & I really do not see it that way.

It is drinkable, definitely not "great tasting", although I know each person has different tastes. I suppose I will continue to drink it for the purported health claims/benefits.

It will not be something my family will be interested in though, one member already turned their nose up at it...

jk,

When I've made kombucha at home it was sweeter, I think, and less boozy. I am drinking G.T.'s Synergy Guava Goddess flavor kombucha as I write this and though there is no alcohol content listed[it's not required by law for such a beverage] it's decidedly, well, beery. Let's just say I shan't be driving later today.

Good luck making your own, and thanks for the cheeseslave.com link--fascinating!

lol... i make kombucha pretty tangy. that's the word i learned when first hanging out with crazy raw foodies- tangy is a nice word for anything overripe, funky, weird, or fermented.

my take on kombucha is if it makes you feel good, then drink it. if it tastes bad and you don't feel amazing on it, stay away. i've been brewing the buch for over 7 years, and it comes and goes in phases. either i love it and it feels right, or i could just live without it. i've learned to trust my body on it- if i crave it, then i enjoy it, but if not, then it's probably not the best choice.

adding in fresh fruit juice is a great way to cut the flavor, or my husband uses frozen fruit as ice cubes. i like it tangy. and so do my kids.

there is a warning on most GT's kombucha that it may contain up to .5% alcohol, or something like that. but not enough to affect driving for sure.

let us know how the kefir comes out- i've heard that's more appealing in general.

peace-

I LUV kombucha and have made my own a few times.

Warning: WATCH OUT FOR FRUIT FLIES!

The longer it ferments, the more vinegary it gets. I like it vinegary, lol.

Good luck!

- Matt

Been doing a lot of vid watching...You guys will like this -

[www.youtube.com]

That poor lil' thing is gonna have serious digestive probs . . .

I LOVE ITTT! Make it all the time now! I have 6 - 6 liter jugs going all the time!!
I have used AGAVE - it was YUMMY!!!
But $$$
I use organic cane sugar.
If you live in Canada - Loblaws has the pres choice organic cane sugar for $3.99!
I want to try it with maple syrup, but I make so much and it costs so muvh $$$$

My scobi did fine with agave and did reproduce!!!

water kefir is great, i wouldnt worry to much about the sugar as that is whats needed to help it ferment and most of it gets used up anyway, leave the kefir a day longer to ferment if you wish to lower the sugar content further.

I just started my own Kombucha this week - trying to cultivate a scoby from a bottle of GTs. I've read as much as I could on the subject & I'm rather sure that the sugar is only food for the yeast i.e. if you ferment long enough you won't actually be ingesting any sugar.

Rejuvelac made fron sprouted rye is easy, too, & doesn't require sugar or anything caffeinated.

CJJ Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I just started my own Kombucha this week - trying
> to cultivate a scoby from a bottle of GTs. I've
> read as much as I could on the subject & I'm
> rather sure that the sugar is only food for the
> yeast i.e. if you ferment long enough you won't
> actually be ingesting any sugar.
>
> Rejuvelac made fron sprouted rye is easy, too, &
> doesn't require sugar or anything caffeinated.


I started mine Monday. I purchased a culture online to get in started. I probably won't go to the max. ferment time, as I don't care for that "beer" taste that several of the GT teas have...

Some pics of the process thus far; Day 7 for the Kombucha tea; Doesn't show up very well in the pic, but the "mother" is really growing nicely! As luck would have it, I got a glare at the top of the jar which is concealing the appearance of the mother...too bad, as it is about 1 1/2" thick!





This next pic is water kefir grains. They are being re-hydrated here, day 3 1/2. They have been "bubbling" pretty well. After this pic I rinsed them & transferred to the "fermenting" jar. Has a really sweet, pleasant smell. I am looking forward to trying each of these!

Even my son actually commented that the kefir smells like it might be edible, lol!




Last pic here is Kimchi. Don't believe I've ever had it before. It has a great aroma to it, smells very tasty - strong/spicy! Ready to eat in a couple of days.

I like rejuvalac!

007 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I like rejuvalac!

I wanna give that a try too - been a but busy with this other stuff lately!

Drained off the water kefir today. Smells sweet, smells good. However the water is kinda cloudy, just like in the pic above. Anyone know if that is normal?

Update - all is fine with the cloudy water...received a nice confirmation email from the kefir lady.
[www.kefirlady.com]

Might sound like "noob" questions, but this fermentation is all new to me, & I don't wanna end up sick!

Tastes it straight, is is really good, kinda hard to describe - sort of like sweet soda water...I am going to experiment with different fruits to get a good taste that the family will enjoy.

I see there are many recipes out there...

Opened the Kimchi yesterday...EGAD!!!! I won't be consuming any of this stuff!!! Not a big fan of cabbage to start with (I do like cabbage juice), but this is too pungent/strong/whatever for me.

It could be used for interrogation to make enemy troops spill secrets!!! Hate to waste foods, but this one will go in the compost bin. Oh well, if you don't attempt different foods, you never know what you will like...

Ha, ha! Great description, juicerkatz! I know EXACTLY what you mean. Our daughter was visiting and kindly decided to make some kimchi for us to try. I was interested and excited to watch the process. Once it was made, the odor permeated the entire house. The taste was incredibly strong too. We expressed sincere appreciation for her efforts and then composted it once she had gone. (We keep a small bin for food peelings to go to the compost in the garage, but this went straight outside!)


My favorite raw vegan

Too bad about the kimchee. I have found that it generally smells awful but tastes great; if neither is appealing, composting's the way to go. At this point, I am too lazy, and me a trained cook!, to make my own, so I just buy the delicious raw one from "Rejuvenative Foods" at the health food store.

Thirteen days today for the Kombucha. Just finished transferring to a Sun tea jar, had the first taste. Can't quite put my finger on the flavor. Kinda bitter/sweet, non flavored tea bag taste with a hint of vinegar?

Doesn't really taste at all like store bought. I am thinking about adding lemon slices to it to enhance the taste a bit.

my 4th sauerkraut experiment just went to feed 'our little helpers' (as my 4 year old son calls them) in the compost bin. i'm sure they will be thrilled. it wasn't inedible, just way to potent for me. i don't like to gag over my food.

play around w/ the kombucha, over time i think it grows to understand what you like, and you understand it. we like tangy and super bubbly kombucha, and that's whats been growing for the last two batches- but it took a new starter to get it right.

my husband and kids love frozen blackberries as ice in the kombucha- it slowly thaws and becomes a luscious dark purple fading into the tea brown. and the frozen berries add a lot of flavor w/ minimal sweetness.

peace-

MC,

Not a big fan of sauerkraut here...but I may try it. You Kombucha recipe sounds yummy!

Funny thing; upon first taste, my son said that the Kombucha tasted disgusting. However, he has been drinking from the container in the fridge w/ lemon slices. Guess it is growing on him.

Stared 2nd batch of water kefir today using rapadura sugar. Anyone ever use that type of sugar? Has an odd taste for a sweetener, and since it turns the water so dark we probably won't be able to see the bubbles as it is working.

The instructions where I bought the grains from says that type of sugar is one of the best to use.

Harvested my first batch of kombucha last weekend. The scoby that grew was so tiny (more like a wee jellyfish) I considered it to be a dud batch. Nonetheless I bottled it for a 2nd ferment with juiced ginger, pineapple, lemon & lime (going for that ginger beer taste). On day 5 the bottles started fizzing over and popping their tops- it worked!

Taste is not quite there yet, but my next batch will be ready for harvest on Saturday. Going to try blueberry & ginger juice next.