Growing a SCOBY

Scoby+small.jpg
 

Growing a SCOBY (Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast) for kombucha

A simple method to grow your own scoby at home with simple everyday ingredients.

Did you know kombucha:

  • has been enjoyed by many for over 2000 years, no one really knows the origins of kombucha.

  • is a healthy source of probiotics, similar to yogurt or kimchi.

  • is full of liver supportive antioxidants similar to green tea.

  • is easy and cost effective to make at home with simple ingredients.

  • people make sustainable ‘leather’ out of kombucha SCOBY’s!

Recipe

Ingredients:

½ cup *granulated sugar (white or organic unrefined are both fine)

4 bags green tea (or 2 tbsp loose leaf)

1 cup unflavoured kombucha (store bought or left over are both fine)

*avoid sugar substitutes like honey. Granulated white or organic sugar works best for growing the scoby since it feeds on it to grow. In this recipe, you will end up with kombucha vinegar to be used to brew your first batch of kombucha. You can use higher quality sugar sources when brewing your first batch of kombucha. 

Tools:

  • Liquid measuring cup 

  • Pot that can hold more than 8 cups of liquid

  • Whisk

  • A glass jar that can hold 8 cups liquid, or more

  • Coffee filter/paper towel to cover mouth of jar

  • Rubber band

  • If using loose leaf tea - you will need a tea infuser or tea bags. If you don’t have either, use a sieve to strain.

Method:

  1. Make the tea. Bring 8 cups of water to boil and add sugar. Whisk until sugar dissolves, turn off heat and add tea. Let tea brew for the recommended amount of time, then discard tea bags and let tea come to room temperature. If using loose leaf tea without tea bag/infuser, pour tea into glass jar using the sieve and let cool to room temperature. 

  2. Once tea is at room temperature, add the kombucha into the tea mixture. The kombucha must be added into room temperature otherwise you risk killing the microbes.

  3. Use a coffee filter or paper towel to fit over the mouth of the jar and secure with rubber band. Place jar in a warm, dark spot like above the fridge for up to 4 weeks. Avoid direct sunlight.

  4. Check every week, this whole process can take anywhere from 1-4 weeks depending on the temperature of your location:Phase 1: you may see tiny bubbles with a very thin film forming at the top.Phase 2: translucent film gets thicker with bubbles around the edges, this is a sign of fermentation and a happy scoby is forming.Phase 3: layer will continue thickening and become cloudy.Phase 4: the scoby will continue to form and will be ready when it reaches ¼ inch thick. Every scoby looks a little different and this one might look uneven since it’s a baby, but it should smooth out after a few brews.

  5. The scoby liquid will taste like vinegar and can be used like apple cider vinegar. You will only need one cup to brew your first batch. 

If in doubt, throw it out!

  • If you see fuzzy black or green mould growing on top of the forming scoby, or if your tea starts to smell cheesy, rancid, or otherwise unpleasant. In any of these cases, bad bacteria has taken hold of the tea; discard this batch and start again with a fresh batch.

  • If you can't tell if there's a problem, just keep going. If it's a problem, it will get worse; if it's a normal part of the process, it should normalize (or at least not get any worse!)

Margaret Sung