Go Back

Brew Your Own Kombucha at Home

Brew your own kombucha tea easily at home with very little equipment. This recipe is for 1 gallon of kombucha
5 from 3 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 1 hour
Total Time 14 days
Servings 14

Equipment

  • 1 Pot or Kettle
  • Jars 1 gallon or 2 half gallon
  • 1 Tightly woven cloth or several coffee filters
  • 1 Rubber band
  • 1 Stirring spoon
  • 1 Funnel
  • 1 Fine mesh strainer
  • Bottles
  • Optional heating pad or wrap

Ingredients
  

Fermentation 1

  • 8 Teabags or tsp of loose leaf green or black tea
  • 1 cup Granulated sugar
  • 14 cups Water bottled or filtered
  • 2 cups Starter kombucha tea (SCOBY)

Optional Flavorings

  • Fresh or frozen fruit Berries, apples, oranges, melons, pineapple, etc
  • Jam, jelly, or marmalade
  • Fruit juice
  • Herbs
  • Syrup

Instructions
 

Fermentation 1

  • Bring the water to a boil on the stove.
  • Remove from heat and add the tea. Steep for 15 minutes.
  • Remove teabags or strain loose leaf tea.
  • Add the sugar and stir to dissolve.
  • Let it cool to almost room temp (85F or less)
  • Pour the cooled, strained tea into jar(s)
  • Add your starter tea (SCOBY)
  • Cover with cloth and secure with a right rubber band
  • Store at room temperature for 5-20 days. See notes.
  • Reserve 2 cups of kombucha for another batch.
  • Pour through a fine strainer and enjoy plain, or move on to the next fermentation for flavoring and carbonation.

Fermentation 2

  • Set out clean empty bottles and add desired flavorings.
  • Swirl the brewing jar and pour kombucha into bottles using a strainer and funnel, leaving about half an inch of head space.
  • Close bottles and store at room temperature for 3-7 days.
  • Chill, carefully open, strain if desired, and enjoy!

Notes

Fermentation 1 Notes
If you're using 2 half gallon jars, divide the tea and SCOBY evenly.
Start tasting your kombucha around day 5. It should be tart and slightly sweet. If it still tastes too sweet, cover and let it keep fermenting. It will get less sweet and more pungent the longer it ferments.
Fermenation 2 Notes
For flavorings use about 2 tablespoon of fresh or frozen chopped fruit or puree per bottle. 
Start with about 1 tablespoon if using syrup or jam. 
Be careful opening bottles. See my full article for important notes, tips, and tricks.