This basic kombucha recipe is the best way to learn how to brew kombucha at home. Full of probiotics and fueled by a symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast (SCOBY), this is a simple, bubbly, and delicious fermented drink!

A Simple Kombucha Recipe

This kombucha recipe is a perfect starting point for anyone who wants to learn to brew kombucha at home. It’s an easy process and mostly just requires time and patience waiting for it to ferment.

I love to make fermented drinks whether foraged like pine needle soda, or something super simple like basic water kefir. These fermented drinks are simple to make, probiotic, and bubbly.

Popular for good reason, and kind of the mother of fermented drinks is kombucha. The fermentation process for kombucha is fueled by a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast, famously known as a SCOBY.

Kombucha is typically made with black tea and sugar and takes about one to three weeks to ferment. It ends up with a unique bubbly and vinegar-like taste.

Even though brewing kombucha begins sweet, the purpose of the sugar is to feed the SCOBY. During fermentation, the sugar is metabolized by the SCOBY, resulting in a fizzy, probiotic-rich brew.

This basic kombucha recipe can be enjoyed as-is or as a start to a flavored drink that will be achieved with a second ferment. Flavoring kombucha is similar to using a second ferment to flavor water kefir, like this strawberry water kefir soda.

SCOBY Basics

If you’re new to making kombucha at home, taking care of a SCOBY might seem a little… weird. You might not know what a mother SCOBY is, or that a baby SCOBY even exists. SCOBY is an acronym!

SCOBY stands for Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast. Essentially, it’s a slimy pancake-shaped glob of goodness that makes your kombucha bubbly and healthy.

It’s even edible, although I don’t eat it on the regular. I’ve read you can even feed it to your chickens, but today, we’ll stick to brewing ‘booch!

I usually buy my SCOBY from Kombucha Kamp, the mother culture comes in a bag with kombucha starter that you can pour right in along with your tea to get your fermentation off to a good start.

Another option is to get a SCOBY from a friend. Since they multiply, you can use a gifted SCOBY in a new kombucha recipe brew that someone you know has separated from their mother SCOBY.

SCOBYs Are Alive

SCOBYs are alive and ever-growing. They will grow as long as they are fed well. With each fermentation process, you should gain a new, thin SCOBY across the top of the kombucha, sometimes called a “baby.”

Note: The baby SCOBY will be much lighter in color than the rest, and it will darken over time with each fermentation process. This means your SCOBY is alive and well!

When your SCOBY has babies, it looks like a stack of slimy pancakes. They’re usually connected, and all you need to do is use your (washed) hands to pull them apart.

Pulling them apart with every batch is optional and doesn’t need to be done every time, although they’ll keep growing and eventually fill the jar. Be the neighborhood hippy and give the babies away to your friends!

When you start a batch of kombucha, it’s basically “feeding” the SCOBY. Feeding the SCOBY sugar and caffeine gives you lovely bubbles and probiotics, with a delicious result.

The best way to keep it active is to make sure it stays submerged in kombucha starter, either the one it came in, or what’s left in the bottom of the jar after fermenting.

If you have excess SCOBYs, store them in a large glass bowl with enough fermentation starter to cover. Place a cloth over the top of the bowl so that no dust or insects get in.

SCOBYs need to breathe, so cover them only with a cheesecloth and a rubber band.

Note: In the warmer seasons, be watchful for gnats and fruit flies! They LOVE kombucha. Choose a cheesecloth tightly woven enough to keep them out.

How to Brew Kombucha

The ingredients for this kombucha recipe are for the first brew and are basically food for your SCOBY! First, you brew sweet tea, add it to the SCOBY, and let it ferment.

After the first fermentation, this kombucha recipe can create a bubbly drink in a second fermentation process to make a flavored, fizzy kombucha. This details only the first fermentation.

Kombucha Ingredients

SCOBYs feed on caffeine and sugar. This is what they eat to produce the delicious, probiotic-rich drink we all know and love. By the time you consume kombucha, the SCOBY has consumed most of the caffeine and sugar.

Non-chlorinated water: It’s important to know that most public city water is chlorinated, so tap water isn’t the best choice. Chlorine will kill the ferment, and you don’t want that! Opt for filtered or bottled water instead to be sure.

Black tea bags: Check the black tea you are using to make sure it is the right ratio of tea to water for this kombucha recipe brewing.

Sugar: I use organic sugar. Raw sugar is also okay. If you don’t usually eat much sugar, don’t worry! Most of it is metabolized by the SCOBY.

Kombucha SCOBY: If you have a friend who can gift you a SCOBY from their mother, that’s perfect. Otherwise, I recommend ordering one from Kombucha Kamp.

Kombucha starter: If your SCOBY doesn’t come with very much kombucha starter, store-bought bottled plain kombucha works just fine as a starter.

Note: The kombucha starter does not have to be an exact measurement. Just be sure that the SCOBY is completely submerged in the starter.

Kombucha Recipe

First, bring the water to a boil in a large pot. Then turn off the water and add the tea bags and sugar to the hot water. Stir to completely dissolve the sugar.

Now, let the tea completely cool to room temperature. This will likely take several hours or overnight, so you can move on with your life for a bit.

Once the tea is at room temperature, remove the tea bags and transfer it to a gallon jar. Make sure to leave enough room at the top for the SCOBY and kombucha starter.

Next, add the kombucha starter to the tea. Then, add the SCOBY to the jar. It may float and it may sink, either way is ok! Don’t stress, the SCOBY is just doing it’s SCOBY thing.

Note: If the SCOBY breaks apart in the process, it’s okay. It will grow back as it feeds on the sweet tea!

Cover the jar with cheesecloth and a rubber band. Store it in an out-of-the-way spot that is away from direct sunlight.

This kombucha recipe will take anywhere from 1-3 weeks to fully ferment. When it’s ready, it will taste slightly vinegary and have formed a new baby SCOBY on the surface of the kombucha.

Reserve the SCOBY and 2 cups of kombucha to cover it. This can start a new batch of this exact kombucha recipe.

You can bottle and refrigerate the homemade kombucha and enjoy it as is, or you can do a flavored second ferment to create a delicious, probiotic-rich soda. Either way is tasty and health-beneficial!

Best Kombucha Flavors

• Blueberry Kombucha
• Dandelion Kombucha
• Ginger Kombucha
• Hibiscus Kombucha
• Lavender Kombucha
• Rose Kombucha
• Strawberry Kombucha
• Watermelon Kombucha
• Blackberry Kombucha
• Green Tea Kombucha

More Fermented Drinks

• Pine Needle Soda
• Strawberry Water Kefir Soda
• Homemade Strawberry Rhubarb Soda
• Fermented Sweet Potato Kvass
• Winter Herb Kvass
• Fermented Root Beer