3 quarts distilled water (do not use filtered city water - distilled is best and worth the cost!)
1 cup white refined sugar
4 organic black tea bags
1 Kombucha baby or "mushroom"
1/2 to 3/4 cup starter from a previous batch
Bring water to a boil. Add sugar and simmer until dissolved. Remove from heat, add tea bags, and steep 30 minutes. Remove tea bags and allow to cool to room temperature. It is best to cool quickly and not overnight, to avoid unwanted molds from forming. Pour into wide-mouthed gallon jar or bowl, and add mushroom and starter. Cover with cloth or paper towel secured with a rubber band, and put in a warm, quiet place (70 to 90 degrees). Allow to ferment for about 10-14 days, depending on the room temperature and your desired level of sweetness. The finished Kombucha will be an acidic, mildly fizzy, and slightly sweet refreshing beverage, reminiscent of a tart apple cider. Strain if desired. Transfer to glass bottles and store in the fridge, reserving starter for your next batch.
A second mushroom will have formed, which you can peel away from the first and give to a friend, or store in a glass bowl in the fridge.
If mold appears on a mushroom and it doesn't appear to be reproducing itself in a batch of Kombucha, throw it and the brewing tea away and start with another mushroom. Your brewing place may be too cold.
It is possible to have a reaction the first time you try kombucha. My daughter turned red and blotchy the first time she tried kombucha. The second time (about a week later), her reaction was milder. She now enjoys kombucha every day, along with the rest of our family. If you have health issues, you may wish to start with about 2 ounces twice a day and gradually increase your consumption.
1. Helps to prevent wrinkling and removal of brown spots, i.e., it is a skin humectant when applied topically and simultaneously taken internally - working from within to without and from without to within!
2 Helps prevent the formations of certain types of cancerous cells.
3. Reduces hot flashes during menopause.
4. Counteracts chronic constipation and ids digestion.
5. Strengthens kidney and bladder functions.
6. Tones the heart, thus helping to prevent heart attacks.
7. Helps to lower blood pressure and cholesterol deposits by softening veins and arteries.
8. Guards against and helps heal arteriosclerosis, rheumatism, arthritis, and ischamatic attacks.
9. Assists in the treatment of thrombisis and thrombophlebitis.
10. Assists in liver dysfunction and the liver's detoxification process.
11. Alleviates many allergies and aching nerves, and alleviates insomnia
12. Reenergizes muscles.
13. Helpful in the treatment of cataracts and other cornea problems.
14. Stimulates cleansing of the gall bladder, and alleviates colitis and nervous stomach.
15. Helps weight control by stimulating greater fat metabolism (burning off fat).
16. Assists to level off glucose, thus helping to avoid sudden drops of blood sugar in diabetics. Also, if taken daily, will optimize urea levels in approximately 100 days.
17. Useful co-therapy in cases of bronchitis, asthma, coughs, usually alleviating these conditions in two or three days.
18. Stimulates healthy hair growth, thickening hair and helping to eliminate gray hair, thus long term aid in avoiding balding. (Baldness, once established, cannot be reversed.)
19. Useful in preventing and treating gout and ulcers.
These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. Kombucha tea is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.