Kombucha

A fermented tea beverage- and what the New York Times states has “become incredibly trendy lately in the 20-to-30-something, foodie, intelligentsia set”. Dr. Daphne Miller, a family practitioner and professor of nutrition and integrative medicine at the University of California, San Francisco says “Kombucha is like their Coca-Cola.”

I have been drinking kombuchca since 2005. When I travelled to LA in 2006- I saw it sold in the grocery store (GT's Kombucha). It tasted amazing. Flavours like mango, ginger or greens. I was in love. Upon returning to Vancouver I phoned GT's myself and asked how we could get some of this stuff up here. Due to its fragility and our stringent "raw" foods laws- I was told it was impossible.

Vancouverites- if you want the real thing you are going to have to make it yourselves. The stuff on our shelves, unlike those of the US is still pasteurized- unless they are finding a way around it (if they are Id like to talk to them...).


Great links:

Kombucha attracts Following and Doubters- NY times

Kvass and Kombucha- Weston A Price Organization


Recipe:

2 litres of boiling water
160 grams white sugar (approx 1 cup)
2-4 tea bags (black or green tea)
1 healthy Kombucha organism (mother)
1 cup of Kombucha fermented brew (past tea) as a starter

NOTE: Keep the same proportions and vary the amounts to suit your own family's needs.
Method
use clean utensils
wash hands thoroughly
pour boiling water over the sugar into a glass, porcelain or pottery container
stir to dissolve the sugar
add the tea bags and leave to infuse (approx 15 minutes)
remove the tea bags and allow to cool to "baby bottle" temperature
add the mother brew to the cooled tea mixture and then float the Kombucha on the top, cover tightly with cloth.


NOTE: If you need a mother (kombucha culture) please contact me