Organic Cultures
General Delivery
Buckley, MI 49620
United States
ph: 1+ 231.631.1012
Himalayan Kombucha Strain
w/ peaches & pineapples
The basic instructions for the Himalayan Kombucha Strain are close to brewing traditional kombucha tea culture. The main difference in this strain is the ingredients used for brewing. Traditional Kombucha is brewed with black tea and cane sugar. This strain differs as no tea is used and the culture is maintained on India jaggery sugar (or other raw dark type of sugar) and fruits or fruit juices. Tea is an expensive commodity and many people cannot afford the higher cost, whereas, fruit and sugar is cheap or harvested for free inIndia.
This special strain is known for it’s ability for detoxing and healing the body. As with traditional kombucha culture, it can last a lifetime if cared for properly, providing you with a daily health tonic and detoxifier.
Instructions: To make a 1 gal batch of Kombucha tea
Needed Items:
- Glass Gallon Jar or large food grade glass jar
- Cloth and rubber band for covering top
- 1 to 1 ½ cups organic Jaggery or other raw sugar
- 1 to 1 ½ cup of organic fruits, use sweet fruits and/or juice
- Kombucha mushroom culture and starter tea
A. Bring 1gal of distilled, filtered, or good quality well water to a boil. Water/sugar solution boiled in metal or glass container. After the water starts to boil, remove from heat, do not over boil the water.
B. Once the water is up to temperature, add the sugar and stir until dissolved. Add the fruits and/or juice. Pineapple, orange, and bananas are excellent choices for brewing. For other fruit, ideas…think tropical!
We suggest not using non-organic sugar, honey, or maple syrup, agavé nectar, etc. when brewing kombucha. Alternative sugars may not provide the kombucha yeast cultures with the correct food source and is not recommended.
C. Transfer the fruit/sugar solution to a glass container for brewing the Kombucha culture, never allow metal or ceramic to have long-term contact with the culture.
IMPORTANT NOTE: ADD KOMBUCHA S.C.O.B.Y. MUSHROOM and STARTER LIQUID ONLY AFTER TEA HAS COOLED TO ROOM TEMP !
Add the culture and enough starter liquid to bring the pH to 4.5. If packaged culture was from us, add entire contents of package. Always keep tea solution securely covered with a tight weave cloth to keep out bugs.
D. Allow kombucha tea to set undisturbed in a warm location. After 2 days remove the fruits and discard or consume.
The tea will be ready to drink after 5 to 14 days of fermentation, depending on temp (around 75 -85 deg F is ideal) and amount of fruit/juice added (more sugar = more time). If checking pH of a finished batch of tea, it should be around 3; a reading of 4 is to high and 2 to low. If you don't have pH test strips, the finished brew should have a vinegar smell and have some carbonation. Some like the finished brew sweeter and others more towards the sour side, so when the brew is finished is up to your taste. Checking pH can greatly reduce the chance of contamination of the culture & highly recommended! It helps by checking the starting and finishing pH.
See our kombucha website for more info on pH.
Once the tea is ready to drink, simply pour off what you wish to consume, saving some of the old tea for a 'starter' for your next batch. You may bottle this to prolong the shelf life or store in the refrigerator. If left at room temperature the brew will become stronger in taste.
E. To make new batch of tea, make sure to save 10-15% of the old tea solution (as a starter to lower pH below 4.6) and one or two layers of the kombucha mushroom. When it is time for a new batch, just follow the directions above to start the process again.
1. Number problem for most people is getting the temperature at the correct range of 75-85 deg F. You may need a heating device.
Use a reptile heating pad or seedling mat as a Kombucha heating pad
2. Using organic ingredients will keep the Kombucha cultures healthy & strong as most non-organic food is highly processed, contains anti-caking agents, chemicals, pesticides, and preservatives that may weaken
the culture over time.
3. Always keep liquid tea covered with a tight weave cloth to prevent contamination via molds or insects.
4. Always use distilled, filtered water, or high quality well water (city water contains chemicals added & well water may contain many bacteria that the Kombucha cultures will have to fight against). Boiled well water may
be fine if it is good quality &
free from pathogens.
5. Always use food grade lead-free glass container - A
Pyrex bowl or gallon size pickle jar works well. Following these basic safety & hygiene guidelines will keep your Kombucha culture healthy, strong, and safe to drink for a lifetime.
Notes:
Make sure not to fill the brewing jar too full (it should be level with the straight side of the jar not up into the rounded edge. Make sure that the smoother white side of mushroom faces upwards, it may float or sink, and this is O.K. either way. However, by gently placing the culture on top of the tea it should stay towards the top. If it does sink, the culture should start to rise to the surface as gases are forming in the fermenting tea. Securely cover container with cloth (the culture needs to breath) and allow the inoculated tea solution to set undisturbed in a warm place out of direct sunlight.
Happy Brewing!
Our main kombucha website,
www.organic-kombucha.com
has ever expanding information on kombucha, detailed brewing instructions, and FAQ section to answer many of your questions. Our site offers photos of kombucha culture growing cycles, picture brewing guide, fruit flies & mold contamination questions and pictures, plus much more!. We are adding
new and updated information every month, so visit us often for all your kombucha needs.
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Organic Cultures
General Delivery
Buckley, MI 49620
United States
ph: 1+ 231.631.1012