Spoonful of Sugar Free

Registered Dietitian

Kombucha Part II: Making a Scoby

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Part I: What is Kombucha and Why Do I Drink It?

Now you know what kombucha is, how do you make it?

If you aren’t lucky enough to inherit a scoby from a friend, you can make your own with a few simple ingredients. (Scoby is the mother who turns the sweet tea into kombucha).

Here’s what you’ll need:

  • Large 1 or 2 gallon glass jar, preferably with a spigot because it is easier to use. (I bought mine at Tuesday Morning for $20)
  • Paper towels or cheese cloth
  • 2 bottles regular kombucha
  • black or green tea
  • sugar, organic or white

Steps:

  1. Brew enough black or green tea to fill up half of your jar. For example, if you have a 2 gallon jar, brew 1 gallon of tea.
  2. For each gallon of tea, use 5-6 tea bags and dissolve in 2 cups of sugar.
  3. Let tea cool completely before pouring into your glass jar.
  4. Add the bottles or pre-made kombucha to the jar.
  5. Put a paper towel or cheesecloth on the top of the glass jar, and attach with a rubber band. Your kombucha scoby needs to breathe while growing.
  6. Place the jar in a dark, warm place to let the scoby grow. Do not disturb.
  7. It will take approximately 3-4 weeks for the scoby to grow. Once it is 1/4 inch thick, it is ready to brew!
  8. The kombucha you have in the jar now is probably too strong and vinegary to drink, so pour half of it out before starting the brew. (Stay tuned for part III on how to brew your kombucha).

Notes:

  • Do Not use metal jars or metal utensils when brewing kombucha.
  • White sugar or raw turbinado are both fine to use. Do not use honey because it has extra bacteria in it that can affect the kombucha. Do not use stevia or xylitol because the kombucha needs real sugar to eat.
  • Use green or black tea when making the scoby. Do not use decaffeinated teas because it needs the caffeine for food.
  • Keep kombucha in a dark, warm place when brewing for an optimum brew. Preferably 70*-80* F.
  • It is okay if the scoby sinks sometimes. Within a couple days, it will usually come back to the top.
  • The brown stringy things are perfectly normal, and are a part of the scoby.
  • If your kombucha develops mold (which will be black or green), throw it out immediately.
  • Kombucha scoby mothers usually reproduce babies about every week or so. If you see a film developing on the top of the jar, that is the new baby.

This is what the top of a healthy kombucha scoby looks like.

Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:

Have you ever made your own scoby before? If not, what is stopping you?

 

P.S. Sign up for the June Sugar-Free Challenge!

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. I have like 6 babies at this point and don’t know what to do with them haha. I’m thinking of starting a mini business out of my house 😉 I’ve read lots of different brewing strategies, all with success. I did mine differently but as long as they both produce a scoby it’s good news!

    • Katie,

      You should open a kombucha shop! haha…I’ve had a few requests for my babies so far, so I’m good to go for now…

  3. Have you ever tried making water kefir? It’s similar to kombucha but is made with just sugar water and kefir “grains”. It’s more mild, less vinegar-y tasting than kombucha but has all the probiotics like kombucha. I’ve been making it for a couple of years. The turnover time is just 2-3 days, or even 24 hours if you put the grains directly into juice, which makes it fizzy and delicious! I ordered them from here
    http://waterkefirgrains.com/

    • I actually have never heard of it. Sounds really interesting, though…Thanks for the link! I’ll check it out.

  4. Id be willing to take one of your babies off your hands 😉 I’ve been meaning to make my own kombucha for a while now

    • Molly,

      If you live close, I will definitely give you one! I’m in Tampa, Fl

      • Thats so sweet! I usually live in Charleston, SC but will be gone for most of the summer so im going to postpone my brewing unfortunately. Maybe I’ll be in touch with you in a few months and purchasing one from ya!

  5. Thanks for this – quite timely too as I think my inherited scoby is possibly on the wane (I need to be better at babysitting it!). Now that I know how to make another, things are looking up!

    • Mark,

      Oh no! Things live and die, I guess…Good luck with your next one!

  6. I love kombucha and a friend of mine is giving me some scoby this week. I will definitely be referencing your post when attempting to make my own kombucha. Thanks for the info!

  7. Alex – I know I’m a little behind on this one but I just recently had my first store bought Kombucha and it was AWESOME! I want to make my own (so expensive!). So, I have a couple of questions:
    1. You said no mental jars or utensils – is it okay to use a metal pot to brew the tea?

    2. How long with the final product last in the fridge? I would like to make a big batch of this and I’m hoping it lasts awhile.

    Thank you so much for your blog, I appreciate the time and effort you put into it!
    – Heather

    • Heather,

      I am so glad you like it! For your questions,

      1. yes, it is ok to use a metal pot to brew the tea (I do)
      2. Kombucha can actually last a month or two in the fridge because it is a fermented beverage.

      Hope this helps, and good luck!

  8. Hello The local food coop sells Strawberry puree Kombucha can I use 2 bottles of it to start mine? Will it harm the culture?
    Thanks for this. I am on a limited budget, of disability and the cost of the bottles stuff is killing me. Can I mix it with any kind of tea after I draw it from the jar for added flavor?
    Ellen

    • Ellen,

      If it is possible to find a plain kombucha (no flavorings), I would buy that instead. Also, I would stick with plain black tea for best results.

  9. Where do you recommend buying the bottles of regular Kombucha to start the process??

  10. I have heard that kombucha has yeast. Is this not a good idea to drink if someone has too much candida?

    • Bella,

      I’m not an expert on Candida, but kombucha is a yeast so I am assuming it is probably not best for someone to drink it.

  11. Hi Alex,

    I love your post, very informative! My hubby and I just started the Auto Immune Protocol and the book I’m reading recommends drinking kombucha. I tried growing my own scoby from store bought but I haven’t had much success :/ I live in Tampa and I was wondering if you still brew kombucha and had any babies to spare. Thank you again for posting this it was very helpful. 😀

    Sofi

    • Hi Sofi!

      So glad you’re jumping on the kombucha bandwagon! Unfortunately, I’ve been moving around a lot lately so have been unable to keep my kombucha scobies. It’s very easy to grow from scratch, though, what is it that you are having problems with? Maybe I could be of help with that.

      • Alex,

        I’m not sure what I did wrong, but I have four jars trying to grow a scooby from store bought kombucha, but they just kinda sat there…I just ran across an article saying how they reformulated most bottled kombucha because of the alcohol produced during fermentation so they actually have two versions;one is in a see through glass bottle and the other one is in a amber colored bottle and the label states that you must be over 21 to purchase it. I went to whole foods yesterday and came across the one in the amber bottles so I bought a coupple of them. I followed your directions and I have a jar on my porch now. I’m excited because I could see what looked like a scooby trying to form on the surface of the jar so I very gently poured it in the jar with some sweet tea. I will keep you posted!!

        • Sofi,

          Very interesting, I did not know that! I’ll be sure to pass this info along to others who are having trouble growing scobies. Let me know how yours turns out!!

    • Mary,

      I’ve never tried starting with that much, but it still might work with only 2 bottles and take longer to grow. To be on the safe side, I would use 4 bottles.

  13. This weekend my sister, mother and myself (Kindred kombucha Konverts)decided to brew our own Kombucha. We were precise in cleaning our gallon jars and ran them through the hot dishwasher; brewed black tea; tested several areas of the house for temperature control; bought two scobies from a health food store that were prepackaged and on a shelf; slipped these scobies into the two room temperature tea jars; covered the jars with two layers of cheese cloth and tied it tight with rope; and settled on placing the jars over the heat vent on a cast iron bench. We check the temperature all weekend and it has settled between 80-85 degrees. If after all these precise precautions we don’t grow kombucha, we will try next to make our own scoby or obtain a fresh baby from another source.
    For the person worried about “yeast” overgrowth. The point of adding probiotics and prebiotics to your diet is to rid yourself of overgrowth of yeast that has occurred from inadequate diet, food sensitivies/frank allergies, or use of antibiotics that have killed off your natural gut flora (now referred to as gut dysbiosis). The NIH has a “Human Microbiome Project”. We are discovering that all kinds of organisms live on us and within us to keep us healthy. In any event we are very excited about Kombucha. Together Diet modification, reflux measures, and Kombucha have dramatically improved the upper and lower digestive systems of my sister and my mother. When I return to Orlando, I am going to start fermenting vegetables also. My sister loves kefer and my mother loves sauerkraut. Go team!

    • Hi,

      I just saw this post. Are you in Orlando now? I’ve been actively seeking a Kombucha SCOBY and Water Kefir Grains locally for several months, but not having any luck. If you’re in the area and are willing to share either, I’d love to take them off your hands.

  14. Hi. Just found this article. Are you still in Tampa? I’m in the Orlando area and haven’t been having any luck tracking down a SCOBY. If you’re in still in Tampa and are willing to share I’d love to take one off your hands.