Do you know how to flavor Kombucha? It’s super easy to turn your homemade Kombucha into a refreshing carbonated drink and the flavor options are endless!
Last week you learnt how to make Kombucha. I hope you took the plunge and have some homemade Kombucha brewing on your countertops by now because today I will show you how to flavor Kombucha and turn it into a delicious carbonated drink. Soda drinkers your healthy alternative is here!
If you do not already know how to make Kombucha start here!
How to flavor Kombucha with secondary fermentation
Secondary fermentation is the process which will turn your ‘plain’ Kombucha into an even more delicious sparkling beverage. Basically you flavor the kombucha with fruit (fresh or frozen) tea, fruit juice or herbs, bottle it in swing top glass bottles and allow it to ferment a bit longer.
The flavour options are endless! I’ve collected numerous recipes on my Gut Healing Recipes Pinterest board so be sure to check it out. Here are my personal favourites so far.
How to flavor Kombucha with fresh fruit
Pineapple Ginger Kombucha
Use a ratio of 20% fruit and 80% Kombucha
- Peel and slice fresh ginger.
- Cut pineapple up into chunks.
- Add ginger and pineapple to a swing top glass bottle. Pour in homemade kombucha. Close the bottle and allow to ferment a day or two on your countertop.
- When ready to drink strain fruit and place flavored kombucha in the fridge.
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- Sliced ginger & Pineapple chunks
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- Add ginger and pineapple to homemade Kombucha, bottle and allow to ferment a day or two on your countertop
How to flavor Kombucha with frozen fruit
Mixed Berry Kombucha
Use a ratio of 20% fruit and 80% Kombucha
- Add frozen mixed berries to a swing top glass bottle. Pour in homemade kombucha. Close the bottle and allow to ferment a day or two on your countertop.
- When ready to drink strain fruit and place flavored kombucha in the fridge.
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- Frozen berries
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- Add berries to homemade Kombucha, bottle and allow to ferment a day or two on your countertop
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How to flavor Kombucha with herbs and spices
Himalaya Chai Kombucha
Use a ratio of 1 tablespoon Himalaya Chai Spice to 1 cup Kombucha
- Add herbs and spices to a swing top glass bottle. Pour in homemade kombucha. Close the bottle and allow to ferment a day or two on your countertop.
- When ready to drink strain and place flavored kombucha in the fridge.
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- Himalaya Chai Spices
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- Add herbs and spices to homemade Kombucha, bottle and allow to ferment a day or two on your countertop
Spiced Hibiscus Kombucha
Use a ratio of 1 tablespoon mulling spices + 1 teaspoon dried hibiscus to 1 cup Kombucha
- Add herbs and spices to a swing top glass bottle. Pour in homemade kombucha. Close the bottle and allow to ferment a day or two on your countertop.
- When ready to drink strain and place flavored kombucha in the fridge.
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- Mulling Spices
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- Add herbs and spices to homemade Kombucha, bottle and allow to ferment a day or two on your countertop
How to flavor Kombucha with fruit & herbs
Blueberry Lavender Kombucha
Use a ratio of 2 tablespoons+ 1 tablespoon dried lavender flowers to 1 cup Kombucha
- Add blueberries (fresh or frozen) and lavender to a swing top glass bottle. Pour in homemade kombucha. Close the bottle and allow to ferment a day or two on your countertop.
- When ready to drink place flavored kombucha in the fridge.
How to flavor Kombucha with fruit juice
Sweet Orange Kombucha
(Mandarin & Clementine juice also works)
Use a ratio of 2 tablespoons cold pressed orange juice to 1 cup Kombucha
- Add orange juice to a swing top glass bottle. Pour in homemade kombucha. Close the bottle and allow to ferment a day or two on your countertop.
- When ready to drink place flavored kombucha in the fridge.
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- Orange Juice
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- Add orange juice to homemade Kombucha, bottle and allow to ferment a day or two on your countertop
Troubleshooting :How do I make my Kombucha more fizzy?
Tips and tricks to make your Kombucha extra fizzy during secondary fermentation
1) Bottle up your kombucha for secondary ferment at the right time. While it’s still a bit sweet and not overly sour. Lots of people think that the more sour the kombucha the better because there’s less sugar right? But that’s incorrect. If your kombucha is overly sour that means the yeasts have died off because there was no more sugar to feed on. Just as yeast makes bread rise, the good yeasts in kombucha make your tea bubbly. So dead yeast = no fizz. Which brings me to my second tip…
2) Add a little sugar during secondary fermentation
Say what?! Sugar! Yes… just a half teaspoon of plain white sugar per 12oz bottle will spark the yeast and get them working at creating the fizz you long for.
3) Add fresh ginger during secondary fermentaiton. Lactobacillis bacteria and wild yeasts live naturally on ginger. These feed off the sugars in the bottled kombucha and adds carbonation as a by-product. (source www.fermentationrecipes.com)
4) Invest in a good bottle and make sure you fill your bottle all the way up to the top. This reduces the amount of oxygen in the bottle, resulting in more carbon dioxide being dissolved into the kombucha.
5) Keep your kombucha out of the fridge during secondary fermentation. Find a warm dark spot where your Kombucha can hang out for a few days undisturbed. Placing it in the fridge drastically slows down fermentation.
NOTE: You will want to ‘burp’ the bottle every other day over the kitchen sink to avoid a huge explosion.
Are you a coffee lover? You can also make kombucha coffee!
Learn how to make kombucha coffee
So what do you think? What other flavors will you experiment with?
If you have any questions pop them in the comment section below!
Just in case you missed it here’s How to Make Kombucha
How to flavor Kombucha
Ingredients
- Homemade Kombucha
- Mixed Berries
- Pineapple chunks
- Sliced fresh ginger
- Chai Spices
- Mulling Spices
- Cold Pressed Juce
Instructions
- Add desired flavourings to homemade Kombucha and allow to ferment a day or two on your countertop
Enjoy!
My family’s all-time favorite is ginger peach! We ‘may’ have just planted our first peach tree to help fuel our addiction. 😉 I do enjoy berries, though, and now I’m gonna have to find some pineapple and give that version a try!
And so much for sharing this at Savoring Saturdays!
This is absolutely—-totally WONDERFUL!!!!!
How long can you keep it in the fridge for?
Hi Lynette, you can keep Kombucha in the fridge indefinitely. It will continue to ferment slowly and the taste will change but it won’t really spoil. We usually consume ours within a week.
I like plum ginger the best so far. I am a beginner and have the long neck bottles. what else helps it be fizzy? I haven’t been adding 20% fruit to 80% kumbucho yet so I will try more fruit.
my mother is getting bigger and bigger…what to do? (on 3rd batch now)
Hi, I’ve updated the post with some tips and tricks for making your Kombucha even fizzier, please take a look. As for the mother… have you removed any of the babies that grow onto the mother yet? You can peel off some of the babies and use them as a mother for making another batch which means more Kombucha for you. Or gift the babies to a friend.
You’re so cool! I don’t think I have read anything like that before.
So wonderful to discover somebody with a few original thoughts on this topic.
Seriously.. thanks for starting this up. This website is
something that’s needed on the internet, someone
with a bit of originality!
Hi Krystal… My first encounter with kombucha was back in the 90s. Now Im starting it up again alone with my husband.We are excited about trying out new recipes. My question is about the continuous brew. Can I take my 2 gallon glass container and just cover it with a dark cloth or box?, so that I can leave it out on the counter top. Thank you and Im loving all the information on Kombucha.!!!!!
Hi Kim, you’ll want to use a tightly woven, yet breathable material so that fruit flies, ants or other pests can’t get into your brew. Cotton is ideal, cheese cloth not so much. Also make sure its pretty snug fitting so they can’t sneak in that way.
Hi, thanks for the very clear information. I am doing my first batch of kombucha today, it’s ready to bottle and I thought that I would flavour a couple and leave one plain… I have frozen berries and orange juice on hand so those 2 flavours seem like a good starting point for me… My question is, if I blend the berries before adding them, do I have to strain them out before we drink it? I am guessing they’d just be fermented too and therefore harmless…. More of a texture thing than anything else?!?!? Thanks in advance for your help.
Hi Kate, there’s no harm in drinking the kombucha with the blended fermented fruit. It’s down to texture preference yes.
Hi, do I have to do a 2nd fermentation in a swing top bottle – will any other bottle do? Is it possible to add an a.ount of the kombucha juice to fresh orange juice and drink it like that from the fridge, without the 2nd fermentation process?
Hi Helen, you can skip second fermentation and mix your kombucha with juice. The second fermentation is for flavouring and for carbonation. A swing top bottle is best. Another bottle type might explode from the pressure of carbonation.