How to Make Kombucha with simple ingredients from scratch. This kombucha recipe is easy if you follow our quick video instructions. And costs 30 times less than store bought!
We will show you how to grow a SCOBY (you can also buy one or get from a friend), brew kombucha and then even make it fizzy. This is a full guide to homemade kombucha tea that costs 30 times less than store-bought. Aha, that’s right!
Table of contents
Why Make Homemade Kombucha?
Wondering why and how to make kombucha at home? Got “a kombucha problem” and don’t like how much it costs? I don’t blame you. Store bought kombucha costs as much as wine.
1 gallon kombucha = $28 Store bought vs. $0.80 Homemade = 30 times cheaper
Shocked? I was too. This reason alone should be enough to get over any aversion towards kombucha SCOBY, the jellyfish like slimy kombucha “mushroom”, and learn how to make your own kombucha.
I have been making my own kombucha for 5 years now. Making kombucha at home is super-super simple once you understand how kombucha tea brewing process works. This post goes into detailed instructions including a video, supplies needed (with affiliate Amazon links I use and trust myself) and a huge section of FAQs. Keep scrolling below or click on any link in the Table of Contents above for a quick jump to your section of interest.
What Is a Kombucha Tea?
Kombucha tea is a fermented tea made with water, tea, sugar, bacteria and yeast. After kombucha SCOBY (mushroom) sits in a sweetened tea for 7-10 days, the result is barely sweet fermented fizzy drink. Most sugar in store bought kombucha comes from added sugar.Kombucha definitely tastes and smells like a fermented product. Something in between apple cider and tea. It tastes depends on type of tea leaves used and flavorings added. There is a big difference in taste between green tea and black tea fermented tea.
Ingredients and Supplies You Will Need
Ingredients
- Kombucha SCOBY: You will need to grow your own SCOBY first from a mix of a bottle of store-bought kombucha, tea, sugar and water. However, you can buy fresh SCOBY with starter tea to speed up the process by 2-3 weeks or get one form a friend.
- Tea: Any caffeinated, flavoured (love Earl Grey tea here) or plain tea like white tea, black tea or green tea works. No decaf tea. You can also use tea bags (I list the amount in the recipe card below).
- Sugar: White or cane sugar, preferably organic. No brown, coconut or raw sugar. Also no honey, maple syrup, stevia, splenda etc.
- Water: Can be just tap cold water, doesn’t have to be filtered.
Supplies
- Large glass container: Has to be glass or ceramic minimum 1 gallon size. I always use a glass dispenser with a plastic spout (which is fine!) that makes pouring the brewed kombucha so much easier.
- Flip top glass bottles: Airtight bottles will keep carbonation in.
- Fine mesh sieve: Filters out large and small loose leaf tea leaves making your drink super clear.
- Linen or paper towel and a rubber band: You want to allow air to circulate during the fermentation process.
Bottles cleaning tip: With time inside of the bottles accumulate a tea build up. Add 1 tsp baking soda and 1 tbsp uncooked rice, then fill up with hot water half way. Shake, let stand fo 10 minutes, shake well again and rinse. Bottles should be much cleaner now.
How to Make Kombucha from Scratch
Here is a quick recap of the whole process:
- Grow or buy a SCOBY
- First fermentation – brewing kombucha.
- Second fermentation (optional) – flavoring and making kombucha more fizzy.
1. Grow or Buy Fresh SCOBY with Starter Tea
Here is a super easy video recipe how to grow kombucha SCOBY. Quick recap: All you will need is a bottle of store-bought kombucha, combined with a few cups of homemade sweet tea and left to ferment for about 2 weeks or until a SCOBY forms on top. Or you can buy fresh SCOBY with starter tea these days. Amazing!
You might be able to grow a SCOBY with store-bought flavoured kombucha. Just make sure it contains black tea. For example, I think ginger kombucha will have more chances than mango one.
2. Brew Sweet Tea
Now that we have kombucha mushroom, we are ready to brew kombucha also called “first fermentation”. In a large pot, bring water to boil and turn off heat. Add tea leaves and sugar, stir and let cool completely.
To speed up the cooling process, place pot in a sink filled with cold water for 30 minutes, or let cool outside (if it’s cold). I use the same pot each time when making kombucha, so now I do not have to measure 14 cups of water every time.
3. Combine Tea and SCOBY
In at least one gallon size glass beverage dispenser, add SCOBY and 2 cups of starter tea (the one from growing a mushroom in or store-bought kombucha). Pour cooled tea on top using a fine mesh strainer.
Once you pour freshly brewed tea, it is normal to see the SCOBY sink to the bottom or hang sideways. It will float to the top after a few days of fermentation.
4. Ferment
Cover with paper or linen towel secured with a rubber band and put in a place with temperatures around or above 21C or 70F degrees (I leave mine on a kitchen counter away from direct sunlight) to ferment for 7-14 days.
How do I know my kombucha is brewing? Kombucha will lighten in colour and develop fermented smell. You will also see small bubbles forming and new SCOBY forming on top of the first one.
In summer, warmer temperatures speed up the fermentation. And in winter, they slow it down. Keep an eye on the kombucha based on the season and your house temperatures.
5. Taste and Bottle
After 7-10 days (less in summer) start tasting kombucha. If it isn’t sweet, has a tangy taste, fizzes as you pour and booch mushroom is floating at the top, then your fermented tea is ready. Pour all of it, minus the 2 cups and SCOBY, using a funnel into an airtight cap bottles and enjoy!
6. Storing Kombucha Tea
Does kombucha go bad? Kombucha tea doesn’t go bad but rather keeps fermenting which makes it taste more vinegar-y. Choice of storage depends on your personal taste buds. Keep at room temperature for up to one week, “burping” bottles every few days to avoid gases build up. After that (or from the start) refrigerate for up to 2-3 weeks. Fermented tea loses its carbonation when refrigerated and doesn’t need “burping”.
There is nothing like freshly brewed kombucha. When it’s ready for bottling, I like to pour myself a big glass directly from the dispenser with a spout before bottling the rest up.
7. Repeat
Always leave about 2 cups of fermented tea covering the SCOBY in a jug, to keep it hydrated and to be able to start a new batch. To brew next batch, start with step 2 by brewing and cooling the sweet tea.
Health Benefits of Fermented Tea
One word – PROBIOTICS. Kombucha is a fermented product containing the “good” bacteria.
- Stronger immune system.
- Improved digestion.
- Healthy gut.
- Detoxification.
If you are looking for another way to boost your immune system, detoxify and improve gut health, check out how to make lemon water.
How to Flavor and Make Kombucha More Fizzy
Freshly poured kombucha tea from the dispenser with a SCOBY is very fizzy. It loses its carbonation once bottled, especially in a fridge. Would you like it to be more fizzy? Then you need to do a second fermentation aka how to make kombucha fizzy.
Would you like your kids to drink and love the booch? Would you like to make your own “healthy pop”? Then click and learn everything about flavoring kombucha.
Homemade Kombucha FAQs
Unfortunately not. Kombucha is one of few recipes where you have to use white or cane sugar. Raw sugar, coconut sugar, honey, maple syrup, stevia or any other sweetener will not work. However, you will not be eating 1 cup sugar once tea has fermented. The sugar acts like the food for the bacteria and yeast. They will eat it all up turning into acidity and carbonation. Final kombucha is very low in sugar.
No, caffeine is a must for the fermentation process to occur. You can combine a bit of flavored tea with black or green or white tea to add flavor.
No and yes. I don’t rinse the mushroom but if you want to – go for it. Every few batches I wash the jug with biodegradable dish soap (check out the non-toxic cleaners I use). I have read that you should wash jar with vinegar but because I don’t use conventional harsh dish soap, I am not too scared of the chemicals making my SCOBY “sick”.
I honestly never had this issue. Neither any reader has reported it. So it is very rare and what you might think is a mold, is actually new SCOBY growing on top. But if it happens, you have to discard the entire batch and start over again.
That is a new SCOBY growing – “a baby”.
Always leave the top (newer) kombucha mushroom to keep brewing kombucha. Peel off the older one and you have 2 options:
Option #1: Give it to friends or start another batch.
Option #2: Compost it. It sucks, it’s a waste but at least it gets composted.
Yes, SCOBY is easy to cut with a pair of clean kitchen scissors. In fact, you always should keep only a few SCOBies in your kombucha brewing batch because too many and your fermented tea will be sour. Think of it as a bigger hungry “baby” that will eat sugar faster. However, you should also keep in mind that for best carbonation results the shape of a SCOBY should be the shape of the jar creating a tight seal.
Yes, technically. I have seen scoby candy recipes and have heard some folks feeding the mushroom to their dog.
To maintain a bit of a fizz, store kombucha at room temperature (not refrigerated) in an airtight bottle. Carbonation won’t be as strong but still some is better than none.
When we went on vacation to Mexico for a month, I placed the jug with SCOBY and about few cups of kombucha in the fridge for 4 weeks. This way the fermentation process slows down. If I want to take a break for a shorter period of time while at home, let’s say 7-10 days, I just let the jar sit on a counter in the same way.
Yes, a bit. It contains approximately 1/3 the amount of caffeine as the tea it is made with.
Alcohol level in kombucha is 0.5% ABV compared to 5% ABV in beer. Definitely won’t make you drunk.
Drink as much as desired. There is no right or wrong formula for health benefits. Make sure to drink plenty of water as kombucha is natural detoxifier. And you want to flush the newly released toxins out.
Yes for sure. My kids love the booch, especially the flavored one. They treat it as pop or juice.
You let it ferment too long. Happens to the best of us. I usually make a few cups of strong sweet tea, let cool and add to the jug with the booch. Let sit for another 1-2 days, taste and bottle. Do not add sugar directly to the jug with kombucha as it will not dissolve or help with the acidity.
Black tea. Its leaves that have been oxidized for a long time creating a bold flavor.
Choice of storage depends on your personal taste buds. Keep at room temperature for up to one week, “burping” bottles every few days to avoid gases build up. After that (or from the start) refrigerate for up to 2-3 weeks. Fermented tea loses its carbonation when refrigerated and doesn’t need “burping”.
More Healthy Drinks Recipes
How to Make Kombucha
Ingredients
- 1 kombucha SCOBY
- 2 cups previously brewed kombucha from a jar with SCOBY or store-bought
- 14 cups water
- 1 cup white or cane sugar not honey, stevia, raw or coconut sugar
- 2 tbsp loose leaf black or green tea or 8 tea bags
Instructions
- Make kombucha SCOBY. All you will need is a bottle of store-bought kombucha, combined with a few cups of homemade sweet tea and left to ferment for about 2 weeks or until a SCOBY forms on top. Or you can buy fresh SCOBY with starter tea these days.
- In a large pot, bring water to boil and turn off heat. Add tea and sugar, stir and let cool completely: place in a sink filled with cold water to speed things up, or let sit overnight.
- In a glass container, add SCOBY and 2 cups of starter tea (the one from growing a SCOBY in or store-bought kombucha). Pour cooled tea on top using a fine mesh strainer.
- Cover with paper or linen towel secured with a rubber band and put in a place with temperatures around or above 21C or 70F degrees (I leave mine on a kitchen counter away from direct sunlight) to ferment for 7-14 days. It is OK if SCOBY isn’t floating at the top (it will later).
- After 7-10 days (less in summer) start tasting kombucha. If it isn’t sweet, has a tangy taste, fizzes as you pour and SCOBY is floating at the top, then your kombucha is ready.
- Pour all of the kombucha, minus the 2 cups and SCOBY, using a funnel into an airtight cap bottles and enjoy!
- Always leave about 2 cups of fermented tea covering the SCOBY in a jug, to keep it hydrated and to be able to start a new batch. To brew next batch, start with step 2 by brewing and cooling the sweet tea.
Video
Notes
- Store: Kombucha tea doesn’t go bad but rather keeps fermenting which makes it taste more vinegar-y. Choice of storage depends on your personal taste buds. Keep at room temperature for up to one week, “burping” bottles every few days to avoid gases build up. After that (or from the start) refrigerate for up to 2-3 weeks. Kombucha loses its carbonation when refrigerated and doesn’t need “burping”.
- Plastic spout: If you have glass dispenser with a tap and it is plastic, know it is fine and normal. That is what I have.
- Can I use plastic or metal container for making kombucha? No, it has to be glass.
- What is best tea for making kombucha? Any caffeinated, flavoured or plain tea like white tea, black tea or green tea works.
- What is ideal room temperature for brewing kombucha? About 68 – 70 F or 20-21 C for bacteria to grow and kombucha ferment. Warmer temperature means faster fermentation.
- Can I take a break from brewing kombucha? Yes. When we went on vacation to Mexico for a month, I placed the jug with SCOBY and about few cups of kombucha in the fridge for 4 weeks. This way the fermentation process slows down. If I want to take a break for a shorter period of time while at home, let’s say 7-10 days, I just let the jar sit on a counter in the same way.
Hi there.
I got a glass dispenser from Sur la Table with a spout. The spigot is metal like, is that ok? Please let me know. Thanks
Oh yes, totally fine.
Am I wasting my time trying to make a scoby with a flavoured GT Kombucha? My last 2 trips to our closest city all i find is flavoured. Have the gingerade kind and green one.
THANKS
Hi Jeanelle. Unfortunately I don’t think flavoured kombucha will work. Try to check other grocery stores, sometimes when least expected. I have seen GT’s kombucha in any grocery store here in BC. Good luck.:)
Thank you for the recipe! Can’t wait to try it!
LOVE everything about blog! Just finished growing SCOBY and cooling the tea mixture as I write. I realized that 14 cups may not be enough for my family and am wondering if I can double the tea recipe to 28 cups but still only use 2 cups of fermented tea with 1 SCOBY. I read all FAQs and comments but did not find an answer. =)
Haha, welcome to the club! I went and bought a second glass jar and am now making kombucha with 4 days interval. I’m obsessed. I learnt how to flavour it with fruit and make fizzy so kids drink it like crazy. I will post that info next week. You will be making pots of tea, like stock pots lol. Anyways.
Yes, you can use one SCOBY and only two cups of kombucha for 28 cups of sweet tea. Fermenting will take a bit longer, just taste it. A thin layer will grow on top of your existing SCOBY and as soon as it thickens the process should go faster with further batches. So yes, go for it. You could also go buy another bottle of GT’s kombucha and add to the batch – will speed up things with more live bacteria. Let me know how you like it and what happens!
And I’m so glad you are enjoying the blog! We are working on updating it and soon it will be even better!!!
Bless your heart! Thank you for such a quick response! I can’t wait to see the new blog look and even more so, can’t wait to learn about flavored, fizzy kombucha!! Thanks a million!!
You are welcome. I’m paying for my sleep in till 10 am this morning with insomnia right now, why not reply to comments lol.
This is such a great post. I have unsuccessfully tried making Kombucha, now I will try again. Why do you have to use caffeinated tea? Does the caffeine get eaten like the sugar?
Yeah, it feeds SCOBY. Here, you can read more. Basically you can call anything “tea”, even mint leaves steeped in hot water, but it is not a real tea. So, it has to be tea, like real tea plant.
You can do this – so easy, honestly! Let me know if you have any questions. I’m now fizzing and flavouring it and it is AMAZING!!! AMAZEBALLS. My kids LOVE it now!
It works! I am about 10 days in and a nice baby SCOBY formed already. Looks like a nice pancake :)I used GT brand original and same sugar from Costco like you did. My original GT bottle did not have much of live SCOBY as when I bought it I planned on drinking it and not growing it :). Thank you for the recipe, Olena. I never even thought about growing my own SCOBY before.
Great, of course it works, why wouldn’t it?! Haha. 95% chance GT’s kombucha without brown strands would work to grow a SCOBY, just wanted to be safe. Because I can easily grow a SCOBY from my own kombucha even when it’s clear. Just buying GT’s is the sure way because many other store-bought kombucha is less live.
I’m now flavouring and making it fizzy, and kids love it that way. Sharing that next.:)
I love Kombucha!!! I drank one today while I was a work. Reading this article I realized I am paying too much. I can’t drink Kombucha as much I was would due to the price. I would like to drink it daily or 3-4 days weeks but due to the price I can drink maybe twice a week. Reading this article and seeing how described the process has now given the confidence to try making it myself.
It’s about Time! Hi Dear Friend!
Can’t say how many times I tried to figure this out two years ago from the complicated network of internet ‘recipes’ out there! None exactly the same, and using complicated terms I had never heard before. And I’m no slouch in chemistry either, lol!
I’m not even a great, huge fan of the taste of the taste of the bottled GT’s stuff, I just love what it does for my health and have a dose daily dose with a wholloping whack to my wallet.
Then one day my my son made some and brought it to me when he visited and it was whole different story. He also brought me a scoby he’d grown for me and set me up! Homemade is soooo much better! Because as you said, we can control how far it ferments! And the taste, by which type of tea we continue on with. I am with on the green tea!
But what I love here, is that I could have made it myself from your instruction sheet. I do add strawberries, watermelon, or mint leaves to mine, but just before I drink, and muddle it a bit to crush my addition up and infuse those flavors. My son likes to fizz his up, with the second fermentation also, but not me. I am just too impatient and perhaps a little to lazy and satisfied with my fruit infusions on occasion.
You! I am with YOU on the green tea! It is by far my favorite tea to make my Kombucha with. It’s a nice, lovely mild taste.
You keep surprising us, we love it❣️
Hi-hi.:) Oh, wow, your son does it. That’s so cool! Now I’m having fun fizzing it up and that is my next post. Yes, green tea is the best one – it doesn’t grow as strong of a SCOBY as black tea does, but the flavour is mild and amazing!
I think homemade kombucha is way tastier than anything I tried out there, however I haven’t tried much because it costs and arm and a leg.
Enjoy! It is really-really good for you!
Yes, one of my four children is very into his health! My youngest, 30 year old. My oldest two try for their kids. But often give in to their busy schedules and one of them whines of his youngest since he doesn’t have them all of the time. Funny because she doesn’t that here. She knows a quick treat is going to be a grated apple with cinnamon and maple syrup or maybe grandma will sneak them a few squares of 80% dark chocolate, but no peanut butter cups.
Kids know every parent’s weak spot. They know exactly who allows them what. That is why I do not believe in picky eaters besides picking out onions, mushrooms etc. Kids’ nutrition is a product of their own parents’ behaviour.
Hi Olena, Thank you so much for this Kombucha from Scratch article / recipe. I bought a kombucha scoby from someone on ebay – it arrived with some mold on it and I was told to just scrape it off. Well, it did grow a scoby but it was completely molded on top, so I threw it out. Initially, I wondered if our home was a bit too cold in the winter, but since it did grow a scoby I’m going to follow your directions now and get everything growing over the Summer ;-))). I’m thrilled to see that I can grow my own scoby from the strands in a bottle of commercial kombucha. One Question:: When I’ve made my cup of sweetened tea and “add a cup of the commercial kombucha” to it, does the kombucha have to be at room temperature? Does this step require the same temperature range as when doing the “first fermentation?” Thanks, in advance. Yours in Gratitude. WendyHT
Hi Wendy. Hm, what is your house temperature in winter? Mine is between 65-70 F and I had no mold issues all winter. I don’t think it is your house T issue, the SCOBY was originally infected with mold. You are supposed to throw it out. When I was first experimenting with dehydrated SCOBY, I had tea sitting on my counter for weeks, SCOBY didn’t grow but no mold grew either.
It doesn’t matter what T is your cup of store-bought kombucha when you add it. It probably will be cold from the fridge, room T is fine too. All you care about is not to mix hot tea with live bacteria in store-bought kombucha and then 65 – 70F + for fermentation to occur. Bottom line is – when any live bacteria product like yogurt or kombucha is heated, the probiotics are killed. And I don’t see a reason why you would boil any of those.:) Good luck! Let me know how it will go.
This is by far the best explained kombucha recipe I’ve seen; I’m so excited to finally make the attempt.
Is it ok to use white sugar in place of cane? Either way, what is the benefit of using cane over white? We use very little sugar in our home anymore, and no experience with cane sugar. Thank you!
I’m fairly new to your site, and am already a huge fan. Thank you for helping us make our homes better for our familes.
Yes, white sugar is OK however it is derived from GMO sugar beets. Your kombucha will work but won’t be pesticide free etc. As soon as you can buy organic sugar that is white (light) in colour, sold everywhere and is very affordable, looks similar to white sugar. It is entirely interchangeable for white sugar and my understanding is that all of it is made from a sugar cane which looks kinda similar to bamboo vs. conventionally grown American sugar beets sprayed with Roundup. Just so much healthier!
Awesome! I was so intimidated myself with so many rules and explanations, so just wanted it to make as easy as possible for you once I understood how not complicated kombucha brewing is.
Feel free to ask any questions you might have along the way.