DIY Kombucha With Lime Essential Oil

Last summer, I was busy making homemade kimchi. Well, it’s not quite summer here in the Okanogan Highlands. Produce from the garden is not available for making kimchi. After paying retail for a growler of kombucha, I decided to try making a batch at home.  

DIY Kombucha With doTERRA Lime Essential Oil

Kombucha is a fermented drink that is full of good bacteria or probiotics. It’s fizzy making it quite festive. If you want to give your immune system a boost, try making fermented foods and drinks at home. Dr. Axe has a good blog post on kombucha. My first batch was made with regular black tea. I can’t tolerate a lot of caffeine so I decided to try decaf black tea. The taste is the same however, there is some debate out there about using decaf tea for DIY kombucha. I refer to Cultures For Health who holds an extensive library of DIY good for you food.

I bought my Scoby from Amazon and followed a simple recipe that came with my Scoby. I also referred to Cultures for Health quite a bit since their video instructions made everything look easy.

In 2 cups boiling water and steep 6 black tea bags for 5 or 10 minutes. (Your kombucha will vary in taste depending on how long you steep tea and or combination of other teas. However, black tea is needed in this DIY process).

Add 1 cup granulated sugar and stir.

Add mixture into a glass gallon jar

Add your scoby

Fill the rest of your jar with filtered water

Cover the jar with cheese cloth or coffee filter and set aside in a cool dark place for at least 7 days. I keep mine in the kitchen cupboard. When your kombucha starts to taste tart, it is ready for you to drink. It is advisable to start tasting your kombucha at day 7.

I add flavor before bottling my finished kombucha. Measure 4 cups of finished kombucha into another glass container. You’d want to leave about 2 cups of tea with your scoby for your next batch. Flavor options are endless. You can use fresh or frozen fruit, fruit juice, or therapeutic grade essential oils that is safe to ingest. I have tried doTERRA Lime Essential Oil as well as Ginger Essential Oil. The flavoring agent’s amount is up to you. Add more or less of your flavoring agent according to your taste. I love lavender incorporated into food. I've had lavender ice cream and lavender butter. I can't wait to try doTERRA Lavender Essential Oil as a flavor for my DIY kombucha.

For extra fizz, I keep my kombucha in swing top bottles I purchased from Amazon inside the fridge. Make sure you leave extra room in the swing top bottles. You won't want a champagne-like explosion in your kitchen. Flavored or not, kombucha is so refreshing in hot days like today. If you're unsure about how your finished product should look or taste, this website has pictures of what to expect and what you don't want in your kombucha. 

Have you made a batch of kombucha? How did you like it? What flavor did you add to your finished product?

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