It’s simple, just make your own Kombucha

Kombucha really seems to be trending, it’s so funny to me how that happens in the food world. Remember chia seeds? Remember when recipes seemed to be all about sweet potatoes? Yeah, food has trends too. I haven’t been brewing Kombucha for long, I suppose it’s been about 2 years now. And honestly folks, it’s so easy. A little smelly and odd looking, but I’ll tell you it’s an excellent conversation starter when folks come to visit. Here are my top 5 reasons why you should be brewing kombucha at home.

Getting started in home brewing sounds super intimidating, but I assure you it’s not. It’s kinda like crockpot cooking, addicting and something you can start, walk away from, and come back to success.

1. Stop wasting money

Big brand kombucha is expensive, it’s right up there with fivebucks oops I mean Starbucks! I admit, I like to indulge on the occasional GT’s gingerade, one of my favs, by darn that sticker price slaps me in my face at check out when it’s the only thing I’m buying. (That’s when I really notice how expensive it is.) Why spend your money when you can make a gallon and a half for about the price of one bottle. There are a lot of myths about kombucha, including ones about it being a kind of cure all beverage. Which there are some great health reasons, some of the hearsay on this is getting pretty exaggerated. This makes an even more compelling argument as to why you shouldn’t be spending nearly $4 on a 16 ounce bottle. You can read more about that HERE.

2. It really does help with your immune system

In my experience, drinking kombucha has really boosted my immune system. I hardly ever get sick anymore and my allergies even seem to be better than ever. (I also credit this to drinking ACV with raw honey and fresh lemon juice.) Studies have proven that kombucha does in fact promote a healthy gut from the bacteria that is grown (and is ever changing per batch) from the scoby. Fermented foods and beverages provide a healthy bacteria that affects our gut and allows us to absorb more of the good stuff in foods. Basically it means you will get more vitamins out of your veggies by consuming fermented goods regularly.

3. Kombucha can pay for itself

Remember when I said you don’t need to waste your money on expensive commercial kombucha? Well I have one even better for you now! You can brew kombucha for free! Did you know that there are a lot of people out there interested in home brewing kombucha themselves? Getting started sounds so easy on someone’s blog post, but then there’s the hunt for a scoby. This isn’t something you can just pop into your local grocery chain and pick up. And since they look and smell a bit on the funky side, you don’t want just any old scoby off amazon, you can seriously buy scoby’s on amazon, it’s a thing… google it. If you keep a well maintained kitchen and brew continuously like I do, you are going to end up with a big fat scoby. If you don’t split it up, it can grow the entire thickness of your container. You can choose to split it and make more batches, or you can sell the scoby with about 1 1/2-2 cups of starter tea. I have only done that once, since I normally just give it away. I sold some scoby and starter tea for a quick $5 to a neighbor lady off some facebook post she made. If you don’t want to waste it, you can make yourself a little side gig slinging scoby’s roadside!

4. People think you’re interesting

I told you in the beginning that brewing kombucha at home is a great conversation starter. As soon as someone sees my giant glass jar with a paper towel atop, fixed in place with a rubber band they ask “what’s that??” with a somewhat gnarly lookin grimace. Brewing kombucha is not an attractive thing, I wish it was, but definitely not. The most commonly followed up question is “is there vinegar in it?” Because it starts to smell vinegary. Once I start to tell them what it is and why my family and I love it, they are interested in trying it. When someone comes by and already loves kombucha, they usually end up leaving with a scoby and tea.

5. Last but not least, brewing kombucha and consuming kombucha improves your overall mood

I think that my generation and the young adult generation coming up are really starting to understand the negative impacts of garbage we have been shoveling into our bodies via processed or gmo foods and drinks. For some of us, we are only hoping to untangle some of the side affects we are already experiencing. I didn’t even know that I needed to change my gut health until I did, and I can honestly say I have less stress and anxiety than ever before. It has been proven that gut health plays an important roll in your mental health. So if you are a lover of kombucha like me, stop what you area doing right now and go brew some kombucha. The first batch will really boost you mood because you’ll feel so accomplished!

You can also see my easy recipe for brewing at home HERE