How To: Make Kombucha tea

Kombucha is a fermented tea used primarily for medicinal purposes. If you need to make some at home and don't want to go out to the health store, check out this video.

Fermented kombucha tea is sold in many health food stores, but some people prefer to make it at home.

Warning: Never change your diet without first consulting your physician. There have been reports of illness and allergies associated with consuming kombucha tea.

Step 1: Make black tea

Make a batch of weak-to-moderately-strong black tea and sweeten it with white sugar.

Step 2: Allow the tea to cool

Pour the tea in a large glass container and allow it to cool to room temperature.

Step 3: Introduce the kombucha culture

Place the kombucha culture in the tea and cover the container with cheesecloth or a coffee filter, securing it with the rubber band. Keep the container out of direct light a room temperature.

Warning: If you see any mold on the culture, throw the tea away, clean all your equipment thoroughly, let it dry, and start all over with a new culture.

Step 4: Wait

After about a week, the kombucha culture will impart a sweet and sour taste to the tea. The degree of sourness is directly related to the length of fermentation.

Step 5: Strain the liquid

When it's ready, strain the liquid with a coffee filter when fermentation has resulted in a satisfactory taste.

Did you know? Although sometimes called a mushroom, kombucha is actually a colony of bacteria and yeast.