I can’t look after more than four starters. My ginger bug Mary Ann, my kombucha SCOBY Etheldreda, my sourdough starter Eleanor and my buttermilk Betty all need regular feedings or they’ll die. I take care of this little family in addition to fermenting all sorts of other foods that don’t require starters—kimchi, dill pickles, chutney, […]
SCOBY
Off-the-Grid Kombucha
Because you want to take your hippie game to the next level… The word “ferment” comes from the Latin verb “fervere,” to boil One of the benefits of making fermented foods is that you can prepare many of them without consuming energy. So, after the apocalypse, I’ll still be able to eat my mouth-watering fermented salsa, […]
How Does Fermentation Prevent Food Waste?
Today I taught a fermentation workshop at CVSan in Castro Valley as part of the organization’s Commitment to Serve Week. The theme of the week is zero-waste. It was so much fun! (Thank you Jordan, Naomi and all the staff at CVSan.) But what does fermentation have to do with food waste? Well, I’ve decided […]
SCOBY Do’s and Don’ts: Your Kombucha Questions Answered
In 2014, I discovered that I absolutely love teaching fermentation (who knew?). My kombucha students have lots of questions during and after class so I thought I better write up an FAQ page. I’ll add more to this as more questions arise. If you have one that I haven’t addressed here, please ask away in […]
The Secondary Fermentation: Hippie Jargon for “Put Kombucha in a Bottle”
Updated 09/19/17 During my fermentation workshops, I give students samples of my various kombucha flavors before I put them to work. They always ask for the recipes so I thought I better get to it and post a bunch. Before you can flavor kombucha, you must first brew a batch and wait for it to ferment. You can […]
How to Make a Ginger Bug Starter for Natural Soda
I have posted pics of my ginger bug on Instagram a couple of times but without directions. When people then ask how to actually make the ginger bug, they probably want more guidance than “mix some ginger, sugar and water together and add more daily for about five days.” But really, that’s about all you do. […]
Travels with Etheldreda
Etheldreda is my kombucha SCOBY. SCOBY stands for symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeasts. A SCOBY (aka mother or mushroom) will transform sweetened tea into kombucha, an effervescent, probiotic and delicious fermented drink. (I’m enjoying a glass as I type!) My generous friend Cory of Aquarian Bath mailed me a SCOBY last year, from which Etheldreda evolved. […]
The Mother of All Ferments: Kombucha
Click here to go straight to the recipe If you can brew a pot of tea, you can brew kombucha. The only trick to making kombucha is obtaining a mother to get started. A generous Twitter friend sent me part of hers and my mother (I named her Etheldreda) has been reproducing like mad. Otherwise […]