Homemade Hibiscus Kombucha for Full GAPS

This hibiscus kombucha begins with green tea and dried hibiscus steeped in sweetened water. After the tea cools, mature kombucha and a SCOBY start the ferment in a cloth-covered glass vessel. Expect about 3 quarts of a pink, tart drink. Taste during the 7-to-10-day window and continue fermenting if it remains sweet.

I homeschool and work second shift, so this short preparation step is easy to plan around. After the cooled tea, mature sour starter and SCOBY are in the covered vessel, let the primary ferment proceed in a suitable warm place. Taste it during the seven-to-ten-day window and continue if it remains sweet; the calendar alone does not decide when it is ready.

Yield: About 3 quarts
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 10 minutes
Ferment: 7 to 10 days

Ingredients

• 3 quarts filtered water
• 1 cup organic white sugar or evaporated cane crystals, as culture feed
• 4 organic green tea bags
• 1/4 cup dried hibiscus
• 1 cup mature, sour plain kombucha from a previous culture, for starter liquid
• 1 kombucha SCOBY or starter culture

Green tea and hibiscus supply the tea and floral flavor. The cup of sugar feeds the culture during fermentation; residual sweetness can remain, so taste during the seven-to-ten-day window and let it continue until sour. Use the measured cup of mature, already-sour kombucha from an established batch together with the SCOBY to begin this batch.

Method

1. Bring the filtered water to a boil in a large pot.
2. Add the sugar and stir until it has dissolved into the hot water.
3. Remove the pot from the heat. Add the green tea bags and dried hibiscus.
4. Leave the tea to steep while the liquid cools completely. Do not add the SCOBY while the tea is still hot.
5. Remove the tea bags. Pour the cooled tea through a sieve to remove the hibiscus, then transfer it to a wide glass bowl or jar that holds at least 4 quarts, with enough headspace for the culture.
6. Stir in 1 cup mature, sour plain kombucha. Set the SCOBY on the surface. The starter is about 8% of the 3-quart tea volume, within the amount needed to acidify a new batch.
7. Cover the container loosely with a clean cloth or towel and move it to a warm, dark place.
8. Ferment for 7 to 10 days. Begin checking the tea during that range. It is ready for Full GAPS when it tastes sour. Light fizz and a new spongy SCOBY layer are supporting cues.
9. Lift out the starting SCOBY and the new layer. Store the culture in a glass container with some finished kombucha until the next batch.
10. Pour the finished kombucha into glass jars or a pitcher with a tight-fitting lid and refrigerate.

What to Look for During the Ferment

At the beginning, the liquid is sweet tea. During the 7-to-10-day ferment, taste becomes the useful decision point. If it still tastes sweet, continue the cloth-covered primary ferment and check again rather than bottling it because a certain day has arrived.

Use sour taste as the required Full GAPS marker, with light fizz and a spongy new SCOBY layer as supporting cues.

Why the Recipe Includes Culture Sugar

The cup of sugar feeds the culture during the primary ferment. Dissolve it fully in the hot tea before cooling and adding the starter.

For Full GAPS, let this tea ferment until it tastes sour. The sugar is part of the cultured tea; it does not make white sugar a sweetener for other Full GAPS drinks.

Full GAPS Placement

Kombucha belongs on Full GAPS rather than the earlier Introduction Diet stages. Complete the primary ferment until the tea tastes sour before drinking or using it as an ingredient in another Full GAPS recipe.

The wide glass vessel and breathable cloth give this surface culture the air it needs. A sealed jar belongs only after the primary ferment, when the SCOBY has been removed and the finished drink is going into the refrigerator.

Use mature, already-sour plain kombucha as the starter. One cup for three quarts of sweet tea is about 8% starter by tea volume. That extra acidity helps the culture establish itself in the new batch.

Storage

Transfer the completed kombucha to glass jars or a tightly covered glass pitcher and refrigerate it. Keep the SCOBY covered with some finished kombucha in a separate glass container until the next batch.

FAQ

Is Kombucha Allowed During the GAPS Introduction Diet?

No. The official GAPS FAQ places kombucha on Full GAPS and says not to introduce it during the earlier Introduction Diet stages.

How Do I Know This Kombucha Is Ready?

Taste it during the 7-to-10-day window. The Full GAPS direction is to ferment it until it tastes sour. Light fizz and a new spongy SCOBY layer are supporting cues.

Can I Replace the White Sugar with Honey?

Not in this formula. Use 1 cup organic white sugar or evaporated cane crystals for the culture without substituting another sweetener.

Can I Make It with Hibiscus Alone?

The measured recipe uses four green tea bags plus 1/4 cup dried hibiscus. Keep both parts rather than deleting the green tea.

Can I Use the New SCOBY Layer for Another Batch?

Yes. The new spongy layer can culture another batch. Store it with some finished kombucha in a glass container until it is needed.

Ebonie Garnica

Homemade Hibiscus Kombucha for Full GAPS

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Servings: 3 quarts, approximately

Course: Beverage

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

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• 3 quarts filtered water
• 1 cup organic white sugar or evaporated cane crystals as culture feed
• 4 organic green tea bags
• 1/4 cup dried hibiscus
• 1 cup mature, sour plain kombucha from a previous culture for starter liquid
• 1 kombucha SCOBY or starter culture

Method

 

1. Bring the filtered water to a boil in a large pot.
2. Add the sugar and stir until it has dissolved into the hot water.
3. Remove the pot from the heat. Add the green tea bags and dried hibiscus.
4. Leave the tea to steep while the liquid cools completely. Do not add the SCOBY while the tea is still hot.
5. Remove the tea bags. Pour the cooled tea through a sieve to remove the hibiscus, then transfer it to a wide glass bowl or jar that holds at least 4 quarts, with enough headspace for the culture.
6. Stir in 1 cup mature, sour plain kombucha. Set the SCOBY on the surface. The starter is about 8% of the 3-quart tea volume, within the amount needed to acidify a new batch.
7. Cover the container loosely with a clean cloth or towel and move it to a warm, dark place.
8. Ferment for 7 to 10 days. Begin checking the tea during that range. It is ready for Full GAPS when it tastes sour. Light fizz and a new spongy SCOBY layer are supporting cues.
9. Lift out the starting SCOBY and the new layer. Store the culture in a glass container with some finished kombucha until the next batch.
10. Pour the finished kombucha into glass jars or a pitcher with a tight-fitting lid and refrigerate.

Notes

Prep: 10 minutes. Cook: 10 minutes. Ferment for 7 to 10 days, continuing if the tea remains sweet. Cool the tea completely before adding the starter and SCOBY. Use one cup mature sour kombucha in the three-quart tea batch. Cover the primary ferment with breathable cloth; refrigerate the finished drink after removing the SCOBY. Full GAPS, not the earlier Introduction Diet stages.

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Related Recipes

Once you have a batch of finished kombucha on hand, try it in Cranberry Kombucha Jello, another way to use this cultured tea on Full GAPS.

Recommended Equipment

• A large pot for heating the water and steeping the tea
• A fine-mesh sieve for straining the hibiscus
• A wide glass bowl or jar of at least 4 quarts for the primary ferment
• A clean cloth or towel to cover the vessel
• Glass jars or a pitcher with a tight-fitting lid for the finished kombucha

Next Steps

Crock & Jar: Ferments for GAPS Families is coming soon, with more home ferments for the Full GAPS kitchen. While it is being prepared, browse all recipes for another Full GAPS staple to start.