Under natural conditions, the symbiosis of yeast and bacteria forms kombucha. But there was a time when he was very popular. You can find references to it in almost every culture, which is no coincidence, because this drink has a pleasant taste and many useful properties. In addition, the liquid obtained with the help of kombucha is the strongest antibiotic. But how to grow kombucha, and what is needed for this?
The first mention of kombucha dates back to 220 BC, during the Jing Dynasty of Ancient China, where it was called kombucha. This name is still found in the name of the mushroom in different cultures.
What is kombucha?
Kombucha is a floating fibrous filament of colonies of beneficial microorganisms and cellulose. It also contains beneficial yeast that digests sugars into alcohols. Since ancient times, people have known how to grow kombucha and what usefulproperties it has.
The fungus contains Gluconacetobacter xylinus, a producer of microbiological cellulose. This microorganism is able to convert ethanol to acetic acid, which reduces the amount of alcohol and increases the amount of probiotic products.
The acidic environment created by kombucha prevents the formation of mold and pathogenic bacteria. Kombucha is able to produce many useful substances, such as:
- ethyl alcohol;
- about a dozen organic acids, including acetic, oxalic, lactic, citric, etc.;
- sugars presented as disaccharides and monosaccharides;
- purine bases;
- tannins and resins;
- beneficial enzymes;
- vitamins;
- antibiotics.
Antibacterial effect
In the last century, Associate Professor L. Danielyan at the Department of Microbiology conducted a study of the antibacterial properties of kombucha. As a result of testing, the scientist managed to find out that the produced liquid has antibacterial activity, due to the presence of active biological substances in it. Because of this feature, people have used the liquid since ancient times, and also knew how to grow kombucha. The product he produces is highly effective against many Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. Many non-sporogenous bacteria died in the fungus solution within ten minutes to two hours. Spores of bacteria and pathogenic fungi showed littleresistance and died within one to five days. These included anthrax spores and other dangerous pathogens. Streptococci were the most sensitive to the action of the liquid: they died in about an hour.
How to get the mushroom?
There are several ways to get kombucha. It is sold, sent from other countries, cities. And few people know how to grow kombucha from nothing. This activity is simple, but requires patience.
There are many recipes for growing kombucha from scratch. How exactly to do this is up to you.
Before you start growing a mushroom, you should prepare a container. It must be thoroughly washed. Kombuha loves cleanliness, at the slightest pollution, he will die, without having had time to grow to a mature size. For washing use baking soda, do not use chemical detergents.
Method one
To grow kombucha from scratch, no matter how trite it may sound, you need tea. For germination, strong black tea is brewed, a spoonful of sugar is added and the composition is left for two to three days in a warm place. A film of oily consistency will begin to form on the surface of the nutrient medium. This is the mushroom bookmark. After a couple of months, the membrane will get stronger. During this period, it will need to be transferred to another container and poured with cooled tea with the addition of five tablespoons of sugar per two liters of liquid. Only boiled water is used to make tea, as raw water may contain s alts that are harmful.effect on the fungus.
The jar with the mushroom is not closed, but covered with several layers of gauze or a napkin so that midges and other insects do not get inside. Do not place a jar of mushroom near the window: direct sunlight and drafts inhibit the development of the fungus.
Second way
Some people know how to grow kombucha at home from apple juice. To do this, the juice is taken and divided into two containers, left for a couple of months. As a result of fermentation processes, a thin substance is formed on the surface. It is carefully removed and placed in a medium of lightly sweetened tea. In this environment, the formation of kombucha occurs. For its growth and development, it is necessary to leave the jar open, and so that insects do not get into it, the neck is covered with gauze in 2-3 layers.
Third method
Few people know how to grow kombucha at home from kvass. This is made from freshly made homemade kvass, which is placed in a warm place without closing the lid. This is necessary for the access of free air. After a while, a thin film will appear on the surface. A young kombucha mushroom will grow, covering the entire surface of the liquid, thereby blocking the access of air to the solution. This slows down the fermentation process. To prevent this from happening, it is necessary to bend the edges of the film, passing air to the nutrient medium. After a few weeks, the embryo becomes less transparent and is better seen against the background of the drink. At this point, the liquid is diluted with sweetenedtea.
Fourth way
Some have heard that you can grow a mushroom on beer. This method is considered the fastest. And how to grow kombucha yourself in this way?
To get the germ, you need to pour one hundred grams of unpasteurized live beer into a jar, add a teaspoon of sugar and two teaspoons of sour wine. Everything is mixed and placed in a warm dark place. After some time, a film-germ of the fungus is formed on the surface. It is carefully removed and placed in a container with pre-prepared sweet tea. It remains only to wait until the mushroom grows.
Fifth method
Our grandmothers knew how to grow kombucha at home while making apple cider vinegar. To do this, they took apples without wormholes and grated them together with the core. The resulting mass was placed in a container and poured with boiled cooled water: a pound of apples per one and a half liters of water. One hundred grams of honey and ten grams of yeast are added to the composition for every liter of water. Instead of yeast, pieces of black bread used to be used. The mixture is left in a dark place open for ten days. During fermentation, the contents are stirred.
Ten days later, the composition is filtered, poured into another jar and left to ferment for two months. By this time, the liquid becomes transparent, the fermentation processes are over. A dense jellyfish is formed on the surface - this is the so-called vinegar uterus or young kombucha. It is carefully transferred to a container with sweet tea and infused.
Mushroom culture medium
In order to grow kombucha from tea, it is important to properly prepare a nutrient medium for it. The best is the preparation of a universal solution. For him, you will need to make one percent tea, in which sugar is added at the rate of 1:10. The fungus is placed in this growth medium.
To prepare a tea solution, take one and a half liters of boiled water, add five grams of black or green tea to it. Tea is infused for twenty minutes, after which seventy grams of sugar are added to the composition. The composition is cooled to room temperature.
Don't pour sugar on the mushroom, and don't put the mushroom in hot solution as it may die.
When preparing the solution, honey can be used instead of sugar. In this case, there is an increase in the antiseptic properties of the resulting liquid.
You can prepare the nutrient medium differently by taking a teaspoon of tea leaves and one hundred grams of sugar per liter of water.
Black tea causes arrhythmias in some people. To prevent this from happening, it is recommended to use a green tea nutrient medium for the fungus. However, you should be careful, as such a drink can cause a sharp drop in blood pressure. Also, green tea can provoke heartburn, pain in the gastrointestinal tract.
Features of mushroom care
In the first days after the mushroom is placed in a fresh nutrient medium, it sinks to the bottom of the jar and lies there. After a while it starts to rise. This is due to the bubbles of carbon dioxide produced by the yeast. If this is nothappens, then the medusomycete (mushroom) does not have enough heat. You can fix this by placing the container with the mushroom in a warm place, but so that there is no sharp increase in temperature.
When the mushroom grows, it will begin to exfoliate. At this point, it is removed from the jar, separated, placed in another nutrient medium.
Usually, the mushroom reaches its first maturity in three to seven days, depending on the season. For treatment, infusions of different ages are used - from three days to two weeks.
On the third or seventh day, the drink becomes a pleasant sour-sweet taste. After two weeks, it looks like dry wine.
The finished drink is filtered, poured into containers and stored in the refrigerator. Usually in its pure form, the infusion is rarely used. Most often, the drink is diluted with tea.
Indications and contraindications
When wondering how to grow kombucha, the photo of which is presented in the article, few people think that the drink they make has its own indications and contraindications for use.
The drink is recommended for urolithiasis. It quenches thirst well in the hot season. The liquid helps to normalize the work of the digestive tract.
If you make a drink from green tea, it will have excellent tonic properties. It contains more vitamins than black tea. You can rinse your mouth with a ready-made remedy after eating: the drink has an antibacterial property, it kills bacteria that affect the teeth. Do not use the drink on green teawho suffer from gastritis, low blood pressure.
You can make an infusion on tea with bergamot or other herbs, such as mint, lemon balm. Honey is usually added to such infusions to saturate it with useful elements, such as potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, etc. This addition allows you to add antibacterial and tonic properties to the drink.
Conclusion
Knowing how to grow kombucha step by step, you can make he althy and tasty drinks with different tastes. They will help with heaviness in the stomach, relieve discomfort. However, it is worth remembering that you can drink a drink no earlier than an hour after eating. This is due to the fact that the liquid actively interacts with food, and immediately after eating, a feeling of hunger may appear.
It is most useful to drink kvass in the morning and evening. Drinking the infusion in the morning helps to prepare the digestive system for the upcoming daily load, and in the evening kvass will calm you down, improve sleep, and disinfect the stomach and intestines.
With proper storage of the mushroom, it will delight for many years with tasty and he althy kvass. And if you use different types of culture media, then the drinks will have different tastes.
