Kombucha - Fermented tea
The traditional fermented tea health tonic from China nearly 3000 years ago, drunk by the Chinese Emperors for perfect health and long life.
Milk Kefir - Cultured Milk
The original probiotic dairy based food from centuries past. There is no better probiotic food supplement.
Water Kefir - Tibicos
One of the best dairy free probiotic beverages you can get. Easy to make, wide spectrum of probiotic flora and a great alternative to fizzy drinks.
Kombucha
Kombucha tea essentials
Kombucha is a traditional, dairy free fermented tea drink that has been made for over 2000 thousands years in many cultures around the world as a health tonic and is increasingly become more widely known and made in western countries now too.
In a nut shell, making Kombucha basically involves adding a specific Kombucha culture of bacteria and yeast (called a Scoby or Mother or Mushroom) to a batch of sweetened black or green tea and leaving it to ferment at room temperature for 5-15 days (depending on temperature). You can then pour it into bottles and drink at your leisure.
Standard single fermented kombucha has a mildly apple cider like flavour, but it can be flavoured with any manner of fruit and herbal additions to give a more distinctive or enjoyable flavour.
Kombucha has long been claimed to have a wide range of health benefits, allegedly derived from the rich combination of enzymes, minerals, digestive enzymes and bacteria contained in a classic brew. Google 'Health benefits of Kombucha' and you'll be reading (both sides of the coin) for hours.
So there are many reasons to make Kombucha really, it's easy to make, it's cheap to make, it's great for your health (some people even consider it a super food and health tonic), fascinating to brew and experiment with, can taste extremely good and is wonderfully refreshing and thirst quenching on a hot day.
For more fuller details on Kombucha and how to make it, visit www.kombucha.co.nz or to purchase a Kombucha culture to make your own at home, visit our store here.
Milk Kefir
Milk Kefir is somewhat like a runny yoghurt made simply by culturing milk and is packed with over 40 known probiotics, enzymes and minerals.
Normally just called 'Kefir', it is made by adding an amount of Kefir culture, or 'grains'* strained from a previous batch to fresh milk and is therefore perfect for those avoiding sugar or who need a boost of digestive bacteria.
*While the culture is often referred to as Kefir 'grains', it is in no way a plant 'grain' of any kind whatsoever. It is actually another 'scoby' or Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and yeasts that feeds on the animal made sugar Lactose.
Consumed on a regular basis it can aid and improve digestion by better populating your gut with good, healthy probiotic bacteria for better food absorption, immune system and energy levels.
It is the original probiotic yoghurt from centuries ago and is still considered the most probiotic dense natural food to be found anywhere in the world.
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Kefir grains are a combination of lactic acid bacteria and yeasts in a matrix of proteins, lipids, and sugars and this symbiotic matrix, (or SCOBY) forms what are commonly called "grains", although they resemble small lumps of cauliflower or macaroni. A complex and highly variable community of lactic acid bacteria and yeasts can be found in these grains with some predominating; Lactobacillus species are always present. Even successive batches of kefir may differ slightly due to factors such as the kefir grains rising out of the milk while fermenting, or curds forming around the grains, as well as room temperature. |
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The resulting ferment, once strained, is a runny, rather sour yoghurt like drink, low in sugar with extremely high numbers of probiotic bacteria. This high number of 'good bacteria' are the reason for it being considered a highly nutritious and beneficial addition to anyone's diet as it boosts the efficiency of digestion and increases nutrient absorption. For the full low down on Milk Kefir and info about how to make it, visit our dedicated Milk-Kefir website at www.milk-kefir.co.nz. To buy some Milk Kefir culture, visit our Shop. |
Water Kefir
Water Kefir (or more correctly, ‘Tibicos‘) – is a higher source of lactobacteria than Kombucha so Water Kefir has even more power to make a fizzy pop that rivals supermarket brands. Even better, it comes without the huge sugar content, artificial colours, flavours or preservatives you get from the store.
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Like kombucha, the culture is a SCOBY, but this one grows as grains/crystals/tibi – pretty to look at, and kinda smells like bread yeasts. These guys are higher in lactobacteria and therefore make for a more potent probiotic than Kombucha; and due to the high content they make a healthy brew not within in weeks, but days, so the brewer has to be quick! |
They feed on sugar water, but also like extra minerals, and individual brewers end up with concoctions that can contain any or many of the following: sugar, raw sugar, cane sugar, molasses, coconut water, fruit juice, dried fruits, fresh fruits, citrus, crushed rinsed egg shells, baking soda, mineral salts.
The flavour and effervescence of the brew after the first day or two can be a bit lacking, but a second ferment with fruit or fruit juices in sealed bottles at room temperature for a further day will turn this into a delicious soda pop. Again, the tibi eat the sugar, and even in the second ferment where the grains are not present, the process continues thanks to the probiotic content, so you are still left with a soda pop that is not overly sweet like the store-bought poisons sodas. However the sugar conversion process is not as effective as it is in kombucha, and for those concerned with sugar in their diets (eg. diabetic/pre-diabetic/paleo/GAPS/weight watchers/nutritarians of all descriptions), you may want to check your brews with a hydrometer for sugar levels, or let the second ferment brew longer (this increases the alcohol level though!), or brew every second batch with nothing but coconut water (coconut water kefir), and just consider the sugary batch the one that nourishes the grains and the coconut water batch as the one that nourishes you!
For more details on Water Kefir and how to make it, visit our dedicated WK site www.water-kefir.co.nz or to purchase the culture to make your own click the SHOP link at the top of the page.