How to Grow a SCOBY (Without Kombucha)

The abbreviation SCOBY stands for Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast. The SCOBYs in kombucha are viscous and tend to float on top of the beverage. Because they include lactic acid bacteria, acetic acid bacteria, and yeast, SCOBYs generate a distinct fermentation process.

When bacteria and yeast get together, cellulose is produced. Cellulose accumulates and produces the SCOBY’s gelatinous body.

SCOBY in Kombucha Production

The SCOBY is essential while producing kombucha. The SCOBY offers the required microorganisms for the fermentation process while transforming sweet tea into kombucha. Instead of fermentation, spoiling will occur if the bacteria do not feed on the sugar in the tea.

The SCOBY disc in your kombucha also acts as a barrier against external germs and pests.

Some of the natural carbonation in your kombucha is kept throughout fermentation thanks to your SCOBY. Bacteria that feed on the sugars in the base tea produce carbon dioxide.

Carbon dioxide creates small bubbles in your drink, which the SCOBY maintains.

Growing Your Own SCOBY

SCOBYs in starting liquid may be purchased online or borrowed from another kombucha maker. If those solutions aren’t accessible, you may try cultivating your own SCOBY.

Using already produced kombucha is the simplest approach to develop a SCOBY. Allow your kombucha to ferment at room temperature until a tiny blob appears on top of the beverage, whether purchased or homemade.

That blob is your new SCOBY!

When Kombucha Isn’t Available

There are methods to produce a SCOBY without kombucha if you can’t get unpasteurized kombucha or just want to do everything from scratch.

Allow a gallon of sweet tea to come to room temperature. Then, to your tea, add commercial yeast and yeast nutrients. After the yeast has settled, add the lactic acid cultures to the mixture. Lactic acid cultures may be obtained in kits for making kefir and yogurt.

When all of the components are fully combined, pour the inoculated tea into a jar and cover with a tightly woven cloth. To keep bugs out, wrap the cloth over the jar’s mouth using a rubber band.

If you can’t get yeast, you may try attracting wild yeast to your sweet tea. Put your tea in a jar with a wide opening. Cover the jar’s lid with a towel.

Place your gently covered jar on a windowsill or outdoors in direct sunlight. Allow the tea to sit there for about two weeks.

After some time, bring the jar inside and secure it with its cover. Allow time for the yeast to flourish. Small bubbles and bunches will appear as the plant blooms.

Bacteria will eventually proliferate in the combination. With this procedure, it might take many months for a SCOBY to form.

Fermenting fruit is another way to make your own SCOBY. Begin by cutting any fruit that is not citrus in half. Coat the fruit with a thick layer of sugar.

Stir the fruit until uniformly covered with sugar and starting to break down. Fill a jar halfway with non-chlorinated water and add the fruit and sugar. Any bacterium you want to develop will be killed by chlorine.

To the macerated fruit, add half a cup of vinegar. Before covering the jar with a tightly woven cloth, thoroughly stir the liquid.

Place the jar in a cupboard or other dark, room-temperature location. Allow the fermented sour fruit mixture to ferment for three to four weeks, stirring once a week.

You may get a similar result by vacuum-packing non-citrus fruit and storing it in a warm place. As the decomposing fruit releases gases, the bag will begin to swell. Open the bag after three weeks and empty the contents into a jar.

Combine these components with non-chlorinated water and let to ferment for one week in the dark at room temperature.

SCOBY Health

SCOBYs are not sought after for their beauty. Their role is necessary throughout the kombucha-making process. How can you determine whether your SCOBY is just ugly or has gone rogue?

Mold may grow on your SCOBY if kombucha spores get into it. Mold requires oxygen to survive, thus it will be found only on the top layer of your SCOBY.

Mold has a fuzzy, grainy look and comes in white, black, green, and blue colors.

Don’t worry if the spots you’re seeing are brown or beige in color and seem to have a damp film over them. This is just bacteria growing, not mold.

It’s time to retire a SCOBY when it becomes black. SCOBYs are live creatures with expiry dates of their own.

Growing clumps of brown string-like stuff on the bottom of your SCOBY is quite natural. These are clusters of yeast.

They may separate from the mother SCOBY and float about in the liquid until settling to the bottom of the jar. They should be kept in the bottom of the jar until your kombucha has completed fermenting.

A clear SCOBY indicates a healthy youngster. The cellulose that a SCOBY is made of might be translucent when it initially starts to develop. The SCOBY will become more opaque and take on a natural beige tint as the colony expands.

SCOBYs may grow to be a quarter to a half-inch thick. If your SCOBY is less than one-fourth of an inch thick, let it alone and let it grow.

Always keep the SCOBY at room temperature. Any temperature above or below room temperature has the potential to destroy your SCOBY.

Heat will kill the bacteria in your SCOBY irrevocably, while excessive cold will stop the bacterium’s life cycle. You may be able to repair a SCOBY that has been exposed to cold, but you are unlikely to be able to resuscitate the bacterium after prolonged exposure to cold.

Your sense of smell may also be utilized to assess the health of a SCOBY. Fermented drinks and foods may not smell like roses, but their acidic aroma is undeniable.

If your SCOBY emits a horrible stench or smells rotten, an unhealthy number of harmful bacteria is present. Remove the SCOBY and the liquid it was in.

A SCOBY should have a slimy feel. That may not look to be a pleasant task, but if your SCOBY is not slimy and appears dry around the edges, it is dying.

This might be due to a lack of fluids, or the SCOBY may have run its natural course.

SCOBYs are fantastic natural bacterium and yeast hotels. They are amenable to fermentation and provide beautiful items for us to consume.

The life cycle of a SCOBY is in your control from start to finish. You may either buy an already formed SCOBY or build your own using the different techniques provided.

Take care of your SCOBY, whatever you do. It will then look after you.