How to make your very own Ginger Bug.

Firstly what is a Ginger bug?

Ginger bug is a fermented mixture of fresh grated ginger root, raw honey and water that produces beneficial bacteria. The combination of the honey, water, and ginger causes lactic acid, beneficial bacteria and yeast in the ginger root to release, infuse and ferment in an anaerobic (no oxygen) environment.

How do you make it?

1. Grate up the ginger about 1 1/2 cups

2. Add it to a Jar with a tight fitting lid
3. Add raw honey, about 1 cup

4. add the same amount of purified water (NOT TAP WATER it has too much chlorine it will kill the bacteria)

5. Mix it up really well and let sit on the counter - it will start to bubble and release pressure from the gasket under the lid. The carbon dioxide from the fermentation produces a bit of fizz or effervescence in the ginger bug

6. Once it has a desirable taste to you (I prefer mine not super sweet) it is done, and you can refrigerate it and use it however you like. It will last a long time refrigerated.

It is really potent, bold, spicy, and strong - and has really great beneficial, healthful, goodness to it.

Where would you use this "Ginger bug"?

Since it is very strong I add about 1/4 cup of just the liquid to a lot of raw recipes so that I can reap the benefits of the probiotics of this elixir. Mostly beverages like JUN, Kombucha, Lemon aid, Tea, my husband likes it in OJ, but I find that to be too sweet for my taste. You can use it in gelatin gummies, salad dressings, marinades, fire cider, sodas, the possibilities are endless, have fun with it, Enjoy!!

Lacto Fermented Pickles, Peppers and Kiwi.

Today I was at the market, I'm always looking to see if there is anything new or weird to try to ferment. I saw baby kiwis - what are those??? Baby cucumbers - got to try those, and lastly baby peppers, which made me remember these little stuffed red peppers I had when I was in Switzerland, last year and thought "maybe I can make them myself."

So, here's what I did:

First - I cut all the placenta and seeds out of some sweet little baby peppers. I sliced and stuck a spicy hot Fresno pepper at the bottom of the jar so that I can tell the difference of the varieties. My hope is to get that sweetness from the honey ferment and the peppers, but also infuse the other peppers with a little spice form the Fresno.

Then, I put the peppers with the holes facing up so the honey can get inside all the cavities.

Lastly, I added honey, covered with an Air lock lid, and let sit on the counter for about a week or two.

The other two containers of ferments are really simple as well. The one on the right is just baby kiwis in honey, and the one on the left is sliced up cucumbers in a salt brine with spices, and about 2 table spoons of Sauer Kraut I made in October, just to get the fermentation started.

Dehydrated JUN SCOBY Gummy Snacks.

How to make Dehydrated Gummy Snacks from the extra SCOBYs from your SCOBY HOTEL.

In doing a little research on eating SCOBY I found a few recipes for SCOBY Gummies which all called for refined white sugar. So, I had this idea to make some Gummies with Maple Syrup, Honey and Coconut Crystals with my extra JUN SCOBYs. I happen to have an abundance of JUN SCOBYs in my SCOBY Hotel.


What is a SCOBY you ask??? the word SCOBY is an Acronym for;

Symbiotic Colony of Bacteria and Yeast

It is the thing that people sometimes refer to as the "Mother" or "Mushroom" - it actually isn't a mushroom at all.

There are actually a few kinds of SCOBY cultures, there is ACV (Apple Cider Vinegar), JUN which is brewed with Green  Tea and Honey only, and then the most popular Kombucha SCOBY which is brewed with Black Tea and conventional Sugar. All of these are fermented cultures that are made with the intention of helping with Gut Flora, and keeping the bacteria in check in your body.

So, I brew/ferment both JUN and Kombucha Tea, and always have extra SCOBYs on hand, some of which I raise in a nursery to sell to other fermenters on Etsy if you want to start your own culture:

Click here to Buy your very own SCOBY from Fermentation101

Back to this post - the Gummy Snacks.


What you need:
2 large thick JUN SCOBYs
1/3 Cup Raw Honey
1/3 Cup Organic Grade "B" Maple Syrup
1/2 tsp of Ground Ginger
1/2 tsp of Ground Nutmeg
1/2 tsp of Ground Cinnamon

a Sharp Stainless Steel or Ceramic knife
a GLASS bowl this is very important because the acid from the SCOBY can have a chemical reaction to certain plastics and some metals.
a Dehydrator
a silicone mat

First Use a really sharp knife to cut your SCOBY into 3/4" cubes, and put them in your GLASS bowl.

                                          
                                              Then add the Honey and the Maple Syrup

                             Add your Cinnamon, Nutmeg, and Ginger and stir it up really well.

    Cover it tightly with Plastic Wrap, sit on the counter at room temperature to marinate overnight. After 24 hours of marinating you can place the sweetened SCOBY cubes on the silicone mat.

 Then put them right in your Dehydrator on the "Living Foods" setting. This is very important because you don't want to kill the beneficial bacteria in the SCOBY. Basically not over 104 degrees. If you don't have a Dehydrator - you can use you oven - but be careful not to over heat them.

                               Dehydrate for about 8 hours - or until these are the consistency you like.

                                                             This was about 10 hours

Some people like them rolled in sugar crystals so they don't stick together, you can also use Coconut crystals for this as well.

                                             Store in an air tight container, and eat em up!!!