How to Separate Kombucha Culture

Kombucha mushrooms, which are used to make tea that many believe has health benefits, are not mushrooms at all. According to Moon Dragon Birthing Services in Salem, Massachusetts, they are a cultured growth of beneficial bacteria and yeast that reproduce during kombucha tea's fermentation process. If you decide to make your own tea at home, you will have to separate the reproducing cultures that form during your tea's creation.

Things You'll Need

• Water
• Soap
• 3 qts. distilled water
• Glass or enamel pot
• Stove
• 1 cup white sugar
• 4 oz. kombucha tea or apple cider vinegar
• Kombucha mushroom
• Cheesecloth
• Rubber band
• Wooden spoon
• Towel
• Plastic containers

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Instructions

• 1

  Wash your hands and all utensils needed to work with the tea. Wash them with hot water and soap, to remove all potential contaminants that could ruin the tea.

• 2

  Pour 3 qts. of distilled water into a glass or enamel pot and put it on your stove on high heat. Add 1 cup white sugar, and allow the mixture to boil for five minutes.

• 3

  Remove the pot from the heat and add four tea bags; use only green or black tea. Allow the tea to steep for 10 minutes, and then remove and discard the tea bags.

• 4

  Pour the tea into a glass bowl to cool; use only glass, to allow light and air to reach the tea. When the tea reaches room temperature, add 4 oz. of kombucha tea from a recent batch; if you have no fresh kombucha tea, add 4 oz. apple cider vinegar.

• 5

  Add a kombucha "mushroom," smooth side up, to your tea. Cover the bowl with a cheesecloth; secure the cloth into place with a rubber band. Store the bowl in a dark, quiet, warm area, with a temperature between 70 and 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Wait seven to 10 days of the fermentation process, until you can see a smaller, mushroom-like growth on your original kombucha culture.

• 6

  Wash your hands thoroughly with warm water and soap. Remove the tea from its storage area and remove the covering on the top of the tea.

• 7

  Scoop the kombucha mushroom from the tea mix with a wooden spoon. Lay the mushroom on a clean towel or paper towel.

• 8

  Gently grasp the smaller growth and pull it away from the larger kombucha culture. Store the two cultures in sealable plastic containers in a refrigerator; both can be used to create your next batch of kombucha tea.