How To Make A Ginger Bug - FarmSteady

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Published October 12, 2020 By FarmSteady How to Make a Ginger Bug Jump to Recipe ↓

A ginger bug is a starter culture that can be used to make delicious ginger beer and naturally fermented sodas. Wild yeast from the environment and the skin of the ginger is cultivated to kickstart the fermentation process. Creating your own ginger bug starter is really easy, you only need three ingredients and five days to grow your ginger bug.

The main ingredient is the ginger, preferably grated with the skin on, added to water and sugar. The sugar is used to feed the naturally occurring yeast that will soon start to release carbon dioxide, giving the starter a natural fizz. And much like a sourdough starter, once you have your ginger bug going you can use it for making batch after batch of ginger beer and naturally fermented soda.

Ginger ale is one of those retro drinks. It reminds us of cassette tapes, box televisions, and carefree childhoods spent outside climbing trees. It also reminds us of a time where we were blissfully unaware of how bad soda was for us. This is the reason why you should welcome the ginger bug and fermentation into your life. By naturally fermenting soda you are using real ingredients (fresh ginger or fruit), real sugar (we opt for raw sugar) and by fermenting it the wild yeast is consuming some of that sugar (although not all, so we still consider ginger beer and naturally fermented sodas a treat and not a health beverage).

Using real, fresh ginger also has health benefits. Ginger, officially named Zingiber Officinale, has been used as a medicinal plant and delicious spicy addition to food for centuries. It contains active therapeutic substances like gingerol, shogaol, paradol and zingerone that gives it potent antioxidant, anti-microbial and anti-inflammatory properties. Plus we love the taste.

Making your own ginger bug starter and using it to make naturally fermented sodas, is a healthy alternative to buying commercial carbonated beverages. Once you get used to the flavorsome health kick you get from a naturally fermented soda, you will never go back to store-bought again.

So, what’s the next step? Making your own ginger beer, of course. Once you have your ginger bug going check out our easy step-by-step guide to making homemade ginger beer.

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How to Make a Ginger Bug

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Category

Drinks

Servings

8

Prep Time

25 minutes

Cook Time

0 minutes

Author:

FarmSteady

A ginger bug is a starter culture that can be used to make delicious ginger beer and naturally fermented sodas. Wild yeast from the environment and the skin of the ginger is cultivated to kickstart the fermentation process. Creating your own ginger bug starter is really easy, you only need three ingredients and five days to grow your ginger bug.

Ingredients

Equipment

• 12 oz glass jar

• cheese cloth

• rubber band

Ingredients

• fresh ginger

• 5 tablespoons sugar

• 1 cup water

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Directions

1. Growing your ginger bug starter culture is a 5 day process where you feed your starter daily and let it ferment covered with cheesecloth at room temperature. After 5 days the culture is ready to be used and can be stored refrigerated with a solid lid in-between batches.

2. Day 1: In a 12-ounce glass jar, add 1 tablespoon of sugar, 1 tablespoon of freshly grated ginger (skin and all), and one cup of water. Stir to combine. Cover with finely knit cheese cloth or butter muslin and secure with a rubber band. Let sit at room temperature for 24 hours.

3. Day 2: Feed your starter: add 1 tablespoon of sugar, 1 tablespoon of freshly grated ginger (skin and all) to your jar. Stir to combine. Re-cover and let sit at room temperature for another 24 hours.

4. Day 3: Feed your starter: add 1 tablespoon of sugar, 1 tablespoon of freshly grated ginger (skin and all) to your jar. Stir to combine. Re-cover and let sit at room temperature for another 24 hours.

5. Day 4: Feed your starter: add 1 tablespoon of sugar, 1 tablespoon of freshly grated ginger (skin and all) to your jar. Stir to combine. Re-cover and let sit at room temperature for another 24 hours.

6. Day 5: Feed your starter: add 1 tablespoon of sugar, 1 tablespoon of freshly grated ginger (skin and all) to your jar. Stir to combine. Re-cover and let sit at room temperature for another 24 hours.

7. Make Ginger Beer! In between batches your ginger bug can be stored refrigerated with a solid lid on it. Re-feed with 1 tablespoon sugar and 1 tablespoon fresh ginger whenever you use a portion for ginger beer or a fermented soda recipe.

Recipe Video

Filed in: fermentation, ginger, ginger beer, ginger bug, natural soda Previous article Recipe: Jalapeño Cilantro Lime Kraut Next article Recipe: Smoked Poblano Fermented Hot Sauce

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