More and more people are opting for a healthy diet and natural products and foods. And one of the most popular beverages, which meets all these characteristics, is kombucha. It is a natural probiotic, the perfect substitute for soft drinks, because it also has a slight effervescent effect. Such is the popularity of this drink that the Kombucha Brewers International Association has decided to mark a date in the calendar to commemorate this beverage. Therefore, every February 21, Kombucha Day is celebrated. Will you join us to celebrate it?
Before talking a little more about this celebration, let’s remember what kombucha is. It is a probiotic drink, made from the fermentation of sweetened tea. It is usually made with black or green tea. The result is a completely natural and healthy fermented soft drink. It is the perfect substitute for sugary soft drinks.
In addition, it has a multitude of properties and benefits for our health. For example, this drink strengthens the immune system, as it is rich in antioxidants. But it also helps our body to balance the intestinal flora. It has detoxifying effects, reduces stress, and helps us regulate our appetite, among many other properties. Although we have already seen in detail the benefits and properties of Kombucha, we will summarize them below.
To elaborate it at home is not complicated at all, you only have to take into account some advices and get a Scoby, or the Kombucha Mushroom; which you can acquire in specialized stores. Here we told you all about this drink and how to prepare this tea with all the recommendations that we must follow:
Kombucha tea, what it is, its properties and benefits and how to use it.
But, why is Kombucha Day celebrated?
As we mentioned at the beginning, the purpose of this celebration is to raise awareness of this natural beverage that has been consumed for more than 2,000 years. The Kombucha Brewers International Association did not choose this day at random to promote the consumption of kombucha.
The story goes that in 221 B.C., the Chinese emperor Qin Shi Huang had a real obsession with extending his life. That is why he ordered his alchemists to find him an elixir to keep him young and healthy for a long time. Thus, Emperor Qin Shi Huang came across Kombucha, and was given the name “the tea of immortality”.
It is because of the year of this story, 221, that the month of February (2) and the 21st have been chosen to celebrate Kombucha Day.
And where does its name come from?
The story of the Chinese emperor has been the one chosen to select the Kombucha day in the calendar, but the origin of its name goes even further back in time.
To know it, we have to go back to the year 414 B.C., where, according to legend, a Tibetan monk, called “Kombu”, offered the Kombucha mushroom as a gift to Emperor Inkyo.
Kombu gave the emperor instructions on how to enjoy this natural and healthy beverage, and the emperor was so taken with his new discovery that he asked the monk to make more such beverages for his entire empire.
Soon Kombu found himself recommending the consumption of this tea to all the inhabitants of the area, and advising on its preparation. Thus, “Kombucha”, which means Kombu Tea, was born.
Celebrate Kombucha Day with this version of Orange and Ginger Kombucha
And if we start from the natural drink, we can also make Kombucha with a multitude of flavors. It is very versatile, and we can include many more ingredients to make a different natural refreshment.
Once we have our Kombucha ready, it is only a matter of adding the ingredients that we like, and, again, let it ferment for a few days.
This time, we are going to make a very healthy refreshment by adding orange and ginger to the kombucha. In addition, the slight spiciness of the ginger combines great with the orange; and these two ingredients increase even more the properties of the Kombucha. A delicious version to celebrate Kombucha Day.
Kombucha with Orange and Ginger
Ingredients
- 500 ml Kombucha
- 60 ml Orange Juice (freshly squeezed)
- 1 piece Ginger (small, about a couple of centimeters)
Instructions
- Once we have the Kombucha ready, and the first fermentation has passed, preparing this drink is very simple. We will begin by squeezing the oranges, reserving them.
- Put the kombucha in a bottle with a stopper, so that it closes hermetically. Add the orange juice, grated ginger and close the bottle tightly and shake lightly to integrate all the ingredients.
- We leave the bottle at room temperature, in a dark place, for two days. After that time, it will be ready to taste a delicious orange and ginger Kombucha. Keep it in the fridge to drink it chilled.
Benefits and Properties
Remember that, as a probiotic, all its benefits and properties are provided by the microorganisms that compose it. Something that is completely lost in the pasteurization process. A process that almost all these beverages go through to be marketed.
So all the benefits that we are going to show you here correspond to the natural Kombucha, the one that we elaborate ourselves at home. But, remember also the importance of following all the steps and recommendations to avoid contaminating our Scoby mushroom:
- It strengthens the immune system. So it is perfect to keep us healthy and strong.
- A regulated consumption helps us to balance our intestinal flora.
- It lowers blood pressure, while balancing the blood pH, which is essential to keep us healthy.
- It also provides us with a large amount of vitamins B1, B2, B3, B6, B12, C, E, K…
With this we finish celebrating Kombucha Day. A great drink full of benefits.
And you, do you dare to celebrate Kombucha Day with this delicious drink?
If you dare to try it, or you already prepare it at home, remember to leave your comments, ideas, opinions… We love to read you! You can also follow us on social networks to keep up to date with all our publications. You will find us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram.
