Photo by Reese Lloyd.
The following recipe is from the book The Art of Fermentation: An In-Depth Exploration of Essential Concepts and Processes from Around the World. Read more from the author, Sandor Katz, here.
Ginger beer is a classic flavor of homemade soda. It can be made lightly gingered, like most commercial ginger ale, or as spicy as you can take it, using lots of ginger. A ginger bug is a simple ginger beer starter (it can also be used as a starter for other beverages) made from ginger, sugar, and water. Ginger beer can also be made with many different types of starters.
Ginger beer and ginger bug recipe
1. A ginger bug could not be easier to start: Grate a bit of ginger (with skin) into a small jar, add some water and sugar, and stir.
2. Stir frequently, and add a little more grated ginger and sugar each day for a few days, until the mixture is vigorously bubbly. Gingerroots are rich in yeasts and lactic acid bacteria, so ginger bugs usually get bubbly quickly. However, many people have reported that their ginger bugs never get bubbly. My theory is that most of the ginger import... Read more
