Great Skin Starts in the Gut
Most of us already know that soda filled with high fructose corn syrup is not supporting our health.
Many people have switched to seltzer water, sparkling water, and brightly branded wellness drinks. But even the simplest options are often packaged in cans lined with plastic, while flavored varieties may contain vague natural flavors and other unnecessary ingredients.
Homemade fermented soda offers something entirely different.
It is made with simple ingredients, naturally carbonated through fermentation, and completely customizable. Once you have an active ginger bug, you can transform flowers, herbs, fruit, and tea into a refreshing, living fermented drink.
My favorite place to start is hibiscus soda.
It is bright, tart, slightly sweet, and naturally beautiful without food coloring or artificial flavoring.
What Is Naturally Fermented Soda?
Naturally fermented soda is a sweetened herbal tea, fruit infusion, or juice fermented with an active ginger bug.
The wild yeasts and bacteria in the ginger bug consume the sugar and produce organic acids, flavor compounds, and carbon dioxide. That carbon dioxide creates the natural bubbles and fizz.
Think of your ginger bug as the starter and the sweetened tea as its food.
Because a ginger bug is a wild culture, every batch may ferment a little differently. I prefer to describe the finished soda as a living fermented drink rather than promise a particular probiotic strain or amount.
Before making soda, your ginger bug should be visibly bubbly and active.
LEARN HOW TO MAKE A GINGER BUG
Hibiscus Fermented Soda Recipe
This recipe makes approximately 64 ounces.
Ingredients
- ½ cup dried organic hibiscus flowers
- 4 cups hot water
- ½ cup organic cane sugar or honey
- ½ cup strained liquid from an active ginger bug
- Filtered or nonchlorinated water
Equipment
- A clean one-gallon glass jar
- A fine mesh strainer
- A clean spoon
- A breathable cloth or loosely fitted lid
- Pressure-rated fermentation bottles
Step One: Make the Hibiscus Tea
Place ½ cup dried hibiscus flowers in a heat-safe container.
Pour 4 cups of hot water over the flowers and allow them to steep for approximately 10 to 15 minutes.
Strain out the hibiscus flowers.
Step Two: Add the Sugar
While the tea is still warm, stir in ½ cup organic cane sugar or honey.
Continue stirring until the sweetener has completely dissolved.
The tea needs to be sweet because the sugar feeds the microorganisms responsible for fermentation.
Step Three: Cool the Tea
Pour the sweetened hibiscus tea into a clean one-gallon glass jar.
Add several cups of cool filtered water and allow the mixture to cool completely to room temperature.
Do not add your ginger bug to hot or warm tea. Excessive heat may damage the living culture.
Step Four: Add the Ginger Bug
Once the tea has cooled, stir in ½ cup of strained liquid from an active, visibly bubbling ginger bug.
Add enough filtered water to bring the total amount of liquid to approximately 64 ounces.
Cover the jar with a breathable cloth or place the lid on loosely enough for gas to escape.
Step Five: Begin the First Fermentation
Leave the jar at room temperature and out of direct sunlight for approximately one to three days.
Check it daily.
You may begin to notice:
- Small bubbles rising through the liquid
- A light fizzing sound
- A slightly tangy aroma
- Less sweetness and a more complex flavor
Warmer kitchens usually ferment more quickly. Cooler kitchens may require additional time.
Taste the soda each day using a clean spoon. Move to the next step when it tastes pleasantly fermented and shows visible signs of activity.
Step Six: Bottle the Soda
Transfer into clean, flip-top bottles specifically designed to withstand carbonation. Leave a small amount of space at the top of each bottle.
Seal the bottles and leave them at room temperature for approximately 6 to 24 hours.
This second fermentation traps the carbon dioxide inside the bottle, creating natural carbonation.
The exact timing will depend on the strength of your ginger bug, the temperature of your kitchen, and the amount of sugar remaining in the drink.
Step Seven: Refrigerate
Once the soda is carbonated, place the bottles in the refrigerator.
Chill completely before opening. Open slowly over the sink because homemade fermented soda can become very fizzy.
Refrigeration slows fermentation, but it may not stop it completely. Continue storing the finished soda cold.
Why Does Fermented Soda Need Sugar?
Sugar is not added only for sweetness. It feeds the yeasts and bacteria responsible for fermentation.
As they grow, they consume much of the sugar and transform it into carbon dioxide, organic acids, and other fermentation compounds.
The amount of sugar remaining will depend on the starting amount, fermentation time, temperature, and activity of the culture.
Some people have success using honey, maple syrup, or coconut sugar, but for the most consistent fermentation, I use organic cane sugar.
How to Customize Your Fermented Soda
Once you understand the basic method, the flavor possibilities are nearly endless.
Keep the following parts of the recipe consistent:
- ½ cup sweetener
- ½ cup active ginger bug
- Approximately 64 ounces of total liquid
Then change the tea or infusion used as your flavor base.
You can experiment with:
- Hibiscus and berries
- Lemon and fresh herbs
- Ginger and lemon
- Mint or lemon balm
- Rose and hibiscus
- Seasonal fruit infusions
- Strong herbal teas
- Unsweetened fruit juice blended with herbal tea
For herbs other than hibiscus, brew approximately 4 cups of strong tea using an amount appropriate for that specific plant. Strong or bitter herbs may require much less than ½ cup of dried plant material.
Always allow the tea or infusion to cool completely before adding the ginger bug.
What If My Soda Is Not Bubbling?
Check Your Ginger Bug
Your ginger bug should be visibly bubbly before you add it to the soda. A refrigerated or dormant starter may need several feedings at room temperature before it is ready.
Give It More Time
Wild fermentation does not follow an exact schedule. Cooler temperatures may slow the process considerably.
Check the Water
Chlorinated water may interfere with fermentation. Use filtered, spring, or nonchlorinated water.
Make Sure You Added Enough Sugar
The culture needs sugar to remain active and create carbonation. Reducing the sugar too aggressively may result in a flat or inactive ferment.
A Note About Bottling Safety
Fermentation creates carbon dioxide, which can cause significant pressure to build inside a sealed bottle.
Only use bottles specifically designed to withstand carbonation. Do not use decorative glass bottles or ordinary jars for the sealed second fermentation.
Check the bottles regularly, refrigerate them as soon as they are carbonated, and always open them slowly after they are fully chilled.
Discard the soda if you notice fuzzy mold, unusual colored growth, a rotten smell, or anything that makes you question its safety.
Homemade fermented drinks may also contain small and unpredictable amounts of alcohol.
Returning to Simpler Things
Making fermented soda at home is not as convenient as opening a can, but that is part of its beauty.
You choose the ingredients. You control the sweetness. You create the flavors. And instead of purchasing another highly marketed wellness drink, you learn how to work with a living culture in your own kitchen.
All it takes is a ginger bug, a few simple ingredients, and a little patience.
That same philosophy guides everything we create at Flower & Fern. From the fermented foods in our kitchen to the flowers, herbs, and ancient resins we slowly infuse for the skin, we believe nourishment should be fresh, intentional, and rooted in nature.
Nourishment From the Inside Out
Healthy skin is connected to the health of the whole body.
Explore Flower & Fern’s small-batch botanical skincare, handcrafted on our Oregon homestead with whole-plant infusions and ingredients chosen to nourish, hydrate, and support resilient skin.