How to Make a Ginger Bug and Brew Natural Probiotic Soda

What a Ginger Bug Is and Why You Want One

A ginger bug is a wild fermentation starter made from fresh ginger, sugar, and water. It captures the natural yeast and bacteria present on ginger root and cultivates them into a bubbly, active culture that you can use to ferment almost any sweetened liquid into a naturally carbonated soda. Think of it as the sourdough starter of the beverage world, an endlessly reusable culture that turns sugar water into something alive and fizzy.

Starting Your Ginger Bug

Grate or finely chop two tablespoons of fresh organic ginger, including the skin where most of the wild yeast lives. Add it to a clean jar with two tablespoons of sugar and two cups of water. Stir well, cover with a cloth, and let it sit at room temperature. Each day for the next five to seven days, add another tablespoon each of grated ginger and sugar, stirring vigorously. Within a few days, you should see bubbles forming.

How to Know When It Is Ready

A ready ginger bug will fizz actively when stirred and have a pleasant gingery, slightly yeasty smell. If you hold the jar up to the light, you should see tiny bubbles rising through the liquid. The surface may have a light foam. The liquid should taste sweet and gingery with a slight tang. If it smells rotten or like alcohol, something went wrong. Start over with fresh ginger, preferably organic since conventional ginger is sometimes irradiated.

Brewing Natural Soda with Your Ginger Bug

To make soda, prepare a base of sweetened fruit juice, herbal tea, or flavored sugar water. Let it cool to room temperature, then add a quarter cup of strained ginger bug liquid per quart. Pour into swing-top bottles or tight-sealing glass bottles and let them ferment at room temperature for two to three days. The ginger bug culture will consume the sugar and produce carbon dioxide, creating natural carbonation.

Maintaining and Using Your Ginger Bug Long Term

Once established, your ginger bug lives on your counter indefinitely with daily feeding of ginger and sugar. If you want to take a break from brewing, you can store it in the refrigerator, feeding it once a week instead of daily. To revive a refrigerated bug, bring it to room temperature and resume daily feeding for two to three days before using it again. A healthy ginger bug can be used to make endless varieties of natural soda, from grape and apple to lavender and hibiscus.