Ginger Bug: Make Your Own Probiotic Fizzy Drinks

Are you ready to kick your soda habit? Try this homemade ginger bug recipe and start using the power of fermentation to boost your immune system. It’s easy, inexpensive, and uses simple ingredients and minimal equipment you probably already have in your kitchen! 

Why I Love This Recipe

Beverages are a constant beat in the rhythm of my day, softly defining my routine. Like many people, I want something warm and soothing first thing in the morning. Those early hours usually have me cradling coffee, tea or a dandelion root latte, always in a big, thick mug.

Once the day gets going, I’m generally sipping a good glass of naturally flavored water or instant herbal iced tea. It’s true what they say – often when you are tired, you are actually dehydrated, so it’s important to keep drinking water. 

From time to time, I enjoy sipping on a treat (like this summer eggnog recipe), but I want to avoid excess sugar, artificial colors, preservatives, and flavorings that are packed into commercially prepared beverages. 

Instead, I enjoy the probiotic benefits of recipes like Switchel (or Haymaker’s Punch), sparkling apple cider, wild fermented elderberry wine, kombucha, and this ginger bug recipe. Not only are these recipes better for you, but they also taste far superior!

What Is a Ginger Bug

If you’re not familiar with homemade soda, the name “ginger bug” might make you a little confused. It sounds odd! To clarify, a ginger bug is a starter culture for homemade sodas, playing a role similar to a sourdough starter for bread. 

Like a sourdough starter, a ginger bug is fed over time. Once fed, it’s used to start a larger batch of homemade fizzy drinks. Think of your ginger bug as an alternative to a SCOBY for kombucha. 

Here’s how a ginger bug develops: when you combine ginger, sugar, and water, the naturally occurring yeasts and lactic acid bacteria in the air and on the ginger begin to eat the sugar, create carbon dioxide, and multiply. 

Once the ginger bug is happily active, you can add some to any sweetened beverage (juice, tea, lemonade, etc.). The ginger bug consumes the sugar, turning your drink into a bubbly, gut-friendly natural soda.

Benefits of Making a Ginger Bug

Making a ginger bug at home boosts your gut health by introducing probiotics into your diet. These tiny helpers thrive through natural fermentation, improving digestion and boosting your immune system. (Source)

Creating homemade probiotics with a ginger bug also uses ginger’s benefits. Ginger is known for fighting inflammation (source), and drinking ginger bug-infused drinks can ease digestion (source), reduce nausea (source), and soothe muscle pain (source). 

Is Ginger Bug Alcoholic?

A lot of people wonder if drinks made with a ginger bug contain alcohol. Since they are fermented, they do have a negligible amount of alcohol, but not so much that I worry about giving it to my children.

The alcohol in a ginger bug is very low, usually between 0.5% to 1% ABV. This is much less than most beers and wines. It’s a good choice for those who want a mild, non-alcoholic drink. Even though it has some alcohol, the amount is usually small for most people.

Let’s compare ginger bug to other fermented drinks:

Beverage	Fermentation Alcohol Level (ABV)
Ginger Bug Soda	0.5% – 1%
Commercial Beer	4% – 8%
Wine	10% – 14%
Kombucha	0.5% – 2%
Non-Alcoholic Soda	0%

Bear in mind that the longer you ferment it, the more alcohol it will have, but it will still be in the low range.

In the Homestead Kitchen

This recipe was featured in issue No. 39 of In the Homestead Kitchen Magazine. If you are looking for a homesteading resource that can provide answers, guidance, encouragement, tips and tricks, or advice, this magazine was designed just for you. 

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Supplies Needed

• Measuring Utensils – Standard measuring cups and spoons work great.
• Grater – You can use a cheese grater or a zester. Homesteading Hack: Using a smaller grater exposes more surface area of the ginger, increasing the flavor and fermentation success.
• Glass Jar w/Lid – Use a glass quart-sized Mason jar with an airtight, non-reactive lid. Homesteading Hack: Lehman’s and Azure are great sources for canning supplies. If you’re a first-time Azure Standard customer, use coupon code “HOMESTEADINGFAMILY15” at checkout for 15% off your order of $100 or more! Or, for Suberp lids, you can use coupon code “HF20” for 20% off your first purchase (coupon code “HF10” can be used on all other purchases for 10% off).
• Soda Bottles – We love these flip-top Grolsch-style bottles, but use whatever you have on hand. Mason jars work great, too. 

Ingredients Needed

• Fresh Organic Ginger Root – Organic ginger root is essential here as non-organic is often irradiated, killing the bacteria we want to feed.
• 8 tsp. Raw Sugar – Your total amount of sugar is approximately eight teaspoons of sugar: two teaspoons for the initial preparation and an additional teaspoon for each day of feeding. 
• 2 Cups Water – Non-chlorinated water is crucial as chlorination can kill the bacteria you want to cultivate. 
• Scant Half Gallon of Your Favorite Sweetened Drink – Our favorites are lemonade, sweet tea, or apple cider. The drink should be at room temperature or cooler since heat can destroy the ginger bug’s microbes.

Ginger Bug Instructions

Making a Ginger Bug

1. Start your ginger bug: Combine two teaspoons of sugar, two teaspoons of chopped or grated ginger root (leave the peel on), and two cups of water in a glass jar. Seal the jar with the lid and shake it to mix. Place the jar in a warm place for 24 hours.
2. Feed your ginger bug: For the first 5-6 days after you create your ginger bug, you will need to feed it. This involves opening the jar, adding 1 more teaspoon of grated ginger and one more teaspoon of sugar, recapping the jar and shaking. Complete this process once a day.
3. Look for bubbles: Around the fifth or sixth day of this process, you will begin to see bubbles in your ginger bug. You may also smell yeastiness when you open the jar. These are signs that your ginger bug is happy, healthy, and ready to make some soda! You can make a drink right away or stash it in the fridge for a week or so until you are ready.

Using a Ginger Bug

1. Prep your ginger bug: Just like sourdough, your ginger bug needs to be very active to successfully ferment other recipes. If you’ve been keeping your ginger bug in the fridge, bring it out and feed it for a day or two until the sights (bubbles) and smells (yeast) tell you it’s ready.
2. Strain and mix: Strain off ½ cup of your ginger bug and add it to a scant half gallon of your favorite sweetened drink – lemonade, sweet tea, apple cider, your choice! Leave half an inch of headspace for bubbles and put on a tight lid (flip-top bottles are great for this!).
3. Ferment: Allow your soda to ferment for 2-3 days at room temperature, “burping” daily by briefly opening the jar and quickly resealing it. After a couple of days, taste the soda and see if the flavor is to your liking. If so, transfer to cold storage and enjoy! Homemade soda will last a few months in cold storage below 55°F.

Tending a Gingerbug

Keeping your ginger bug alive is very similar to tending sourdough. You can leave it on your counter as long as you feed it daily, or you can keep it in cold storage as long as you feed it once a week. 

Over time, you’ll need to add more water to your ginger bug (just judge this by eye), and you will need to remove some ginger. Ginger from your bug can be composted or fed to your chickens.

Did you try this recipe? If so, please leave a star rating in the recipe card below. Then snap a photo and tag us on social media @homesteadingfamily so we can see!

FAQ

Other Posts You May Enjoy

• Switchel Recipe (Apple Cider Vinegar Drink or Haymaker’s Punch)
• Homemade Elderberry Wine
• Sparkling Apple Cider – Homemade
• Homemade Kombucha – A Healthy Summer Drink
• Cherry Almond Flavored Kombucha (How to Second Ferment Kombucha)
• Aged Eggnog Recipe – A Holiday Classic
• How to Boost Your Immune System Naturally – 7 Steps
• What is Fermentation? A Beginner’s Guide to Getting Started