This recipe is for the days when you’re craving a cranberry ginger ale…but it’s May and the seasonal flavour won’t be available until at least thanksgiving. Naturally fermented with a ginger bug, not only is this good for your gut health, it’s so delicious, you’ll never go back to commercial ginger ale.
Preparation:
Before you begin, feed your ginger bug with one Tablespoon of sugar and one Tablespoon of chopped ginger. Your ginger bug is ready to use when there is visible and audible bubbles inside the jar and the top is foamy.
Ingredients:
- 2 Quarts (8 Cups) Water
- 1 Cup White Sugar
- 1/4 to 1/2 Cup Organic Ginger
- 1/2 Cup Active Ginger Bug
- 1/2 Cup Fresh or Frozen Cranberries, or any berry
Method:
Chop the ginger root, leaving the skin on. You can use 1/4 to 1/2 cup of chopped ginger, depending on how strong you would like the ginger flavour in your ginger ale.
Combine the water, chopped ginger root, and sugar in a large pot. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer for ten minutes.
Let the ginger mixture come to room temperature. It is very important that the mixture cool completely before adding the ginger bug, so as not to kill the wild yeast. Meanwhile, prepare your fermenting vessels (I recommend swing top bottle), make sure your bottles are clean. Chop your chosen berries, making sure the berries are small enough to not clog the neck of the bottle, add the berries to the prepared bottles.
When the ginger. mixture is at room temperature, strain the mixture.
Strain half a cup of active ginger bug, add the ginger bug to the cooled ginger mixture.
Using a funnel, pour the ginger ale mixture into the prepared bottles. Close the bottles.
Depending on the temperature, your ginger ale can take anywhere from 2 to 7 days to ferment/carbonate.
Once a day, “burp” your bottles by opening them to release the CO2 and prevent the bottles from exploding. The above photo is day one of fermentation in my kitchen.
Starting at day two of fermentation (like in the above photo), start tasting your ginger ale with a straw to check the carbonation.
When your ginger ale has reached desired carbonation (in my kitchen, this took three days), move the bottles to the fridge. Refrigerating the ginger ale will slow fermentation, but still continue to “burp” the bottles every couple of days.
Enjoy chilled.
Ginger Bug Cranberry Ginger Ale
Ingredients
- 8 Cups Water
- 1 Cup White Sugar
- ¼-½ Cup Organic Ginger
- ½ Cup Active Ginger Bug
- ½ Cup Fresh or Frozen Cranberries, cut in half or any berry, fresh or frozen
Instructions
- Feed your ginger bug (1 Tbsp. of sugar, and 1 Tbsp. of chopped ginger) before starting.
- Chop the ginger, leaving the skins on. You can use ¼ to ½ cup of ginger, depending on how strong you would like the flavour to be.
- Combine the water, chopped ginger, and sugar in a large pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and allow to come to room temperature (this will take several hours). Meanwhile, add your berries to your bottles.
- When the ginger mixture is cool, add ½ cup of strained ginger bug. Stir to combine. Using a funnel, pour the ginger ale into the bottles and close them.
- Allow the bottles to ferment for 2-7 days, “burping” the bottles daily to prevent the bottles exploding. Starting at day 2, taste the ginger ale to check carbonation level if desired.
- When the desired carbonation level is reached, move the bottles to the fridge. Continue to “burp” the bottles every couple of days.
- Enjoy chilled!
