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Why does kombucha grow moldy, what to do
Caring for your kombucha jellyfish seems so easy. Just pour sweet tea into a jar – and healthy homemade lemonade is ready. But sometimes kombucha gets moldy. Dark streaks can neither be washed off nor cut out. Why does this happen and how to get rid of mold? This is what the Kombucha Club recommends.
Why does kombucha grow moldy
Often, the owner notices a strange bloom when the entire middle of the jellyfish is already spoiled. Two forms of molds settle on the kombuche – green “penicillum notatum” or black “aspergillus niger”. Why do they appear? Kombucha lovers cite 2 reasons:
- Lack of cleanliness. The mushroom must be looked after as carefully as a nursing baby. The jar and table should be washed with hot water and soap. Do not put dirty dishes next to the mushroom, put fruits and vegetables from the market, place houseplants, cages with birds.
- Infection from under the nails. Women with acrylic nails should care for kombucha with rubber gloves. Men and women with natural nails should wash their hands with antibacterial soap and brush their nails.
- Poor quality tea preparation. Ladles, spoons, strainers must be clean. Do not take dusty old boxes of tea from the store. Mold invisible to the eye can live in them.
- Experiments with brewing. Do not experiment with flavored teas. They contain aromatic oils, which are the first step to mold growth.
- Dirty cloth. Mold infestation often comes from a cloth cover that is not washed thoroughly. Better to use paper towels or sterile gauze from the pharmacy.
In addition, the mushroom can be infected initially if part of it was taken from friends who did not follow the rules of care.
Kombucha grows moldy: what to do
Kombucha lovers have come up with and tested several ways to combat mold:
- Drain all liquid from the jar and rinse the jellyfish thoroughly with clean water. Then treat it with lemon juice or 10% wine vinegar. Put the mushroom in the prepared tea with the required amount of sugar and pour in 2 tbsp. l. vinegar.
- If blue, green, red, or black spots form on the kombuche, drain the tea and tear off the affected layers of the mushroom. Place it under a cold water tap. Discard any layers that tear easily. The healthy layers are thoroughly rinsed and brewed from scratch.
- Remove and discard the moldy layers, wash the mushroom gently by rubbing the water with your fingers, then rinse in clean apple cider vinegar.
With any method, the jar is sterilized with boiling water before filling and covered with sterile gauze.
A mushroom heavily affected by mold should not be preserved. You should also not drink a drink made from a sick kombucha. It can cause gastrointestinal upset and allergic reactions.