With mashed bananas, brown sugar, and cinnamon, this Banana Bread Kombucha recipe is a kombucha flavor to cozy up to this winter.
Bananas never go to waste in our household. When they begin to turn brown, I pop them in the freezer. And once that stockpile of frozen brown bananas has piled up? We banana bread.
But after discovering the deliciousness of Banana Bread Kombucha, I don’t think that our frozen banana bread stockpile will ever recover, because I’m using all the bananas on kombucha now!
This Banana Bread Kombucha takes the best flavors of banana bread – the ripe bananas, brown sugar, and cinnamon – and packs it into a bottle of fizzy fermented kombucha.
There are two phases of fermentation when making your homemade kombucha:
- First Fermentation: This is when you transform sweet tea into tart and delicious kombucha (see our guide to homemade kombucha here).
- Second Fermentation: This is when you carbonate the kombucha by adding flavor and sugars (like banana and brown sugar!) and bottling it.
To make this Banana Bread Kombucha, you will need to have finished the first fermentation and have some kombucha that’s ready to be flavored and carbonated!
Ingredients for Banana Bread Kombucha
- Kombucha: You have brewed your kombucha in the first fermentation and are ready to flavor it (first fermentation instructions here). I used black tea kombucha, but green tea would also work well.
- Banana: Aim for a very ripe (but not too brown) banana, which will have the most natural sugars.
- Brown Sugar: While the sugars in the banana would be enough to feed and carbonate the kombucha, a spoonful of dark brown sugar deepens the sweetness to give this kombucha that true banana bread flavor.
- Cinnamon: I use ground cinnamon here, but you could also use cinnamon sticks.
- Optional – Spice it up: You can also add a pinch of ground cloves or nutmeg for a more flavorful brew.
How to make Banana Bread Kombucha
Bananas are one of the lesser used fruits when it comes to people flavoring the kombucha, which is a shame because it’s so easy – just mash and bottle!
- Puree the banana: Puree or mash the banana into a paste. This will provide more surface area for the bacteria and yeast to eat away at the fruit sugars.
- Bottle: Evenly distribute mashed banana, brown sugar, and cinnamon into fermentation bottles. Pour in kombucha, leaving 1 to 2 inches free at the top
- Ferment: For 3 to 10 days, until it reaches the carbonation level you like.
- Enjoy: Chill in the fridge before serving, optionally straining out the fibers.
For more winter-inspired kombucha recipes, be sure to try Mulled Wine Kombucha, Candy Cane Kombucha, or Pumpkin Spice Kombucha!
Banana Bread Kombucha
Ingredients
- 1/2 gallon kombucha from a first fermentation this is not store bought kombucha, 1.9 L
- 1/2 cup mashed banana about 1 large banana
- 1 Tbsp dark brown sugar
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- Optional: pinch of ground cloves and/or nutmeg
Instructions
- Puree fruit: Puree or mash the banana into a paste.
- Bottle: Evenly distribute banana, brown sugar, and cinnamon into fermentation bottles. Pour in kombucha, leaving 1 to 2 inches free at the top.
- Ferment: Place in a dark, room temperature area for 3 to 10 days, until it reaches the carbonation level you like. This process will go faster in warmer climates, and slower in cooler climates.
- Enjoy: Chill in the fridge before serving, optionally straining out the fibers. Can be stored in the fridge, tightly sealed, for several weeks.
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This is my 3rd try at 2nd ferment and something magical just happened: I put the mashed banana into each bottle but when I added the finished kombucha it immediately FIZZED, like the ratios were all perfect and the yeast was celebrating! I can’t wait to see how well this batch carbonates!
Hi Sarah! Can I use white sugar instead?
Yep that’d be fine!
Why is it called banana bread kombucha?
This flavor has many of the same flavor notes as banana bread (bananas, brown sugar, cinnamon, spices).
Can you use frozen bananas? I assume they would need to be thawed first.
Yep! Just be sure to thaw them first.
This is my first time brewing kombucha and I am trying to make it fizzy so during the second fermentation, should I cover the bottles with an air-tight lid, or a breathable cloth?
Cover the bottles with an airtight lid to make the kombucha fizzy 😀 This traps in the CO2, which carbonates the liquid!