REHYDRATING SCOBY'S TO MAKE BABY SCOBY'S AND KOMBUCHA

Here is the dried SCOBY and the small jar of Kombucha
I flopped this baby in.

Chara, a reader here asked an excellent question regarding rehydrating dehydrating SCOBY'S.(Symbiotic Culture Of Bacteria and Yeast.) Anyone who brews kombucha knows that they quickly accumulate baby SCOBY'S right? They grow on top of the kombucha in the process of brewing kombucha. The longer it is left to brew the thicker the SCOBY gets. Sort of like the "mother", if you will. Usually I have baby SCOBY'S coming out of my ears till I starting dehydrating them once they got about 1/4 inch thick. Once dehydrated, I would grind it with a variety of herbs and salts. I would not use these salts to cook the food as we do know that heat will kill the healthy probiotic bacteria.  I used them on already cooked foods and salads and fruits. It's just another way to use these babies and getting the benefits of probiotics at the same time. Anyway...

Chara's question was, "can you rehydrate them and use them for a SCOBY again?"

Dried, I made sure baby SCOBY, or should
I say "mama SCOBY", was tucked under the
kombucha.  Yup.  I'm a mom too.  LOL.

Being that I still brew kombucha and still grow these baby SCOBY'S, I haven't had a need to rehydrate them. But the the sake us all of us knowing I immediately put one dehydrated SCOBY in a jar and topped it with fresh kombucha.

In 12 hours time the SCOBY was fully rehydrated. I could tell by how it gracefully moved in the kombucha, once I slightly moved the jar.

In 24 hours time it appeared to show the signs of a baby SCOBY floating on top.

In 36 hours time. Yes, that's definitely a baby SCOBY. The mother SCOBY is now very much alive.  You can see the fine lines in the pic. Yay!

So my answer to you my dear Chara would be a definite yes. Yes you can rehydrate, dehydrated SCOBY'S to make more babies, and more kombucha. I do know from experience I wrote in another blog on making baby SCOBY'S using a bottle of store bought kombucha only. However, that can take up to 2 weeks for that to begin happen.  Which by the way happened here in 36 hours:)

Thank you again for asking such a wonderful question. It's good to know that there are other inquisitive minds. I am sure there are many other folks who have thought of the same question, but just didn't bother to ask. So now we know just a little bit more than yesterday.  Thank you for allowing me to be of service. Till the next time...many blessings.

Sincerely,

Mary Helen

Now tell me if I am wrong, but I see a white baby SCOBY floating on top of the kombucha in 36 hours.  Yes, she can make more baby SCOBY'S once she has fully rehydrated!  Good News, it's good enough for me.  I can keep taking pictures.but this pic alone is enough evidence for me.

Just a note, If you don't like the sight of this SCOBY or the thought of you making your own probiotics.  You can always go to Nutrasource.com and pick up a bottle for a reasonable price.  Personally.  I don't mind the extra work.

DEHYDRATED SCOBY FOR A RAINY DAY

DRIED SCOBY CULTURES cut into smaller pieces making it easier to dry.

One motto that I say often is "waste not, want not".  I have an abundant amount of SCOBY cultures, even after l've shared as much as I could.  Hmm. what to do.  So a few months back I did research on is it possible to dry my babies (SCOBY) without harming them and their nutritional value.  So YES YOU CAN, dehydrate them and save them for a rainy day.  I've been doing so since then.  They make a good back up supply for whatever reason.

Very thin transparent, band aid looking dried SCOBY made from brewing my kombucha tea

They can be dehydrated, or sun dried. In doing so they become a concentrated form of probiotics.  I sun dried a few cultures by a sunny window flipping them over daily for a couple of days.  I have also used the oven light to dry them. That took 24 hours, but my culture was thinner.  Both ways have been very successful.  Just make sure you never use high heat.  Well you can but you will kill their probiotic benefits.  If that happens they will only be good for seasoning.

Before I cultured my SCOBY babies till they were almost 1 inch thick.  Now that I am drying them, I like to "harvest" them while they are about 1/8 inch thick. It's easier, and quicker to dry. Then I can...

Dried SCOBY cultures are quite pliable.  I just folded this one
and started stuffing it in the jar.

• Pulverize and encapsulate them.  You would be making your own probiotic capsules or pills.  Fresh too, and you know exactly what is in them.  All you do is grind them to a fine powder. You can pick up empty capsules online, or at most pharmacy's.  If need be you can always go to the local dollar store and buy cheap vitamins, empty 1/2, and add some probiotic powder to it.  Or
• Rehydrate the powder SCOBY in your favorite smoothie, protein shake, juice, soda, or water.  Now it's a real LIVE vitamin water.  Or
• Spice?  Spices are a bit of a spice of life...especially if they are healthy, organic, natural, and affordable.  Dried Scoby has a fragrance of a mild vinegar.  I like to mix a combination of spices including powdered SCOBY to my homemade spiced rosemary sea salts, or jalapeno cilantro sea salts.  It really does have a zesty taste.  It's great on salads.  Or 
• If you have any other idea's please feel free to share.

Now here is where I store them.  I stuff the jar first before I
start pulverizing them.