Making Homemade Soda Pop: 3 Easy & Delicious Ways
Here are 3 simple ways to make your own delicious & healthy homemade soda pop!
Did you know that you can make your own natural soda pop at home with just a few simple ingredients? (No fancy carbonation machine required!) In fact, the first soda pop was probably a naturally fermented beverage, which was a heck of a lot healthier than today’s sugary, chemical-filled concoctions!
Making your own homemade soda pop is not only a lot easier than you think, but it is also a whole lot better for you. You can control what ingredients you add to your beverage, including the amount of sugar, and the natural fermentation will produce probiotics which support healthy digestion and a strong immune system.
I’ve been making my own ginger ale and hard sparkling cider for several years now, and it is absolutely delicious – MUCH better than anything you could ever buy in the store!
It’s also surprisingly easy…
Here is a little bit about making homemade soda pop from Weed Em And Reap, plus 3 different methods for culturing your fizz:
Carbonation happens naturally during the fermentation process. As the natural yeast in the starter (you’ll see the three different kinds below) digest the sugars, carbon dioxide is its byproduct. Because the bottles are sealed, it traps it in the soda, creating a nice fizz when you drink it.
It sounds complicated, but actually it’s fairly easy. As long as you have the correct ingredients and environment to nurture those little bacteria (cool, dark place), everything should turn out fine.
The best part is that carbonation is your buddy that tells you all is well. If you don’t have carbonation, it’s a pretty clear sign that you didn’t brew it correctly and that it’s not safe to drink. So, if ya’ don’t get a nice pop and fizz when you open your homemade soda, better just to toss it.
Method 1: Ginger Bug
This is the method I have used most often when making my own fermented beverages. To make it, you will ferment grated ginger, sugar, and water (make sure it is non-chlorinated!) together, adding a bit more ginger and sugar every day or two, until it turns bubbly. I have found this works much better in warmer temperatures, so if your “bug” doesn’t start bubbling after a week, try moving it to a warmer location. Also stir it frequently, and once it gets bubbly, continue feeding it daily if you’re not using it all right away or the yeasts will die off.
Here are a few recipes to try it with:
- Homemade Root beer
- Homemade Ginger Ale
- Homemade Fizzy Fruit Drinks like Jenny McGruther’s Raspberry Ginger soda.
Here are a couple of other methods from WeedEmAndReap.com:
Method 2: Whey Starter
Whey is the liquid obtained from yogurt or cheese. For the purpose of fermenting, whey from yogurt works best. After we make our homemade yogurt from our goat’s milk, we strain overnight through a layer of muslin and keep the whey for making homemade sodas.
Method 3: Water Kefir
Kefir grains are a combination of yeast and bacteria grown in gelatinous-like grains. They aren’t “grains”, it’s just a name that’s been given to them because of the way they look. First you have to purchase a dehydrated pack of water kefir grains, then grow the kefir grains in water and feed them a sugar to activate them.
…Check out our recipe for homemade soda from water kefir here.
You will also need some bottles to bottle your homemade soda pop. You can use bottles with corks, plastic soda bottles with lids, or swing-top glass bottles (which is what we use). Then just place your soda in a dark, slightly warm place for a few days, then refrigerate for a few days up to a few weeks.
Be aware that as the fermentation progresses, the pressure will build up inside the bottles, so be sure to point AWAY from yourself or others when opening, and I recommend opening one within a week or two to check fermentation progress. If it is very bubbly, drink the rest quickly. If not bubbly enough yet, wait another week or so to open the next bottle.
Enjoy! 🙂
