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Ginger Beer using Brewers Yeast
If you don’t have the time or don’t want to make a ‘fresh ginger plant’ (see post) then I believe this is the next best option. Have a go and let me know what you think.
You will need the following to make the Ginger Beer.
1 sachet of brewers yeast
2lbs of sugar
1 jar of ground dried ginger
1 to 2 fresh lemons
1 sterilised jar the hold the ‘plant’
3 sterilised recycled ‘pop’ bottles
Milton sterilizing tablets or liquid to sterilise the jar and recycled plastic ‘pop’ bottles
Muslin cloth to strain the ‘plant’
Ginger Beer Plant
1 sachet of brewers yeast
2 teaspoons of sugar
2 teaspoons of dried ginger
1 clean sterilised jar with cover
cooled boiled water
Add all the ingredients into the jar and stir.
For six days add
1 teaspoon of sugar
1 teaspoon of ginger
To make the Ginger Beer
Now strain the liquid through some muslin. Reserve half the contents of the plant to start a new one and pass the other half onto a friend.
Make a sugar syrup using 1 1/2 lbs sugar and 1 pint of water
When the sugar is dissolved add 5 pints of water
Add the juice of one lemon
Add the strained liquid from the ginger beer plant in the jar
Add to the recycled ‘pop’ bottles and leave until the bottles became hard to the touch (this will vary according to the temperature the bottles are stored in), now place in the fridge or somewhere cool.
Ready to drink now.
Making Ginger Beer
Ginger Beer, ahh the best fizzy drink going. Well that’s how I feel, and now I want to share the recipe that I think is the very best.
This has been an experiment for me and I hope that if you try it you will agree that has been successful.
I will give alternatives which may give quicker results which I will go over in a later post.
I love the idea of using just four ingredients. Its so simple and is so natural too.
The ‘plant’ is a simple natural yeast culture grow in a glass jar from the ginger.
You will need the following to make the Ginger Beer.
2lbs of sugar
1 piece of fresh ginger about the size of your thumb
1 to 2 fresh lemon
1 sterilised jar the hold the ‘plant’
3 sterilised recycled 2litre ‘pop’ bottles
Milton sterilizing tablets or liquid to sterilise the jar and recycled plastic ‘pop’ bottles
Muslin cloth to strain the ‘plant’
So to start the Ginger Beer ‘plant’ you will need the following.
A piece of fresh ginger (a couple of inches in size)
2 teaspoons sugar
cooled boiled water (warm rather than cold)
1 sterilised glass jar and cover
Stage 1
Grate the fresh ginger and add to the sterilised jar
Add the sugar
Add the cooled water
Keep in a warm place but if possible out of direct sunlight.
Stage 2
Stir a teaspoon of sugar into the jar everyday for a week
It should start to fizz after a couple of days and will smell lovely, if it does not then it is a case of starting again, none of mine failed but it can happen.
Stage 3
At the end of the week the ginger should be strained through some muslin, collect the corners of the muslin and squeeze out the residue, put back into a sterilised jar and repeat the previous stage again for one more week.
Stage 4
Heat one pint of water and 1lb 8oz sugar until the sugar is dissolved.
Add five more pints of cold water
Strain the ginger as before, then add to the water and sugar mixture.
Add the juice of 1 or 2 Lemons
Grate another piece of ginger and strain through muslin and add to the water and sugar.
Taste the mixture at this point you can add more ginger if you want it a bit more fiery.
Bottle in sterilised plastic ‘pop’ bottles.
When the bottles have gone hard put in the fridge.
Its now ready to drink!
If you want to make another batch, save the half ginger in the muslin mix with another grated piece of ginger and put in a sterilised jar and add 2 teaspoons of sugar and cooled boiled water and the whole process begins again.
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