Ginger Beer made with a Ginger Bug

1. Place the water, sliced ginger root and sugar in a pot and bring this to a boil.
2. Reduce the heat to low/medium and simmer for 5 minutes, then remove it from the heat, set aside and allow the tea to cool to room temperature.
3. Place a fine mesh strainer over a bowl and pour the mixture into it to separate the ginger from the liquid.
4. Add the ginger bug starter and lime/lemon juice (if using) to the liquid and mix with a wooden spoon.
5. Pour the liquid into flip top bottles (leaving one inch head space ) and ferment 3-6 days on your counter. During this fermentation process "burp" the bottles by opening them every 1-2 days so the carbonation doesn't build up to much.
6. Your ginger ale is ready when it is fizzy and not overly sweet. If you check it after a week and its still too sweet let it ferment for a bit longer.

*Do not use chlorinated or softened water it will kill the fermentation process.

*Make sure the simmered ginger tea is at room temperature because if you add the ginger bug too hot tea it will kill the beneficial yeast and bacteria needed for fermentation.

*Make sure to burp the bottles every 1-2 days as some people have reported that their bottles exploded because they let them ferment for way to long without burping them. This is also why its important to use good flip top bottles.

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