How To Make Beet Kvass
Simply delicious and nutritious, beet kvass is a fermented drink made from beets, salt, and water. Try this easy step-by-step beet kvass recipe.
If you have made sauerkraut or kimchi, this beet kvass recipe will be a piece of cake to master.
The secret to making beet kvass into a drink you will want to drink lies in the fruits you add to the recipe. The sweetness of oranges, apples, strawberries, and/or ginger gives it a sweeter flavor that reduces the earthy, sometimes dusty flavor beets are known for.
Beet kvass is a gut-healthy drink that promotes regularity, aids digestion, alkalizes the blood, and cleanses the liver. With benefits like that, isn’t it worth trying various recipes to find one you enjoy?
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Beet Kvass Recipe
Notes
Sweeten the recipe by adding apples, strawberries, orange juice, carrots, pineapple, mint leaves, or cinnamon.
Salt: When fermenting, always use salt that does not contain iodine or anti-caking agents. Iodine and anti-caking agents can inhibit fermentation.
Water: the chlorine in water can also inhibit fermentation, so use spring, distilled, or filtered water if you can.
Optional starters: To speed up the fermentation process, add a tablespoon or two of whey to the jar or sauerkraut or kimchi juice for the same effect.
Recycle: use the leftover beets and 1 cup of the existing kvass to start another batch of beet kvass. Discard the beets after the second batch.
Ingredients
- 2-3 medium beets, wash, peel, and chopped into 1-inch cubes
- 2 oranges, peeled and chopped
- 1 tablespoon ginger finely chopped
- 4 tsp. sea salt
- 2 quarts filtered water to cover the beets
Instructions
- Peel and chop beets into ½-inch pieces
- Peel and cut orange pieces in half
- Peel and cut about ½ inch of fresh ginger into pieces
- Place the beets, oranges, and ginger in layers in a half-gallon jar.
- Dissolve the salt in filtered water and fill the jar with the mixture, leaving 1-inch headspace.
- Cover the jar with a lid, airlock lid, or paper towel secured with a rubber band.
- If using a lid, be sure to burp daily to release pressure build-up from the carbon dioxide and prevent the jar from breaking.
- Culture at room temperature (60-70°F is preferred) until desired flavor and texture is achieved.
- After 5 days, check the depth of flavor of the kvass—you want the kvass to be slightly sweet, slightly salty, and very earthy.
- When the beet kvass is fermented to your liking, use a sieve to strain the liquid into jars, label it, and store them in the fridge for up to three months.
- Enjoy the beet kvass on its own, or try diluting it with sparkling water.
The salt brine is enough to ferment beet kvass successfully. However, you can use a starter culture if you want a little extra assurance that your recipe will ferment properly. To learn more about using a starter culture, check out this post, is starter culture necessary for making sauerkraut?
What to get all the nutritional benefits of drinking beet juice but don't have the time to make it? Check out my review of the best-fermented beet powders available today.
