This is a super simple recipe for a delicious raw ginger beer soda. This is soda that is raw and completely natural! The benefits of raw ginger are plentiful. This drink is amazing for calming stomach aches, fighting indigestion, squashing acid reflux, and delighting tastebuds.

If your ginger bug is in good health, this will make a very fizzy drink and you won’t ever crave for a modern day soda again. You can also use this recipe as a base for delicious fruit flavored shrubs and cocktails! Enjoy!

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Raw Ginger Beer Soda Recipe

Course: Beverage, Ferment

Keyword: Ginger Bug

Servings: 4 people

Author: nourishingtime.com

Ingredients

• 4 inches ginger juiced
• 1-2 lemons juiced
• 2 quarts water
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup active ginger bug

Instructions

• Juice the ginger WITH the skin on if it is organic!
• Add everything together, and taste-test.
• Pour into bottles and let ferment 1-7 days until sufficiently bubbly. It may take longer if your house is colder, but please do check daily. You don't want exploding jars!

Notes

Prior to putting in jars to ferment: If you think the ginger is too strong, add more water. If you’d like it stronger, juice a bit more ginger. Keep in mind it tends to taste stronger after fermentation! Maybe because of all the bubbles? 🙂

Swing-Top Jars: I highly recommend swing-top jars because they lead to a fizzier product. Plus it’s easy to make then just grab one from the fridge, which encourages having fermented drinks more often. Click here to buy my favorite type on Amazon. The 8oz jars are great for kids!

My house is always on the warmer side, so my soda is usually very bubbly after a day or two. I then put them in the fridge to chill until the flavor is perfect, generally another 2 days. I don’t like it too sweet, but don’t like it alcoholic either!

Once your jar has some fizz, it’s time to open carefully and enjoy your cold, refreshing, raw ginger beer soda! Also be sure to try this naturally fermented pineapple ginger soda! Click here for the recipe!

NOTE: I haven’t had the chance to try these with honey just yet, but plan to soon. If you try it before I do, let me know how it goes!

This recipe is a raw version of the one posted in Wild Fermentation.

Pineapple ginger soda is so easy to make, and sooo healthy, delicious and refreshing! This is easily my family’s favorite fermented beverage, and I’m sure your family will love it, too.

It is reminiscent of Jamaican pineapple ginger soda, except so much better! And did I mention healthy? This fermented pineapple juice tastes good, and is good for you, too!

If you have a picky family, fermented drinks such as this one are great to get them started enjoying the health benefits of natural probiotics. It is well-received by picky children. This drink is safe for those on the candida diet, GAPS diet, SIBO diet, etc. Ahh, finally something you can enjoy!

This drink requires using an active ginger bug as the starter. A ginger bug is starter culture, basically a “sourdough starter” for fermented beverages such as this pineapple ginger soda or this raw ginger beer soda. You can learn how to make a ginger bug here.

Can I use water kefir instead of ginger bug?

If you’re asking this question, I’m guessing you already have water kefir available, but don’t yet have a ginger bug. While you can use water kefir as a starter for this recipe, it will not be as fizzy, and you may have to play around with the starter amount.

Ginger bug is a very potent starter–it is very strong and makes super fizzy drinks! It is also very easy to make, so I would recommend that you start a ginger bug today! Ginger bug also severely cuts down on the amount of sugar you have to use in your recipe, and eats up fruit sugars much quicker than water kefir does. You could also experiment with using extra water kefir grains in lieu of using the prepared water kefir liquid as a starter.

Can I make the pineapple ginger juice without using a ginger bug?

You sure can! This drink is delicious as is, with just the pineapple juice and ginger! You are welcome to enjoy it that way, but you will not benefit from the probiotics nor will it be a natural fizzy soda. You lose out on the beneficial bacteria and yeasts fermenting with a ginger bug provides, and the resulting reduction in sugar content.

On the plus side, both pineapple and ginger contain a variety of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and if raw, enzymes too. Just mix the pineapple juice and ginger juice, and keep chilled. Serve on ice and enjoy!

Now let’s get on to the pineapple ginger soda recipe!

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5 from 5 votes

Pineapple Ginger Soda Recipe

This pineapple ginger soda recipe is naturally fermented, so it contains valuable probiotics for a healthy gut.

Course: Beverage, Ferment

Keyword: Ginger Bug

Servings: 4 People

Calories: 200kcal

Author: nourishingtime.com

Ingredients

• 48 oz Pineapple Juice
• 0.5-1 oz Ginger Juice
• 1/4 cup Active Ginger Bug

Instructions

• In a large pitcher with a spout, pour the pineapple juice.
• Mix in the ginger juice a little at a time, and taste until you like it. If you accidentally add too much ginger, you can add more pineapple juice or dilute with some water. Work slowly and carefully!
• Add the ¼ cup ginger bug, mix well
• Pour into tightly lidded jars. Leave at least an inch of space in a mason jar, 3-4 inches in a flip-top. Close and let it ferment for 1-3 days.
• Check daily, and move to fridge once fizzy. Mine is always super fizzy in less than one!

Notes

Pineapple Juice: You can use freshly pressed juice of very ripe pineapple, or use canned or bottled. I highly recommend this organic pineapple juice but you can use regular pineapple juice as well. You don’t want a pineapple juice with a bunch of additives.

Ginger Juice: I highly recommend juicing your own ginger, or blending 1.5-3 inches of ginger (to taste). Start with 1.5 inch, blend with some of the pineapple juice, strain, mix that juice with the rest of the pineapple juice and taste. Then blend and strain more ginger juice if desired. If you cannot source fresh ginger, try this ginger juice. Do not use powdered ginger.

Flip-top jars are the best jars to ensure a fizzy final product. Amazon now has inexpensive flip-top jars. Click here to check them out. I generally recommend the 8oz for children and 16oz for adults. I do at times use larger bottles then pour individual servings into a cup/glass.

I can’t wait for you to try this recipe. You may also consider trying raw ginger beer, another of my favorite ginger bug soda recipes..

Enjoy your homemade pineapple ginger soda cold, but open carefully! Mine always bubbles over! If you enjoyed this recipe, please let me know by leaving a comment!

Featured in the Paleo AIP Roundtable @ Phoenix Helix.

I first learned how to make a ginger bug from Jane over at Fermenter’s Kitchen. Since then I have enjoyed the natural sodas I can use the bug to create even more than water kefir!

Ginger bug creates super fizzy, refreshing sodas such as this pineapple ginger soda. It is also the ultimate choice for anyone struggling with soda addiction. With clean flavors that leave you feeling better than you did before consuming instead of worse, you will be able to say no to soda cravings!

The best part is that it is very easy to make. All you need is a jar, water, ginger, sugar, and a little time (about 5-7 days).

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5 from 4 votes

Ginger Bug Starter

Course: Ferment

Keyword: Ginger Bug, Starter Culture

Author: nourishingtime.com

Ingredients

• 1 cup water
• 1/2 pound fresh ginger (preferably organic, with skin)
• 1/2 cup sugar (approximately)

Instructions

• Put a cup of water in your jar, and add 3 tsp grated ginger and 2 tsp
  of sugar and stir, stir, stir! You want to incorporate LOTS of bubbles.
  If you just slice the ginger finely, it will still be OK.
  
• Add 3 tsp ginger and 2 tsp sugar every day, and stir as often as you can.
  
• Once your bug starts to fizz, you’re almost there! I suggest closing the jar at this point.
  
• Keep repeating Step 2 until it’s really fizzy and hisses at you.
  

Notes

Sugar: I use brown sugar, but you can also use white. If you choose to use white sugar, I suggest adding a few drops of molasses as well.

Closing jar: Closing the jar during fermentation allows the bubbles to get trapped inside. It can help you determine if your starter is progressing properly.

Now you are ready to start making delicious, naturally fermented sodas that are healthy for you and teeming with probiotics! You can start making your first probiotic soda right away, or close your jar and stick it in the fridge for storage until you’re ready to use it.

How To Use

It is very easy to use your ginger bug to make healthy sodas for you, your family and your friends. Please do share the love & delicious gut bugs! All you have to is strain out 1/4 cup for every 1-2 quarts of soda you are about to make. My house is kept very warm (78 degrees) and things ferment very quickly, so I use 1/4 cup per quart. If you keep your house 75 degrees Fahrenheit or lower, you may need to use more. Experiment and make notes so that you know what works for you!

Mix up the soda you want to make. For example, if you want to make a peppermint lemonade soda, brew the peppermint first. Add the sugar, allow to cool, add the lemon juice, and then add in your ginger bug. Mix well.

Once your soda concoction is ready, pour into jars. Funnels are very helpful when filling the jars, especially if you don’t have a steady hand. Swing-top jars are the best jars for making fizzy homemade sodas, but drink jars such as the ones kombucha is sold in at stores will work well. I have used mason jars as well, but sometimes they take longer to get fizzy. The 8.5oz swing-top jars are perfect for individual serving sizes, especially for children.

Caring For Your Ginger Bug

• Always reserve at least 1/4 cup of your starter and replace as much water as you removed. Also add a tbsp of sugar and ginger. This step is crucial for keeping your ginger bug going. Some people have kept their ginger bugs alive and healthy for years!
• Leave your bug out for a day so the probiotics propagate well throughout your starter. Then you can resume storing the ginger bug in the fridge.
• Ideally you will feed it a bit more sugar and ginger every week.
• Sometimes I forget to feed mine for weeks and it gets really alcoholic but it still makes great soda. If I want the hint of alcohol gone, I’ll pour out most of the liquid (maybe leaving a tbsp) and all the ginger, add lots of fresh ginger and a couple tablespoons of sugar and let it sit out and get bubbly again. But most of the time I just use as is.

Recipes To Use Your New Starter In!

• Raw Ginger Beer
• Natural Pineapple Ginger Soda

If you have any questions, just let me know. Leave a comment or send an e-mail using the contact form. I’m happy to help you get started because I believe a variety of naturally cultivated probiotic foods & beverages are essential for your health and wellbeing.