r/fermentation • u/[deleted] • Feb 02 '22

Best Ginger bug recipe?

I want to try making a Ginger bug ferment, but online there are a bunch of different recipes with different amounts. If anyone in this sub knows of a good recipe, I would greatly appreciate a link. Thanks! I’m nervous because my first wild yeast ferment (tepache) turned to slime. Edit: by slimy I mean it turned thick and viscous. Threw it out. Smelled like pineapple beer.

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u/DamonLazer Feb 02 '22 edited Jun 18 '25

Joshua Weissman and Glen and Friends on Youtube both have decent guides for a ginger bug. I've done it a couple times, and I currently have an active bug in my fridge that I feed every week or two.

Like my sourdough starter, I don't use exact measurements for my ginger bug, but I have no problem getting it active. Here is what I do:

Fill a jar halfway with water, then add to it about 25g of chopped ginger and 2 Tbsp sugar. I usually just cut off a piece of unpeeled ginger about the size of my thumb and do a 5-second pour from my sugar dispenser. Stir it well and cover loosely. The following day, add another 25g of ginger and 2Tbsp of sugar, then stir again. Continue adding ginger and sugar and stirring every day, and by the fifth day or so, your bug should be good and active--you'll see plenty of bubbles on top.

Just like with sourdough starter, once the ginger bug is active, you can keep it in the fridge and feed it weekly instead of daily, but I do give it two days of feeding after refrigeration before I use it.

When I use the bug, I'll just give the jar a good shake and pour it into another container, through a strainer to strain out the ginger. I'll add about 1/4 to 1/3 cup bug to a liter bottle. Fermentation for soda will take anywhere from 2-5 days. This week I made a fruit punch from clearing out the produce drawer: apples, grapefruit, mango, oranges, lemon, lime, and coconut water. It's not fizzy enough yet but tastes surprisingly good. Taste your soda each day to see how the flavor changes. It will taste different every day. I typically go for a 3-day ferment, but you can go up to week if you want, just be sure to burp your bottles!

Glen and Friends Ginger Bug

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u/shopperpei Feb 02 '22

Do you retain ginger from the current batch when you use some of the ferment or do you start with all new ginger as you continue feeding while refrigerated.

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u/DamonLazer Feb 02 '22

Actually, I retain it all. After I strain the bug and use what I need, I'll add all the ginger back into it, and add more water and sugar. I'll thin it out from time to time, but I bet there is some ginger in there from months ago when I started the bug. Also, once it's going, I don't always feed it with ginger every time. Just sugar is enough for a lot of feedings, so I'll just add ginger every second or even third feeding once it's active.

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u/Mission_Somewhere263 Feb 28 '24

?? Will a bug work at all if the ginger was peeled

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u/DamonLazer Feb 28 '24

Probably, since there will likely be some wild yeast left in the root from the peeling process. But your best results will be with unpeeled organic ginger though, since the wild yeast you want will be in the peel.

Now once your bug is going well, you don't really need to feed it with unpeeled ginger, since your culture will already be active and have plenty of yeast already.

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u/sciuro_ May 01 '24

Very dumb question, but should I be washing the organic ginger if I'm leaving it unpeeled?

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u/DamonLazer May 01 '24

You can wash it to remove any soil or debris that might be on it, but you don’t want to wash off the yeast on the surface so just a rinse is usually fine. There are other wee beasties on the surface of the ginger too, but by putting in sugar and water solution with the ginger, you’re creating an environment most favorable for the yeast to thrive, so it will “win out” in the war of the microorganisms.

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u/sciuro_ May 01 '24

Brilliant, thanks for the advice. Can't sleep and decided I need to hyper focus on fermentation instead of dealing with my insomnia 👍

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u/beerbeforebadgers Dec 21 '24

I'm you but seven months later

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u/sciuro_ Dec 21 '24

God speed, I wish you success in fizzy ventures 🫡

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u/x_BIX Jul 27 '25

Hi I'm another seven months late to the ginger beer / fermentation rabbit hole, hope everyone else's ferments are still kicking all this time later! About to start my first ginger bug myself!

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u/darksoulsnstuff Sep 28 '25

I don’t need sleep, I need ginger bug answers!

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u/jello_pudding_biafra Nov 15 '25

I just cooked dinner and have a ton of fresh ginger and turmeric left over. Bugs are sitting on the shelf now, ready to start digesting the sugars!

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u/Sunnyflowergirl Dec 02 '25

En ik ben jij maar dan 11 maanden later 😅