When I first tell people how simple it is to make soda at home with no special ingredients, I'm met with a lot of disbelief. But through the magic of simple fermentation, you can create a whole range of sodas on your own with just 4 simple ingredients, a jar, and some patience. And this one is as low-maintenance as you can get. You don't need any starter mix, complicated ingredients, or anything fancy to make it.
Check below for this incredibly simple recipe inspired by The Zero Waste Chef!
Ingredients
(makes 1 liter of soda, the photo above shows the amount created from doubling this recipe)
1 cup Strawberries, chopped
1 cup sugar
4 cups filtered water
Juice of 1 fresh lemon (to taste)
Kitchen Tools You'll Need
A large, sealing glass jar
Strainer
Stirring Spoon
Flip top bottles or lidded jars (I use these: https://amzn.to/3JA5E8D)
Steps
Pick the ripest berries you can find! If you're growing your own, wait until the last possible minute to pick them so they bring all that sugary goodness to your soda. It will still work with less sweet berries and frozen berries, but the process may take a couple more days to work. Make sure you make the soda as soon as you bring your berries inside or home from the store so you can capture that fresh strawberry taste.
2. Rinse and chop your strawberries into quarters about 1/2" and drop them into a large, sealing jar. I got the jars I use from IKEA and find that they make the perfect quantity when I double the recipe, but as long as you have jars that can seal well, you can use them.
3. Add the water to your jar. I'm not totally sure if it's necessary to use filtered water, but we tried making this soda with water directly from the tap and the fermentation took several days longer to get started, so I recommend using filtered water if you can.
4. Add sugar to the mix and stir it up until you see that it's mostly dissolved. This is a fun step to let the kids take turns with, stirring with the huge spoon 3-4 times each until it's made it all the way around the circle.
5. Now seal your jar. (You won't add your lemon juice until the end) Set your jar somewhere inside, away from direct sunlight. We always set ours in the kitchen away from the windows to ferment. The warmth of the room helps speed things up considerably. After a day, you'll already see the redness from the berries has started to color the water. And by 3 days you should start to see the magic happen, fermentation will begin to kick in.
6. Fermentation will speed up each day, so each time you burp your jar, you'll see the bubbles rush to the surface in greater and greater quantities. Open your jar and stir up your mixture each day. Give it a taste to see how your flavor is developing.
7. After about 5-6 days, you should see your soda take shape. Taste a bit of it to see if you like the flavor. Then, if you're happy, pour the whole drink through a strainer to remove the spent berries. These can be saved and used immediately to make a second, less sweet, faster brewing batch of soda if you wish.
8. Add lemon juice to your mix, starting with half a lemon and adding more as you reach your desired flavor.
9. Use a funnel to pour your soda into clean bottles. Set them aside another day or two to further develop (or you can drink it now if you can't wait anymore!)
10. Enjoy!
Why does it work?
What seems to be magic is actually the wonderfully natural process of fermentation. Many foods, including strawberries, are coated in a natural yeast that when given time and the right conditions will begin to eat the sugars in the fruit and in the mixture. That process creates tangy flavor and produces CO², which becomes the fizzy bubbles in your soda. This is a wonderful STEM project to complete as a classroom and can be done side by side with other fruits and fruit scraps as a fun comparison.
Can you do this with other fruits?
Yep! This works with pineapple, ginger, grapes and more. The timing and quantities may need adjusting for the different sugar amounts available in each fruit, but the basic process will be the same.
Can you use fruit scraps instead?
You can! If you would rather eat the strawberries, you can keep the tops to use in this recipe. You can even make a soda with fruit scraps from several different fruits if you wish.
How long can I store this?
If you don't drink your soda right away, you can store it in the fridge for about 1-2 weeks. It will continue to ferment, but will slow down considerably in the cooler temps. Don't wait too long or your drink will start to sour and become boozy and then eventually, vinegar.
I hope you have a blast making this! We have started doing it every summer around the time of the strawberry harvest to celebrate the coming of summer and warmer weather.
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