# Homemade Ginger Ale Soda with Real Ginger

Learn how to make homemade Ginger Ale soda with real ginger, by using a ginger bug starter culture, and with natural carbonation!

- Cuisine: American
- Category: Drink
- Language: en

## Ingredients

- 1 cup grated ginger
- 0.5 gallon filtered water
- 2 cups sugar
- 0.5 gallon cold water
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 cup ginger bug starter

## Instructions

1. Wash the ginger. If not organic, peel the skin off.
2. Chop the ginger into smaller pieces or grate it using a food processor to yield about 1 cup.
3. Pour 0.5 gallon of filtered water into a pot.
4. Add the chopped/grated ginger to the water and bring it to a boil.
5. Once boiling, simmer for 10 to 15 minutes to extract flavor.
6. Remove the pot from heat and add 2 cups of sugar, stirring until dissolved.
7. Cool down the ginger concentrate (wort). This can be done by waiting for it to reach room temperature, or by adding 0.5 gallon of cold water and placing the pot in a sink filled with cool water and ice cubes for about 15 minutes.
8. Add 2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice to the cooled concentrate for tanginess.
9. Strain the ginger pieces out of the concentrate using a mini strainer and a measuring cup, pouring the liquid into fermenting containers (such as sterilized wine jugs).
10. Press the strained ginger to extract as much flavor as possible.
11. Fill each fermenting container approximately 2/3 of the way.
12. Add 1 cup of ginger bug starter culture to the entire batch (0.5 cup per container if using two). Pour it through a strainer and funnel.
13. Loosely cap the fermenting containers to allow pressure to escape, preventing explosions.
14. Ferment the ginger ale on the counter, away from direct harsh sunlight, for 3 to 4 days (or up to 5 days if cooler temperatures slow fermentation).
15. After fermentation, prepare for bottling into pressure-designed beer bottles. Use one plastic bottle as a tester.
16. Before bottling, mix up the lees (sediment) at the bottom of the fermenting container to incorporate all the goodness.
17. Fill glass bottles up to the neck to allow for pressure buildup, and the plastic tester bottle a little over halfway.

## Equipment

- food processor
- pot
- sink
- ice cubes
- mini strainer
- measuring cup
- wine jugs
- funnel
- beer bottles
- plastic bottle

## Tips

- If ginger is not organic, peel it to reduce bitterness.
- Do not add the ginger bug starter to boiling water, as it will kill it.
- To cool the concentrate quickly, add half a gallon of cold water and place the pot in a sink filled with cool water and ice cubes.
- When fermenting in jugs that cannot handle pressure, ensure the caps are very loose to prevent explosion.
- For a clearer ginger ale, you can filter out the lees (bacteria and yeast sediment) after fermentation.

## Source

- Original video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KsMUuMmKwps
- Recipe page: https://www.cliprecipe.com/recipe/c19514eb-875b-4b11-9f83-0be3e656eaa1
- Extracted: 2026-01-24

Extracted from the video by Clip Recipe (https://www.cliprecipe.com). Quantities and steps are as stated or shown in the video. Site guide for agents: https://www.cliprecipe.com/llms.txt