Kombucha Apple Scrap Vinegar!

Apple cider vinegar has many health benefits. Kombucha vinegar is very similar and has many of the same properties. This recipe uses the convenience of kombucha to speed up the process of making vinegar and uses apple scraps to give it that tangy apple taste.

Apple cider vinegar is made with crushed apples that are fermented into alcohol, and then they add a bacteria to the alcohol solution which continues to ferment the alcohol into acetic acid - the main active compound in vinegar.

Organisms work together

Yeast and bacteria work together to produce Acetobacter/Gluconacetobacter. These bacteria create acetic acid in both apple cider vinegar and kombucha. Vinegar has more acetic acid (4 - 7%) while kombucha has about 1- 2 %. The level of acetic acid increases as kombucha continues to ferment past the palatable taste we all know and love, and then it turns to vinegar. While kombucha has many benefits other than acetic acid, if it goes too long in the fermenting process and does turn to vinegar you'll receive different types of benefits. These mostly come from the acetic acid it creates.

Lowers blood sugar

One of the most well-known benefits from the acetic acid in vinegar comes from its ability to lower blood sugar levels.  It improves insulin sensitivity during meals by as much as  19-34% ¹ and two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar before bedtime can reduce fasting blood sugars by 4%. ² Many studies have been done on mice and humans all showing that it also works on those with diabetes and those with prediabetes. It is also beneficial for those who want to keep their blood sugar levels in the low to normal range. ^{3, 4, 5}

You already know you can make apple cider vinegar with apple cider and a vinegar mother, but I bet you didn't know you could make it from scraps of apples and a little kombucha! We love to make this in apple season when we have an abundance of apples and are making cobblers, baked apples, and fresh apple juice. It's also a great gift for the holidays and a way to use your leftover apple scraps and over-fermented kombucha.

Check out these two recipes to make your own vinegar.