Kvass Recipe - Fermented Russian Rye Bread Drink
This is a guide and recipe for a non-alcoholic lightly sparkling fermented Russian rye bread. Not to dissimilar to a non-alcoholic beer but known better by its proper name - Kvass. What is Kvass and the ULTIMATE Kvass recipe you can follow along with at home.
What is Kvass
What is Kvass? Kvass is a Russian bread drink which is fermented.
Kvass, pronounced kva:s (kuv-as) is a traditional Russian fermented drink that dates back to the middle ages. Think of it like a non-alcoholic Russian beer but probiotic. Traditionally, Kvass is made by fermenting bread, usually rye bread so another way of thinking about what is Kvass is a Russian bread drink. but can also be made or flavoured using fruits, raisins, herbs and honey amongst many other things. You are basically limited by your imagination on this one.
kvass meaning
The word 'kvass' literally translates to 'leaven'
It’s a word that you might have heard in bread making. Which makes sense, as Kvass is a fermented bread drink. You may be more familiar with leaven as a substances used in doughs and batters that cause a foaming action that lightens and softens the mixture. Though Kvass specifically refers to a drink made from bread.
Is there any alcohol in kvass?
Kvass is traditionally non-alcoholic. Although, much like tepache, when you ferment you create both gas and alcohol. In the case of Kvass, tepache and kombucha, the aim is to cut the fermentation short before any substantial alcohol is formed.
Beer is made the exact same way, except unlike kvass, with beer we leave it longer so the alcohol forms.
So kvass can be alcoholic if left too long. But generally speaking, it would be below 1.5% ABV if that. If your kvass ferments for less then a day the chances of any alcohol forming past 0.5% (which technically counts as non-alcoholic) is very slim.
Is kombucha similar to kvass?
Kombucha is very similar to kvass in the same way they are both non alcoholic fermented probiotic drink. But they are made very differently. Refer to the above what is Kvass section to understand kvass more and what kvass is. But in short, Kvass is made from fermenting bread whilst kombucha is not.
The reason you have probably never heard of Kvass or are only starting to hear about it now even though it’s been around since way before you were born is because of the mindful drinking and health movement.
“Fermented fizzy bread drink” doesn’t sound very appealing, which is what Kvass is. However, you may have noticed Kvass is similar to another fermented probiotic drink, Kombucha.
Once Kombucha began gathering a large community of fans it gave this whole trendy attachment to probiotic drinks. And don’t worry if you don’t know what a probiotic drink is, we will get into that shortly.
Because of this, people started looking into other probiotic drinks that they could commercialise and monetise on to get ahead of the trend. Enter Kvass. The Russian cousin of Kombucha.
Once commercial marketeers got hold of this drink, they replaced the bread with more appealing ingredients, such as strawberries. Replaced the unappealing “fermented rye break fizzy drink” name with the much more appealing “Lightly sparkling, fruity, probiotic fermented kvass” and that’s just about where we are at today with it.
The great thing about the rise of kombucha is that it really started to shed light on these traditional fermented drinks that have been long lost in history or so cultural that people in other parts of the world simply wouldn’t know about or be able to enjoy them, Kvass is very popular around Russia but I never heard of it till commercial kvass parodies started showing up on shelves around England. Sure, your mass produced versions won't be very traditional but they allow us to become aware of them.
Then we can just head over to google and find an article like this one to learn how to make the real deal.
What’s a probiotic drink
Probiotic drinks are what are also known as “functional drinks”.
In our bodies we have a mixture of both good and bad bacteria, always fighting for balance. When we are ill or have an infection, that's the bad bacteria taking over. Good bacteria helps eliminate it and make you feel better. Simple really
Probiotics are made up of live good bacteria. So ingesting good bacteria in your body can only lead to strengthening your good bacteria and helping you feel your best. These healthy probiotics are made when live yeast ferments. So you can find them in pretty much any fermented drinks and food.
Usually, in the business of drinks we kill bacteria. We don’t want anything funky like E-coli bacteria running around our bodies do we? So drink companies and producers use a combination of preservatives, acids and heat. Bringing down PH levels and pasteurizing foods and drinks to make an unliveable environment for bacteria.
Which is great. Don’t let people tell you these preservatives and hard to pronounce acids are all bad. Having them means we are unlikely to die from eating a piece of cheese.
However, this does also kill off any form of good bacteria in a drink. So creating a fermented drink, in a sterilized vessel and keeping a keen eye on it will create a thriving place for good bacteria to live.
Kvass health benefits
Now we know all about what Kvass is and how it works. Let’s quickly cover some stand out health benefits before jumping into our basic Kvass recipe.
Helps balance the good bacteria in your body
May also help keep your heart healthy by lowering LDL (“bad”) cholesterol and blood pressure.
Aids digestion
Boosts your immune system
A quick note on yeast
The key to a good fermentation is the yeast. Without it, your liquid just wouldn’t ferment. Yeast is something that is easy enough to get, in fact its in the air around us. That white powdery thing on pineapple leaves? Yeast. Its everywhere.
Leaving your kvass without yeast is still likely to ferment in optimal surroundings. What we are creating is a breeding ground for yeast after all. But getting that fermentation can be difficult and unpredictable when attempting to use yeast in the air.
So what we need to do is kick start out fermented goods with some kind of yeast starter. This could be anything from adding a dash of a previous fermented goodies, shop bought brewers yeast such as white wine yeast. Or a ginger bug…
White foam and bubbles - Indication of a successful fermentation
Ginger Bug
Ginger is naturally quite a yeast covered root. Which is good! By creating an environment for that yeast to grow and thrive, we can make a starter that when we add to our fermentable goodies will kick start the whole fermentation process.
To make your fermentation starter from ginger AKA a ginger bug, mix 100ml of water in a saucepan with 50g sugar. Once the sugar dissolves, pour your sugar mixture into a jar and drop in one piece of ginger root. Skin and all.
After one day, add tablespoon of sugar and stir. Two days later your should see why foam on top of your mixture, this is fermentation happening. If you don’t then don’t worry. Just add a bit more sugar and wait a few more days. In a cool dark place you could get fermentation between 2-7 days.
This is what happened with my first Kvass attempt. Instead of adding a ginger bug I added 1 tsp of shop bought yeast. 1 whole teaspoon to 1litres of fermentable liquid. The whole thing fermented like crazy and after I bottled it, it somewhat exploded. So be sure to keep an eye after bottling. Just as fermentation can sometime be difficult to start, it can also be difficult to stop.
what is kvass made of
Ingredients
1litre Water
100g Sugar
2 Slices dark rye bread
Handful of raisins
1/2 tsp Ginger bug or 1/2 tsp Wine yeast
Easy Four step Kvass recipe with photos
Step one
Bring 1 litre of water to a rolling boil for 5 minutes then allow to cool. Whilst your water is boiling Toast 2 slices of rye bread either in a toaster or grill until overly dark. Burnt
Toasted dark rye bread levels. As minimum, the darkest one here is the lightest you should go. You want it really toasted.
Step two
Add your toasted dark rye bread to your water mixture along with your 100g Sugar and a few raisins. 8-10 should be fine.
Leave to soak for at least 10 hours.
Kvass bread, raisin and sugar mixture (Ugly right? Don’t worry, it’ll look better at the end, don’t let this stage put you off it)
Step three
After 10 hours+ return to strain your mixture. You’re going to need a cheese cloth to make sure you get all those soggy bits of bread out
Strain the mixture into a large jar and stir in your ginger bug and a few more raisins (5-10) These raisins will add a texture and fruitiness to your end kvass. Its not a necessary step, you could do this with rye bread, sugar, and water alone. But the raisins really add a sense of depth you would find in wine.
Close the jar with either an air lock and allow to ferment for 2 days
Step four
After 2 days your kvass should have a white foam on top with bubbles. This is how you know its fermenting. Strain out your mixture and refrigerate, serve cold. This will last around 7 days.
If it’s not fermenting then don’t worry, leave it for a few more days.
Kvass
Ingredients
Instructions
- Bring your water to a rolling boil for 5 minutes then allow to cool.
- Toast your rye bread either in a toaster or grill until overly dark. Burnt
- Add your toasted dark rye bread to your water mixture along with your sugar and a few raisins. 8-10 raisins should be fine.
- Leave to soak for 10 hours then return to strain your mixture. You’re going to need a cheese cloth to make sure you get all those soggy bits of bread out
- Strain the mixture into a large jar and stir in your ginger bug or sprinkle over wine yeast and a few more raisins (5-10) These raisins will add a texture and fruitiness to your end kvass. Its not a necessary step, you could do this with rye bread, sugar, and water alone. But the raisins really add a sense of depth you would find in wine.
- Close the jar with either an air lock and allow to ferment for 2 days
- After 2 days strain out your mixture and refrigerate, serve cold. This will last around 7 days.
Notes
When leaving to ferment, make sure you "burp" the jar twice a day. That means you want to open and close the jar. This allows any build up of gas to escape the save you from a messy clean up if the Kvass over ferments and explodes. Skip this step if you're using a fermentation jar.
Nutrition Facts
Calories
322.31Fat
1.35 gSat. Fat
0.24 gCarbs
77.34 gFiber
3.08 gNet carbs
74.26 gSugar
51.13 gProtein
3.42 gSodium
223.06 mgCholesterol
0 mgThe nutritional information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Kvass frequently asked questions
Can kvass cause diarrhea
Any probiotic drink has the side affects of diarrhea when overly consumed. Creating one litre of kvass which you will enjoy over 7 days will not do that. Drinking a whole litre in one single day may. Its about moderation, kvass will give you diarrhea if you overly indulge. Go easy on it and you will be fine.
Can kvass spoil
Yes it can. To be safe, keep you kvass refrigerated and consume within one week. If you see any cloudiness or clumps that don’t look right, its best just to assume its spoiled.
You can prolong the life of kvass with the help of citric acid but that may also kill the good bacteria.
Is kvass alcoholic?
Kvass is a little alcoholic. By law in the EU, if a drink is less then 0.5%ABV then it counts as non-alcoholic. This is not completely alcoholic free, anytime you ferment there is always a chance of creating alcohol as that’s on of the things fermenting does.
Because we are only fermenting for 2 days there isn’t enough time to create enough alcohol to class it as an alcoholic beverage, however fermenting can be unpredictable and its best to just assume that there is a little alcohol in your kvass.
Can kvass get you drunk
Nope. You would have to drink a hell of a lot of kvass before you even get the slightest feeling of being drunk. Kvass wont get you drunk.
How does kvass taste
Not to dissimilar to a light beer such as a lager.
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