Tibicos
Encyclopedia : T : TI : TIB : Tibicos
Tibicos, also known as tibi, water kefir grains, sugar kefir grains, Japanese water crystals and California Bees, are a culture of bacteria and yeast held in a polysaccharide matrix created by the bacteria. As with kefir grains, the microbes present in tibicos act in symbiosis to maintain a stable culture. Tibicos can do this in many different sugary liquids, feeding off the sugar to produce lactic acid, alcohol (ethanol), and carbon dioxide gas which carbonate the drink (i.e. makes it bubbly).
Tibicos are found around the world, with no two cultures being exactly the same. Typical tibicos have a mix of Lactobacillus, Streptococcus, Pediococcus and Leuconostoc bacteria with yeasts from Saccharomyces, Candida, Kloeckera and possibly other yeasts.
[NB: Candida albicans, known for human yeast infections, is never found in tibicos]
Preparation
Basic preparation method is to add tibicos to a sugary liquid and allow to ferment 24 to 48 hours. A typical recipe might be:
- 1/4 to 1/2 cup of tibicos
- 1 dried fig, halved
- 1/2 lemon
- 60 grams or 4 tablespoons of sugar
- 1 litre (4 cups) of water
- 2 litre jar with lid
NB: it is important to use ingredients that will not inhibit the fermentation. This means:
- if using tap water, filter or boil to remove chlorine (note that boiling does not remove chloramine)
- fresh fruit should be washed to remove pesticide residues, and ideally be organic fruit
- dried fruit should be preservative free
See also
External links
- [Polysaccharide produced by ß-Bacterium vermiformé] (PDF)
- [Dom's kefir insite]
- [Making young coconut kefir]
For an UK kefir grains and Fermented foods group, see the [link] site.
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