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Fermented Whey Soda

Acres and Aprons
A fun and bubbly way to use up your extra whey from cheese or yogurt making. This recipe is simple, cost effective, and great for your gut thanks to the lacto-fermentation.
5 from 3 votes
Print Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes
fermenting time 4 days
Total Time 4 days 10 minutes
Course Drinks
Servings 1 gallon

Equipment

  • 1 Gallon sized mason jar
  • 1 wooden spoon
  • 1 Funnel
  • 8 16 oz swing top bottles
  • 1 Strainer

Ingredients
  

  • 1 cup whey *optional. See notes
  • 3-4 cups fruit, any kind you like Fresh or frozen
  • 1 ⅓ cups sugar (or honey) *see notes
  • 2-3 quarts filtered water
  • Any inclusions you like, cinnamon sticks, vanilla, basil, mint, etc.

Instructions
 

  • In a gallon sized jar, add whey, fruit and sugar (or honey) *See notes. If you’re adding any inclusions, do it here. Like, cinnamon sticks, basil or mint.
  • Fill the rest of the jar with filtered water (about 2 ½ quarts) Mix gently with a wooden spoon until fully combined.
    If you don't have a gallon size jar, you could use a very large bowl to combine everything, but you need something with a lid or that can be covered.
  • Cover with a lid (or a cloth and rubber band,) and let this mixture ferment on your counter for 2-3 days. Make sure to keep all ingredients fully submerged, gently mix once daily. You will start to smell the fermentation and see small bubbles by day 2-3.
  • After this first fermentation period, use your funnel and strainer to strain the mixture into to your swing top bottles (can also use mason jars here, if they seal well, but it can be harder to get it to carbonate.
  • Leave jars on the counter to ferment for 1-2 days, or until they carbonate.
  • During the carbonation period, burp and mix the jars every 4-6 hours. To do this, simply open the top to release pressure. You’ll notice it getting more and more carbonated every day. Once you close the lid, gently tip the jar over 1-2 times to keep mixture combined. I find most of my batches carbonate in a day, but if it’s cold it may take longer.
  • Check them often because the fermentation time can vary a lot and they will explode if left too long. Some of my batches have carbonated as quickly as 10-12 hours. Once carbonated, store them in the fridge and enjoy!
  • *If you see a white film on top of your drinks at any point, don't worry. It's kahm yeast from the fermentation process, gently tip your jars over to re-incorporate is (use caution as they start to carbonate.)

Notes

*The whey is optional. This recipe turns out fabulous without any whey and is considered a "wild soda" then.
*The amount of honey or sugar can be adjusted to taste. I don’t recommend going much below 3/4 cup of sweetener, as a certain amount of sugar is necessary to fuel fermentation and create carbonation
Flavor Recommendations: 
  • Apple Cinnamon - Use apples (or apple juice) for the flavor, then add 2-3 cinnamon sticks during fermentation time. 
  • Cherry Vanilla - Add cherries and 1-2 tbsp of vanilla extract to the mixture. 
  • Blueberry Lavender - Blueberries and a fresh sprig of lavender make a great combo
  • Strawberry + Basil Lemonade - 4 cups strawberries, 1/2 cup of fresh basil, and the juice of 6 lemons make our favorite combo of all 
  • Ginger lemonade - 3 inches of ginger, grated; ¾ cup lemon juice (fresh or bottled); 1½ cups sugar or honey; 1½ teaspoons salt. Add ingredients to your gallon size jar with your whey, fill the rest with water and continue with the recipe.
Pre mixed juice method: 
I used to use this method and still do sometimes. If you have been making my recipe for awhile it used to be written this way. It is still a great option and very simple, I just find the flavor of fresh fruit to be far superior
  • 1 quart of pre made juice, ½ cup of sugar, 1 cup of whey, and fill the rest of the jar with water.