It's a lot to gather, but homemade root beer is best for drinking and makes amazing root beer floats! This easy fermented drink is a win.
Root beer is a fan favourite! I bet it is in your house, too. Nothing beats a refreshing, bubbly glass when chores are done. Garden Mint Soda is another quick pick me up!
Looking for a great summer dessert? Add some No Cook No Churn Ice Cream for the best root beer floats. Popcorn Cake is another treat to make without heating up the kitchen with the oven.
Key Ingredients
Roots - Dandelion, burdock, ginger, licorice, and sarsaparilla.
Water - Always filtered and unchlorinated.
Sugar - Gotta feed the good bugs!
Vanilla - I love the sweet little touch it adds.
How to Make Homemade Root Beer
***See recipe card below for precise measurements and instructions.***
Step 1: Steep roots in water overnight to extract everything you can.
Step 2: Strain out the roots.
Step 3: Beautiful steeped tea!
Step 4: Stir in sugar to dissolve.
Step 5: Sprinkle yeast over top.
Step 6: Ferment in jars until bubbly.
FAQs
Sarsaparilla is the classic root beer taste you think of. A straightforward way is to purchase from reliable local or online shops. You can use any type of roots here really, but especially if foraging make extra certain you know what you are using for safety!
You can take the easier route and use brewer's yeast. This is generally easy to find at health food stores. Otherwise you can use a DIY Ginger Bug for a great probiotic soda boost.
Photos by Dante from Shire by the Sea
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Root Beer From Scratch
Ingredients
- 4 cups filtered water
- 1 teaspoon dandelion root cut into tiny pieces or powdered
- 1 tablespoon burdock root cut into tiny pieces
- ¼ cup sarsaparilla root purchased online in a shredded form
- 1 teaspoon licorice root cut in tiny pieces
- 1 teaspoon winter green leaves for more flavouring (optional)
- 1 teaspoon brewing yeast OR 1 tablespoon active ginger bug
- ½ cup granulated sugar to start and more after to taste if you want sweeter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract optional
- More filtered water
Instructions
- Add all of your roots and winter green leaves to a small pot and add 4 cups of filtered water.
- Bring to a boil for around 15 minutes, then simmer for another 5-10 with lid on.
- Leave to steep overnight, covered, to fully extract flavour and properties of roots.
- Strain out the tea concentrate the next day into another vessel and discard the roots.
- Pour back into the pot and simmer on low, adding ½ cup sugar and stirring in.
- Add in up to another 4-6 more cups of filtered water, one cup at a time, and if desired, one tablespoon of sugar at a time, tasting for flavour strength and sweetness. I generally like my root beer both strong in flavour and sweeter so I added 4 cups of water and half a cup of sugar. Experiment with what you like!
- When satisfied with the strength and the sweetness, take off the stove and allow to cool to room temperature.
- If using ginger bug, add a tablespoon of active fizzy bug at this time and stir in thoroughly.
- If not using ginger bug, sprinkle in the yeast on top, stir and allow it to semi-dissolve.
- Pour into a fermentation vessel (large jug, small carboy etc.) and cover loosely with a lid or a towel.
- After several hours or days, look for bubbles several times a day. When it is starting to fizz, it is time to bottle
- With your pristinely clean bottles, take your funnel and place it in the bottle. You might want to have a tea towel underneath to catch any overflow. Carefully pour your root beer into the bottle stopping short at an inch or two below the top. Cap it off and repeat for the remainder of your bottles. If you wish you can also keep it in a carboy or large jug with a tight fitting lid. Refrigerate.
Notes
- Keep in mind that fermentation will continue. If you wish to have a bit more alcohol in your root beer, let it ferment out of the fridge for a few more days. Otherwise place in the fridge and drink within a few weeks.
- Beware of over carbonization as you don’t want any explosions to clean up!
Cheyenne
Absolutely amazing!!! I was curious if it was going to work out and when it did, I was overjoyed!!! This is the first “soda” recipe I’ve had success with!! Everything I have made via Kate’s recipes has been top notch! They are easy to substitute too!