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Kombucha and apple cider vinegar are both well known as healthy, versatile fermented liquids. They are used for some of the same reasons whether it be their health effects or taste. This leads to the inevitable question: Which is better, apple cider vinegar or kombucha?
Apple cider vinegar and kombucha are both fermented with yeast and acetic acid bacteria. This gives them a similar vinegar taste but they are different in acid content, fermentation medium and physiological effects.
Acetic acid bacteria are prevalent in the environment and are therefore present in both kombucha SCOBYs and apple cider vinegar mothers. These bacteria are responsible for the vinegar taste found in both these popular fermentations and the production of the SCOBY in a kombucha brew or the vinegar mother in the case of apple cider vinegar.
The medium which is used for making apple cider vinegar and kombucha is different. Apple cider vinegar is made from apple juice, apples soaked in sugar water or pre-made apple cider. Kombucha is made with sweetened tea as the medium. The sweetener can be anything from normal cane sugar, honey or tree sap syrup, each will produce a unique flavored kombucha.
The physiological effects of apple cider vinegar and kombucha are vastly different. Kombucha is fermented for a comparably short period of time (7-14 days) as compared to apple cider vinegar (6-8 weeks). This makes for different compounds, probiotic makeup and health effects.
Is Kombucha the same as apple cider vinegar?
Kombucha and apple cider vinegar are two different fermentations but they do have similar compounds. This is because the bacteria culture which ferments these two fermentations are similar in makeup but they are definitely different products.
Apple cider vinegar has a higher acidic content, has little probiotic activity and is lower in sugar than kombucha. It is not meant to be consumed directly like kombucha, instead it needs to be diluted to make it consumable.
Apple cider vinegar is not meant to be consumed directly but should be diluted in other liquids, used as an ingredient or sprinkled over food as a condiment. The acidic nature of apple cider vinegar makes it unpleasant for most people to enjoy straight as well as it can have negative effects on the teeth and throat if consumed this way regularly.
Kombucha is meant to be consumed as a drink. It has a lower acidity level which makes it pleasantly tangy and can come in a wide variety of flavors. Unless it is fermented especially for a high acid level it will not become acidic enough to be considered vinegar although over fermented kombucha can be used like a weak vinegar.
Can Kombucha replace apple cider vinegar?
Kombucha is typically made with tea sweetened with white sugar at a ratio of 1cup of sugar to 1gallon of tea. This sugar concentration is not high enough to produce enough acetic acid to be considered vinegar.
Kombucha which has been fermented normally makes a poor substitute for apple cider vinegar but if it is fermented past the normal 7-14 days it can become overly acidic and not suitable for normal consumption. At this point it can be used as a substitute for apple cider vinegar.
If you want to replace apple cider vinegar with kombucha then you can leave your kombucha to ferment for a month. After thirty days the yeast and acetic acid bacteria in the culture will have converted most of the sugar in the kombucha into vinegar and can now be used as a replacement for vinegar in many recipes. Here are a few options:
Salad Dressing
This simple salad dressing can be made with kombucha rather than apple cider vinegar with the exclusion of the sweetener.
ingredients:
- ½ cup Kombucha
- ¼ cup Olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Honey (optional)
- Put all the ingredients into a small bowl and whisk until emulsified together.
- Taste and adjust for flavor.
- Pour into a bottle or over the salad
This makes a nice dressing for those who don’t like an overly acidic dressing.
Morning tonic
Apple cider vinegar is often used as a morning tonic diluted with water or some type of juice. This helps to lower the vinegar concentration and adds flavor while still getting the benefits of the apple cider vinegar.
Kombucha can be consumed in the morning just like apple cider vinegar without having to dilute it as it is not highly acidic. Instead of second fermenting your kombucha which carbonates and flavors it, just leave some in a jar and place it in the fridge. In the morning pour yourself a little and drink it normally.
By storing it in the fridge the fermentation will slow down and maintain the kombucha at a lower acid level for a longer time.
Why does Kombucha taste like apple cider vinegar?
Kombucha does have some of the same flavors which are found in apple cider vinegar. The tangy flavor, fruity aroma and similar color of the two liquids help to connect the flavor of apple cider vinegar with kombucha in our brains.
Kombucha and apple cider vinegar contain many of the same organic acids and aromatic compounds made by the yeasts and acetic acid bacteria which ferment these two liquids. Flavors like acetic and citric acid are present in both giving them similar taste and aroma.
Organic compounds found in apple cider vinegar and kombucha
| Compound | Apple cider vinegar | Kombucha |
| acetic acid | ✔ | ✔ |
| citric acid | ✔ | ✔ |
| formic acid | ✔ | |
| lactic acid | ✔ | ✔ |
| malic acid | ✔ | |
| succinic acids | ✔ | ✔ |
| glucuronic | ✔ | |
| gluconic | ✔ | |
| tartaric | ✔ | |
| malonic | ✔ |
Yeasts found in apple cider vinegar and kombucha fermentation
| Yeast species | Apple cider vinegar | Kombucha |
| Saccharomyces bayanus | ✔ | |
| Saccharomyces cerevisiae | ✔ | ✔ |
| Schizosaccharomyces pombe | ✔ | |
| Lachancea cidri | ✔ | |
| Dekkera anomala | ✔ | |
| Hanseniaspora valbyensis | ✔ | |
| Candida oleophila | ✔ | |
| Candida . sake | ✔ | |
| Candida . stellate | ✔ | ✔ |
| Candida . tropicalis | ✔ | |
| H. uvarum | ✔ | |
| Kluyveromyces marxianus | ✔ | |
| Metschnikowia pulcherrima | ✔ | |
| Pichia delftensis | ✔ | |
| P. misumaiensis | ✔ | |
| P. nakasei | ✔ | |
| Brettanomyces bruxellensis | ✔ | |
| Torulaspora delbrueckii | ✔ | |
| Zygosaccharomyces bailii | ✔ | |
| Rhodotorula mucilaginosa | ✔ |
The short fermentation time for kombucha helps kombucha to provide a variety of live bacterial cultures. Some of these are considered probiotic but in reality they rarely take up residence in the gut. This does not reduce the value of kombucha as the transient bacterial cultures have beneficial effects on the gut .
Apple cider vinegar has a long fermentation time which produces a vinegar with little or no live bacterial cultures. This is because as the vinegar is aged the bacteria consumes the sugar in the liquid producing acetic acid. As the food source diminishes so does the population of the bacteria.
Can kombucha and apple cider vinegar be consumed the same day?
Apple cider vinegar and kombucha are both high in acetic acid due to the aerobic fermentation using acetic acid bacteria that provides many of the same organic acids (with some variation).
There are no chemical reactions which occur between apple cider vinegar and kombucha which affect human physiology. This means that they do not interact together to produce toxic levels of any compound and can be consumed separately or together in the same day.
Acetic acid, the most prevalent organic compound in apple cider vinegar and kombucha, has a low toxicity. You would have to consume vast amounts of both apple cider vinegar and kombucha to have any toxic effects from either one of them.
Since apple cider vinegar and kombucha don’t have any negative interactions with one another, you could have as much as you wish without experiencing any negative effects.