
One of my favorite ways to use Yeasty Beasty – aka our ginger bug – is to make fizzy homemade ginger ale. Unlike store-bought sodas, it’s rich in beneficial probiotics and fresh ginger, which is often referred to as the “universal medicine” in Ayurveda. (1)
Another of our kitchen medicine miracles, ginger runs a close second to garlic in versatility and popularity, both culinarily and medicinally. It’s a tasty remedy, so people are more willing to use it. I often mix ginger with less tasty medicinals to make them more appealing. And ginger is highly regarded as a medicinal herb.” – Rosemary Gladstar’s Medicinal Herbs
“Ginger especially affects the respiratory system, digestive system, and circulatory system,” writes herbalist Rosalee de la Foret, which is why it’s often used to:
- Ease nausea and motion sickness
- Soothe a sore throat
- Calm menstrual cramps
- Support the body in breaking up congestion
- Support a healthy, balanced inflammatory response
What is ginger ale?
Most store-bought ginger ales are made by mixing ginger extract (and other flavorings) with carbonated water and high fructose corn syrup. You can make a healthier version at home by mixing my homemade ginger syrup with sparkling mineral water, seltzer water or club soda.
Or you can make this probiotic-rich, naturally fizzy version, which is sometimes called ginger beer. It’s more gingery than the store-bought stuff, which my kids love.
One quick note before we dive into the recipe: When you look at the amount of sugar used you may think, “Whoa, that’s a lot.” Just keep in mind that much of the sugar will be used up during the fermentation process and will not be in the final product. If you taste it after fermenting for three days and it’s too sweet, just keep fermenting. If you taste it after five and it’s not sweet enough, just add a little sweetener in. Easy peasy. 🙂
Homemade Ginger Ale Recipe
Equipment
- Swing top bottles, fido jars or mason jars (See notes section below)
- 1 medium sized pot
- fine mesh strainer
- wooden spoon
Ingredients
- 8 cups filtered water (chlorine kills the beneficial yeast and bacteria)
- ⅔ cup sugar (Organic white sugar or unrefined sugar will both work)
- 4-6 inch piece of organic fresh ginger root, thinly sliced
- ½ cup ginger bug starter
- ⅓ cup lime juice or lemon juice (optional)
Instructions
- Place the water, sliced ginger root and sugar in a pot and bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat to low/med and simmer for 5 minutes, then set aside and allow the tea to cool to room temperature. Keep in mind that if the ginger tea is too hot when you add the ginger bug, it will kill the beneficial yeast and bacteria needed for fermentation.
- Place a fine mesh strainer over a bowl and pour mixture into it to separate the ginger from the liquid.
- Add the ginger bug and lime/lemon juice (if using) to the liquid and mix with a wooden spoon.
- Pour the liquid into flip-top bottles (leaving one inch of head space) and ferment for 3-6 days. During the fermentation process, "burp" the bottles by opening them every 1-2 days so the carbonation doesn't build up too much. Some people have reported that their bottles exploded because they let them ferment for way too long without burping them. I've been making fermented drinks for years and have never had that happen, but I have forgotten about them for a few days and ended up with an extra fizzy bottle that poured out like champagne. I open my bottles on our deck now just in case. 🙂
- The ginger ale is ready when it's fizzy and not overly sweet. If you check it after a week and it's still too sweet, you can let it ferment for a bit longer so that the good guys can consume more of the sugar and turn them into probiotics.
Notes

More Ginger Recipes
Soft Gingerbread Cookies – These soft and chewy cookies blend sweet cinnamon and a hint of vanilla with zingy ginger and molasses. They’re surprisingly simple to make, fun to decorate and so delicious!
Lemon Ginger Tea – This soothing tea can be adapted to whatever you have on hand. In addition to the lemon, ginger & honey – choose 1-5 of the ingredients included in the recipe for your brew.

Sources:
1. de la Foret, Rosalee (2017) Alchemy of Herbs
I don’t know what a ginger bug starter is but the link doesn’t work
Sorry about that, it’s working now!
What is Bug starter?
Thanks
A ginger bug: https://mommypotamus.com/how-to-make-a-ginger-bug-for-homemade-soda/
Do you ferment it on the counter? And to stop fermenting it do you just store it in the refrigerator?
The ginger bug starter recipe link doesn’t work.
Sorry about that, it’s working now!
Can I use Ginger essential oil in place of Ginger root to make Ginger ale?
How long will these keep in the fridge once you are done fermenting them? I’d like to keep a few on-hand, but we’re not really big soda drinkers, so I wouldn’t want then to go to waste.
Thanks! This looks fun and tasty!
No, you need fresh ginger root.
My first batch of ginger ale went moldy after a few days into fermentation. While the bug was bubbling, the ginger ale wasn’t. Hmmm. Any ideas?
I attempted this and it’s been a week I think and I don’t see any fizz. I used 4 swing top bottles and a mason jar. I am not sure what I did wrong. I did notice that when I burped the bottles some of them didn’t seem to have much carbonation built up. Can I still use it? I will give couple of extra days to see if anything happens. Thanks
Hi Ana, here are a few quick thoughts:
1. Carbonation time can vary depending on ambient temperature. If it’s in a cooler environment it may take a little longer.
2. Was your ginger bug bubbling before you used it to make the ginger ale? If so, it may be that it was active but on the weaker side, so it may take a little longer to get the ferment going.
3. Was the tea fully cooled when you added the ginger bug? If not, the heat may have killed the beneficial microbes that are responsible for the fermentation process.
Hi Heather,
I have kept the bottles and the jar on the counter top in the kitchen. So I would say between 68-70 degrees. So maybe not warm enough?
The ginger bug had some bubbles but I wasn’t sure what would be the right amount. I did let it ferment longer.
Yes the tea was fully cooled.
I just checked the bottles and if I shake them I definitely see some frizz and feel it once I open the cap. The content of the jar looks a bit different. I wish I can attach a pic to show you.
I used coconut sugar – would that make a difference?
Thank you!
If you shake it and see fizz that’s a good sign. I gave the ones in the photo a little shake so that you could see the carbonation, but it’s not always visible otherwise. Coconut sugar is much lower on the glycemic index than regular sugar, so it doesn’t provide as much food for the good guys. That may have caused fermentation to go more slowly.
Just curious, how does the lemon juice affect the flavor? I noticed it’s optional.
I have refrigerated my bug. Does it need to be room temperature before adding it to the ginger ale mixture?
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe! I’m going to be starting my ginger bug today! Just something funny I noticed. In number six of your instructions instead of ginger soda it actually says, “ The elderberry soda is ready when…” do you have an elderberry soda recipe somewhere then? That sounds yummy 🙂
Oh, thanks for catching that! Yes, I just published an elderberry soda recipe here that also uses a ginger bug, and when I did I realized that I could have added some more guidance to this article on how to know when the ale is “done.” Just updated the recipe, thanks!
You can add it cold and it will warm up and do its thing. 🙂
Hi Heather. Love your recipes!
We tried this and live in a warmer climate (AZ). I’m wondering what the alcohol content of the sugar bug itself reaches because i got distracted and let it sit for about a week on the counter and it smelled pretty – fermented.
I know you said you could put it in the fridge after the initial soda making but I’m thinking maybe I need to do that or end up with a much higher alcohol content than I’m looking for since my kids are wanting to drink it. Or maybe this sugar bug is gonna be a “mom only” drink starter.
Our soda was tasty but I could definitely smell the fermentation – beer-ish… lol
Hi Heather.
Mine grew mold… dump and try again? There’s definitely carbonation though, yay!
Thanks!
I am trying this today! Excited to taste the finished product. Does anyone know how much sugar is leftover after the fermentation process?
It depends on how long you ferment and how active the good guys are. 🙂
Heather, My husband and I love this recipe! Sadly one of my almost-full swing-top bottles exploded in the fridge!! For now we will use plastic to be safe. I think I made a powerful bug:) So, I put my bug to sleep in the fridge in between batch 1 and 2–do you ever filter out the ginger pieces and start over? or just keep it fermenting. I added a venting valve lid to my bug in order to prevent any potential explosions!
oh and I meant to ask if you have ever tried to make this with maple syrup or honey?
Thanks for posting this recipe, love your site! I’ve had great success with many of your diy recipes! My bug turned out good, but after making it all the way through the recipe, I don’t seem to have any fizz in the final product. Temperature in our home is 75-76 degrees. A couple of my swing top bottles don’t have a tight seal, but a couple do. None have fizz though. Such a bummer after making it this far! Suggestions?
Hi Sarah, is your ginger bug bubbling? If you shake it gently and open the lid do you hear a fizzing sound?
Yes, just barely! So maybe it just needs time?
Yep, it sounds like it’s active but just needs more time 🙂
Yep! I checked it again tonight and we have fizz!! I’m so stoked!! It’s my first ferment project and I’m thrilled! Thank you so much!!
I can’t wait to try your Ginger Ale Recipe!
For the ginger pieces, do you peel them first or just put them in with the skin on?
i carefully followed the ginger bug recipe and then used it for the ginger ale recipe. After a few days, the carbonation seemed to be increasing as I opened them each evening. When we tried them, we discovered that the liquid had turned to a gel. It tasted ok, but it wasn’t fizzy and the ale almost had to be chewed. Do you have any ideas for what went wrong.
No, I have never heard of that. Do you mean it was gelatinous like jello?
This ginger recipe looks amazing, I currently use kefir every day together with seed cycling but I still struggle with a staphylococcal/pseudomonas infection preventing my 38month old venous leg ulcer from healing
How “shelf stable” are these recipes? Could I add preservative to this recipe to make it last for months?
You say to add the ginger bug?? I’m a bit confused. Do you have to make that separately?
Yes, you can find the recipe here.
I want to try this. I just have one question. Where do I leave it to ferment? Do I just leave it on the countertop? I love these emails! They are so helpful for someone like me who is always trying to be more natural and use less chemicals, sugar, artificial colors…etc.
Where can I get the ginger starter from for making ginger ale ?
Hi Niki, you can find the instructions for making a ginger bug here
https://mommypotamus.com/how-to-make-a-ginger-bug-for-homemade-soda/
SOOOO interesting, and I just may try to fit this into my busy life! I LOVE ginger ale but never drink it due to the sugar content, so this is very exciting!!! Question: once made, how does one store the ginger ale, and how long will it last? This would be a great Christmas gift for friends!!! Thank you for sharing!
We store ours in the fridge. I’m not sure how long it lasts – my kids really like it so they usually knock out a batch pretty quickly. 🙂
I can’t wait to try the ginger bug recipe and the ginger ale recipe!
How long will it stay good in fridge,
What is ginger bug?
Here’s the info you’re looking for. 🙂
how can i use the base of this recipe to make other flavors? im loving this drink by the way, i am so excited to be making our own healthy soda. thanks so much for this recipe
YOu can use the ginger bug to make elderberry soda – here’s how.
are you supposed to leave the flip bottles on the counter to ferment or in fridge?
I put mine in a kitchen cabinet.
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