How to Make Homemade Apple Cider

 Photo by Anshu A / Unsplash

Homemade Apple Cider

If your cider doesn’t smell nice or, worse, doesn’t taste right, all is not lost: turn it into vinegar! Just replace the airlock on the carboy with breathable fabric, then forget the container in a corner of the house or attic for at least 6 months. That’s all there is to it!

Types of Fermentation: Alcoholic (~5%) for cider; acetic for vinegar

Preparation Time: 1 hour

Fermentation Time: 6 weeks

Equipment

• Bowl
• 1-gallon carboy
• Airlock
• Four 1-quart airtight glass bottles

See also 3 Easy Fermentation Recipes

Ingredients (for 16 cups)

• 1⁄4 of a 1-g packet of champagne yeast or beer yeast
• 6 tbsp + 2 tsp warm water
• 3 tsp cane sugar, divided
• 16 cups fresh, unfiltered apple juice with no preservatives

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Wash and sanitize equipment.
2. In a bowl, activate yeast in warm water with 1 tsp sugar, or according to packet directions.
3. Pour apple juice into the carboy, then add activated yeast. Close carboy and set airlock.
4. Let ferment at 60°F to 71°F for 30 days or until bubbles are no longer visible in the airlock.
5. Let stand in the refrigerator for 24 hours to allow cider to settle; the yeast will sink to the bottom.
6. Sanitize bottles, then gently pour in cider, taking care not to stir up the yeast sediment. Discard solid residue.
7.  Add 1⁄2 tsp sugar to each bottle, close and let ferment at room temperature for 2 weeks.

Courtesy of Fermentation Revolution: 70 Easy Recipes for Sauerkraut, Kombucha, Kimchi and More by Sébastien Bureau & David Côté © 2017 www.robertrose.ca Available where books are sold.