Thread: Kvas a little secret of the Rus !

Originally Posted by thehekler

Okay question for you experts out there I tried a recipe for Kvas. Boiled the water, soaked the bread ~8 hours strained out the liquid, added yeast and sugar to the liquid, let it sit ~8 hours or so.

Add yeast and sugar is not over 8 hours, and when the water with breadcrumbs is cool to 80-100 degrees ..

Just a thought would upping the rye to water ratio make it darker? The cherry does sound interesting, possibly tone it down so that there is just a hint of the cherry or garnish with a splash of cherry juice.

The color of the bread determines the color of the Kvas ..i.e Dark Pumpernickel would give you more of a rootbeer color and Light Rye like I use gives more of a blonde color.Upping the bread would not make that much difference in color although it may or may not make it richer sort of.I generally use about half of a loaf of unadulterated Rye bread with no caraway seeds.It is all Rye..Rye flour,Rye meal,yeast and no other flour(meaning no wheat) . using american everyday bread will not cut it because it has all the preservatives and fillers and other gunk in it.It's gotta be real Rye bread.As for flavorings,Kvas is primarily a bread drink with no other flavoring . However,as I have been finding out..there are as many recipes for Kvas as there are for say Chili or fried pork chops.I have been scouring the net and have found websites put out by Russians that call for things like,raisins,mint,lemon,apple,berry juice.And I have seen in many Russian grocery sites,various flavors of commercial made Kvas using alot of the flavors I have suggested i.e Birch sap,berry etc. It's your Kvas so make it how you like it.Hope that helps a bit.

Originally Posted by Nightblade

The color of the bread determines the color of the Kvas ..i.e Dark Pumpernickel would give you more of a rootbeer color and Light Rye like I use gives more of a blonde color.Upping the bread would not make that much difference in color although it may or may not make it richer sort of.I generally use about half of a loaf of unadulterated Rye bread with no caraway seeds.It is all Rye..Rye flour,Rye meal,yeast and no other flour(meaning no wheat) . using american everyday bread will not cut it because it has all the preservatives and fillers and other gunk in it.It's gotta be real Rye bread.As for flavorings,Kvas is primarily a bread drink with no other flavoring . However,as I have been finding out..there are as many recipes for Kvas as there are for say Chili or fried pork chops.I have been scouring the net and have found websites put out by Russians that call for things like,raisins,mint,lemon,apple,berry juice.And I have seen in many Russian grocery sites,various flavors of commercial made Kvas using alot of the flavors I have suggested i.e Birch sap,berry etc. It's your Kvas so make it how you like it.Hope that helps a bit.

Sorry I miss spoke, I meant dark as in dark beer (heavier, richer, little fuller flavor) not as in literally dark. But thank you that does answer my question, I plan on making my first batch on monday or tuesday.

Good luck !