A soda that is actually healthy without refined sugar and caramel food coloring? A carbonated drink that’s still a little sweet and packs a powerful punch in the healing department? Yes! It’s possible. Here’s my recipe for homemade ginger ale soda with fresh ingredients.
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What is homemade ginger ale?
Homemade ginger ale is a sweetened carbonated beverage with a predominantly ginger taste. Once upon a time, ginger ale used to be carbonated during its fermentation process.
Modern day ginger ales are saturated with carbon dioxide gas, or CO2. With the help of simple machines like a Soda Stream, this is achievable in your own home.
Admittedly fermentation bubbles would be the best option. This homemade ginger ale soda with CO2 is a better option than its flavored sparkling water counterparts you can buy in the grocery store.
A brief ginger ale history
When I came to write this recipe post for you, I hadn’t thought of looking into the history of ginger ale but I took a quick gander just to see. Honestly, I’m still confused.
Some say it started in the 1800s in Ireland, others say same century in Detroit (James Vernor’s creation seems to be heavier documented, meaning he gets more credit). Then there’s the history of the brand-popular Canada Dry ginger ale.
Nonetheless, the drink has been around a very long time. What once had a ton of healing properties has been diluted (or deluged) with outrageous amounts of refined sugar, much like most soft drinks. They are also full of artificial carbonation to cut down on costs and time to mass produce ginger ale.
Oh and artificial colorings for more appeal!
It seems hard for me to believe there was a time not so far off that sugar was rationed due to limited war-time supplies. Now we are being fed it in ridiculous amounts. Alongside high fructose corn syrup. They love that in soda drinks.
But no one wants to talk about how addictive sugar is and how awful it truly is for our health. Refined and processed sugar, that is. Because it tastes too good to showcase processed sugar as the health villain that it truly is.
I assume this is the part where we insert “moderation is key”.
What’s in homemade ginger ale soda?
In my house, the ingredients are simple:
- filtered carbonated water
- “candies” leftover from my honey-fermented lemon and ginger immune booster
What if I do not own a Soda Stream?
This contraption, the Soda Stream, has been great as I do like a good carbonated beverage every once in a while. I just don’t like the heavy sugar load in soft drinks or the “sugar-free” options that are laden with chemical substitutes.
A Soda Stream allows me to carbonate beverages fast whenever I’ve wanted a sparkling water without the “natural flavors”. Flavors that aren’t very natural but have found a loophole in not needing to be listed in ingredient lists on food labels. I find this interesting or suspicious to say the least. But generally we, as a society, are okay with it because it says “natural“.
Back to the question at hand…
What if I do not own a Soda Stream, can I still make homemade ginger ale soda?
Yes. I have used a carbonated water like Perrier to make homemade ginger ale soda, too.
Ginger Ale’s Fresh Ingredients
I admit it. The fresh ingredients were very fresh when I made the honey ferment. As not to be wasteful, I like to freeze the candies to use later for soda or even to put in my hot teas in the winter.
But I did peel and slice the fresh ginger root. I also washed and sliced the fresh lemons before adding them to a jar of honey to ferment on the counter for a few weeks.
After straining my immune-boosting, cold-fighting, tummy-soothing liquid, I kept the “candies”– the ginger and lemon slices– in a container in the freezer. This is for homemade ginger ale soda whenever I’d like.
Yes, honey is a sweetener. When I’m given the choice between a refined and processed sugar or a truly natural one like local raw honey, I will choose the honey.
How to make homemade ginger ale soda
- To start, carbonate your water according to the machine’s instruction or pour 3/4 of an ice-filled glass with a bottled carbonated water of your choice. (See SHOP THIS POST section below for bottled water suggestions.)
- Then grab your frozen candies and add 2 candied ginger slices and 2 lemon slices to your glass.
- Next, for a little added flavor and a few extra health benefits, add in 3 tablespoons of your honey-fermented lemon and ginger syrup. The one jar of syrup you’re saving in the fridge for seasonal allergies, cold and cough, and upset tummies.
- Stir well with a spoon and enjoy a refreshing sip.
Here’s a YouTube Short for this recipe:
Is homemade ginger ale soda good for you?
When you use this recipe and the honey ferment one to make your candies, it is a much healthier version of the current ginger ales on the market.
You will reap the health rewards of using fresh, real ingredients in the ferment. By freezing the candies to use later and adding in some syrup, you reap even more health benefits!
SHOP THIS POST
Perrier Sparkling Water or S. Pellegrino Sparkling Natural Mineral Water
If you liked the simplicity of this recipe, you may also like:
Fluoride-free homemade tooth paste
DIY Laundry Detergent (powder)
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Added extra
Since you’ve got a Soda Stream now, here’s another easy favorite.
Carbonate your own filtered water and add a healthy squeeze of fresh lime juice. This is my go-to fizzy bevy. Sometimes ordered in restaurants as a “club soda with lime”.
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