Kvass

🔥 Prep

• Cut the 200 g rye bread into small cubes, about 2 cm pieces.
• Measure out 2000 ml cold water in a large pot.
• Measure out 100 g granulated sugar.
• Measure out 5 g active dry yeast.
• Rinse 20 g raisins and set aside.

🔥 Cook

• 1. Combine the 2000 ml water and 100 g sugar in a pot, then bring to a medium heat and stir until the sugar fully dissolves, about 2 minutes.
• 2. Remove the pot from heat and let the sweetened water cool to room temperature (about 20–25 °C), which takes approximately 30 minutes.
• 3. Add the cubed rye bread to the cooled water, then stir to combine, and let the mixture sit for 1 hour at room temperature.
• 4. After the soak, strain the liquid through a fine‑mesh sieve into a clean container, pressing the bread to extract as much fluid as possible.
• 5. In a small bowl, dissolve the 5 g yeast in 50 ml of the strained liquid, then mix until smooth and let it activate for 10 minutes.
• 6. Pour the activated yeast mixture back into the main liquid, add the rinsed 20 g raisins, and stir gently.
• 7. Cover the container with a clean cloth or loose lid and ferment at room temperature for 24–48 hours, taste periodically until mildly tangy and lightly carbonated.
• 8. After fermentation, refrigerate the kvass to slow further fermentation, then serve chilled.

🔥 Serve

• Serve kvass chilled in glasses, optionally garnished with a few raisins.
• Pair with traditional Russian dishes such as black bread, pickles, or smoked fish.