In the winter months, we eat a lot of pineapple. I know, I’m supposed to promote homegrown food and local eating, that’s what we’re about. But…I still love pineapple.
I can’t get around it. And in January, they sell them for $1 each around here. Every year, after we’re done canning pineapple, I take a look a the incredible mound of pineapple peels and it just feels wasteful. There’s a lot of tasty pineapple still clinging to those peels!
Sure, the compost worms get an extra treat, but they can wait their turn!
There’s still more to be made with those pineapple peels. I ran across a recipe for a traditionally fermented tepache in the All New Ball Book of Canning and Preserving. That book blows me away with all the creative and off-the-wall ways to preserve foods, well beyond simple canning.
Tepache, or “tepache de piña,” is a traditional South American Pineapple drink, made by fermenting leftover pineapple peels with a bit of sugar and spices. It’s naturally probiotic and super tasty. And…just a touch boozy.
To make Tepache, or just about any home fermented fruit or vegetable, you’ll want a fermentation kit. That’s a water lock that allows pressure to escape but doesn’t allow outside bacteria or yeasts into the ferment. This helps keep it from getting contaminated and developing off-flavors (or turning into vinegar).
For this recipe, I’m using a kit by Fermentools that looks a lot like a homebrew setup that you attach to a mason jar.
There are a number of brands of mason jar fermentation kits to choose from. Try this one. Or this one. I’m hoping at some point to try out these silicone fermentation lids from Mason Tops because they look super easy to clean.
Tepache is traditionally made with piloncillo or brown sugar, and it results in a dark caramel-colored beverage. It’s only slightly alcoholic because of the short fermentation time, so beer sometimes is added to kick it up a notch.
I made this batch with raw cane sugar, which has a small amount of molasses, but clearly not enough to bring out the dark caramel color. It resulted in a more pronounced pineapple-y flavor but lacks the richness that the molasses brings. Next time I’ll go out of my way to get a hold of some piloncillo.
Traditionally Fermented Tepache
Adapted from All New Ball Book of Canning and Preserving
Yield: Roughly 6 to 8 cups
Fermentation Time: 24 to 72 hours
Batch Size: Half Gallon Canning Jar or a half batch in a wide mouth quart
1 cup Sugar (ideally, piloncillo, but brown sugar also works)
1 or 2 Pineapples, peels and cores only
6 cups Water
1 Cinnamon Stick (optional)
2 Cloves, whole (optional)
- Wash the pineapple and peel. Pineapples are easy to peel if you start by cutting off the top and bottom, and then slicing vertical strips of peel off from around the outside with a sharp knife.
- Quarter the pineapple vertically, and cut the core away from each quarter.
- Reserve the actual pineapple for another use.
- Pack the peels and cores into a half-gallon wide-mouth canning jar. Add the spices, if using.
- Dissolve the sugar in 6 cups of warm water. Pour the water and sugar mixture over the pineapple scraps, and secure the top of your mason jar with a fermentation kit.
- Allow the mixture to ferment at room temperature for 12 to 48 hours.
- Remove the fermentation kit and filter the mixture through cheesecloth.
- Apply a standard wide-mouth mason jar lid, and allow the mixture to ferment at room temperature for another 6 to 12 hours to develop carbonation. The solid lid will keep the bubbles from escaping and allow it to get fizzy.
- After that extra carbonation period, store the tepache in the refrigerator until you’re ready to use it. It should keep for about 2 weeks if it lasts that long.
- Serve poured over ice, mixed with sparkling water or as part of a cocktail.
How to Make Tepache with Pineapple Scraps #pineapple #pineapplerecipes #fermentedfood #fermentation #probiotics #healthygut #homestead #homesteading #selfreliant
Richard Rouleau
I just bottled my first batch, have you ever made a second batch with the same pineapple?
Ashley Adamant
Awesome! No, I’ve never used the same pineapple twice. I would think that most the sugars and flavor would be in the first batch. I do use the vegetables and bones twice when I’m making bone broth, and the second batch is always tasty too. So maybe there’s enough pineapple flavor left, give it a try! I’d love to hear your results.
Dorothy Strakal
I was so excited to find this recipe for my pineapple peeling. I had the silicone mason jar lids so it was easy! It was delicious!! I then put more sugar and water trying the same peel Ings for a second time. It was delicious! So I am trying it for the third time
Ashley Adamant
Wonderful, so glad you enjoyed it!
Dawn
I have read you can use it THREE times! There are different things to do in each stage..
Scott
Maybe I missed it but I don’t think you said what type of yeast you use? The only reason I ask is because there are so many different types out there
Ashley Adamant
This recipe is a wild ferment with no added yeast. You’re relying on natural yeast present on the fruit, and it worked wonderfully for me. If you’d prefer, feel free to add a wine yeast.
Juana
I used a plastic pitcher for about 5 days now it has few white patches on top,
I’m scared to use it
Ashley Adamant
Looks like you got mold contamination. In most cases, it’s still fine, just scoop the mold off the top, but obviously, you have to use your best judgment because you’re the one that’s drinking it (and I’m not a doctor or a microbiologist…). If you’re using an open fermenter like a pitcher, fill a Ziploc bag with water and place that on the top. That’ll hold everything under the waterline and help prevent surface mold.
James McNulty
The “white patch” may no be mold at all but a certain kind of yeast bloom. If that, completely benign. Just “spoon it away”.
Mark
Can you substitute the beer for white wine?
Ashley Adamant
Yes, of course. This would be delicious in white wine.
Dawn
Prosecco!
Donna
A pharmacist friend told me that potent pesticides are used on pineapples. I stopped making something similar due to this info. How do you wash the pineapples? Do you worry about pesticides?
Ashley Adamant
For my own use, I’ve stopped making this with anything other than organic pineapples. But that said, unless you’re on an all organic diet the companies packaging prepared foods are making pesticide-laden food every day. A can of tomatoes from conventionally sprayed crops or even just applesauce. Those are some of the heaviest sprayed fruits you can buy, and they’re eaten all the time. I’d worry much more about that then a very occasionally made drink from pineapple peels once or twice a year.
Julie
AG. When my husband and I use store bought produce we wash the it with a mixture of benanite clay and water.
Deborah
Have you tried keeping it longer than 2 weeks? Is there a way to bottle it for shelf stable longer term storage? It sounds awsome & i can’t wait to make some. And if it is a max 2 week shelf life then twist my arm guess I’m throwing a party lol.
Brian V
I bottle my Tepache for a second ferment and then store the bottles in the refrigerator. I first make a batch of tepache with pineapple skins, brown sugar, spices, and water. After it starts to foam up (for me about 48 hours), I let it ferment for 24 more hours. Then I filter and transfer it into swing top or store-bought kombucha bottles that can handle the pressure. I let the bottles sit at room temperature for another 2 days and then refrigerate. I start drinking them very cold the next day, and they are tart and slightly sweet with some nice fizz. I think these bottles will last in the refrigerator for several weeks or more, but they slowly continue to ferment, and the taste will change.
Jordyn
Do you have to add the full cup of sugar are there any substitutes for sugar that would work in this recipe?
James McNulty
No, the yeast feed on the sugar so when you drink it, there is little sugar left. The longer you ferment, the lower the end sugar content, if any. I let mine go at least 3 days and it is quite tart.