Having been fascinated by fermentation since 2012 and how it changes food into some of the most delicious flavours I have have ever experienced. I haven’t come out of the rabbit hole of learning about fermentation and there is no end in sight! There are so many incredible fermented creations, techniques that humans have created to preserve and elevate flavours to another level and it fascinates me as to where the ferments have originated from.
Tepache is one at the top of the list!
Tepache is a sweet bubbly drink made with pine apple rind, water, sugar and spices
It is a perfect example of how every part of a fruit has been used to create something delicious. I adore it and create it whenever we have some pineapple in the house. We don’t eat pineapple often and actually I buy the pineapple to create tepache more than I do to create something to eat the flesh! I am finding that I am preferring drinks like tepache and kombucha as alternatives to alcoholic drinks. I am enjoying feeling more energetic and alive and only drink alcohol occasionally. These drinks are perfect, more complex, have depth, nutrition, and satisfy and quench my thirst. Strains of bacteria, such as Lactobacillus pentosus, L. paracasei, L. plantarum and L. lactis and yeast from the genus Saccharomyces have been isolated from tepache, so being a live drink, I kinda hope as well as tasting so good that it is beneficial to me and my gut microbiome too.
Tepache is a sweet bubbly drink made with pine apple rind, water, sugar and spices
It is a perfect example of how every part of a fruit has been used to create something delicious. I adore it and create it whenever we have some pineapple in the house. We don’t eat pineapple often and actually I buy the pineapple to create tepache more than I do to create something to eat the flesh! I am finding that I am preferring drinks like tepache and kombucha as alternatives to alcoholic drinks. I am enjoying feeling more energetic and alive and only drink alcohol occasionally. These drinks are perfect, more complex, have depth, nutrition, and satisfy and quench my thirst. Strains of bacteria, such as Lactobacillus pentosus, L. paracasei, L. plantarum and L. lactis and yeast from the genus Saccharomyces have been isolated from tepache, so being a live drink, I kinda hope as well as tasting so good that it is beneficial to me and my gut microbiome too.
Tepache Recipe
1 very ripe Pineapple
150g of unrefined brown/dark sugar or panela or Indian Jaggery
3 cloves
1 cinnamon stick
2 litres of filtered water
- Rinse the pineapple, cut the top and bottom off the pineapple and either slice up the pineapple and use the whole thing or cut the rind off the pineapple and use the flash for other things.
- Place rind, spices and sugar into a 2 litre container. Top up with filtered water until you have about a 2.5cm space at the top of the jar. I tend to the give the mixture a stir if I can to help the sugar to dissolve. You can heat the water to dissolve the sugar and once cooled you can add it to the rinds and spices.
- Seal the lid. Pop the jar somewhere to ferment at room temperature. Remove foam if it arrives and give it a quick stir. This can ferment for 1 to 6 days depending on time of year and warm of the room, ideally keep at 22 degrees. Careful to taste and keep an eye on this as it can start turning to vinegar if left for too long. When bubbles arrive and you are happy with the taste it is time to bottle it.
- Strain the tepache through a fine sieve to remove the rind and spices. These can be composted. If you have used the pineapple flesh you could dehydrate that for a tasty snack. Then bottle the tepache and then pop in the fridge. This is delicious served cold and if refrigerated can last for up to 1 to 2 months.
This was a tepache that I made using cinnamon and Wood Avens (Geum urbanum) roots (A local plentiful plant that has clove tasting roots)
Once you have made your tepache, it can be enjoyed as a cold drink in it’s own right or as a mixer with alcohol.
perhaps worth noting, a tepache fermented for 2 to 3 days will develop an alcohol abv of 1-2%. If left for a week it will be more like up to 5%.
How on earth does that happen so quickly in that jar?
The fermentation process happens so well with tepache. This is because the rind has lots of little crevices and hidden in them are a variety of microbes and yeasts, these are adept at consuming the sugar of the pineapple when it has a chance. You could say it has evolved along side the pineapple, like it’s own little ecosystem and all we are doing is providing a safe environment for those microbes to have a party whilst keeping the unwanted bacteria out.
So for the microbes to multiply quickly, the temperature helps them along, the sugar is fuel for the hungry little things. Having no oxygen helps the process from preventing other pathogens and that happens from having the rinds submerged in filtered water. Acidity is another way to prevent other pathogens joining in and that comes from the fermentation of the pineapple. The process reduces the PH.
Any issues?!
If the tepache does not ferment, go sour.. Something is wrong. Perhaps try buying the pineapple from a different place. Some may have been sprayed with chemicals inhibiting the growth of the bacteria and yeast. I have never had a problem. Pineapples that are organic are best but hard to source in the UK.
If the fruit is exposed to the air during fermentation then there could be the risk of mould so try and keep your ferment below the liquid. If mould arrives I just play safe and dispose of the ferment and start again.
When bottling please keep an eye on your fizzy tepache in glass bottles, and regularly release the gas. Glass bottles can explode under pressure, even in the fridge in a hot summer. Even as a seasoned fermenter I have had a whole bottle of fizz evacuate the bottle all over my kitchen. So this is a thing!
How to enjoy this drink?
A wonderful combination is tepache, lime and an achco chilli salt on the rim of the glass.
Tepache is becoming increasingly popular in bars and used for cockails mixed with tequila, mezcal, rum and other alcohol. Many people are wishing not to drink alcohol and preferring fermented drinks like tepache.
In Mexico, tepache has beer and lime added to it to make a delicious long drink.
There are more recipes and as I find them I will add to these posts and social media.
Thanks for reading this and if you like it or wish to know more please comment below.
Please check events as I have a fermented drinks cocktail evening 25th Feb 2026 in Whitchurch demonstrating tepache, kombucha and ginger bug and creating some cocktails with them for the evening. Come join us!
References
https://iwgia.org/en/mexico.html Indigenous peoples in Mexico
“Of Cabbages & Kimchi” James Read – A highly recommended and beautifully illustrated book by Marija Tiurina
“The Science of Fermentation” Robin Sheriff – lots of amazing fermenters helped Robin produce this great book. It is a useful book to have!
Ligenza, Alicja; Jakubczyk, Karolina Patrycja; Kochman, Joanna; Janda, Katarzyna (2021-09-27). “Health-promoting potential and microbial composition of fermented drink tepache”. Medycyna Ogólna i Nauki o Zdrowiu (in Polish). 27 (3): 272–276. doi:10.26444/monz/138713. ISSN 2083-4543.