Hi, a couple years back I got a Northern Brewers kit and used it once. Living in NC at the time, I found it was just easier to buy beer then to make it. Now I live in RI and my situation has changed.
I'm taking a class on Colonial Wars (Europeans in Africa). For my final project I offered to make Zulu beer called "umqombothi" and explain its cultural significance. I looked up the recipe and it didn't seem to difficult. I'm planning on cutting the below recipe by half so I can use my equipment.
From what I can tell, I need white cornmeal, malted corn and malted wheat. The cornmeal, I'll just pick up from the grocery store.
I'm assuming, I can order malted corn and malted wheat from a brewing supply store?
I'm not sure if what I see on homebrewing store websites is what I need to make the recipe. The youtubes and interwebs are not as enlightening as I had hoped they would be. I appreciate any advise. Otherwise, I'll fall back on making Zulu pineapple beer which is pretty much like making homemade ginger ale.
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You need these utensils:
25 lt bucket (=6.6 gallons)
2 Imiphongolo (Large containers for liquids, 40 lt or so. You can use buckets if you dont have large containers.) (=10.5 gallons)
The largest pot you have in your house
Ivovo (sieve)
Ukhamba (calabash) to serve the beer
You need these ingredients:
5 kg mealie meal ...White Cornmeal
2 kg umthombo wombila (maize malt) Malted Corn
4 kg umthombo wamabele (wheat malt)
Cold water
Boiling water
It takes 4 days to make umqombothi using this recipe but dont worry, your life wont come to a standstill. Lets get started.
Day 1
Mix 5 kg mealie meal, 2 kg maize malt and 1 kg wheat malt in the 25 lt bucket.
Add cold water to reach ¾ level of the bucket and add 1 kettle of boiling water.
Mix all the ingredients together and place lid on the bucket. Do not seal the lid, just place it on top.
Leave the mixture to ferment overnight on a mat in a warm room.
Day 2
The mixture should be slightly foamy at the top due to fermentation.
Stir the mixture to mix the ingredients resting at the bottom of the bucket.
Fill the large pot with 3/5 of water and heat it to boiling point.
Slowly add the fermented mixture to the boiling water until it forms the same texture as that of porridge.
Once cooked, empty some of the contents of the pot into the large container and leave a little cooked mixture in the pot.
Slowly add more of the fermented mixture to fill the pot. You will have to keep adding warm water to ensure the porridge is smooth.
Repeat step 5 and 6 until all the fermented contents of the 25 lt bucket are cooked.
Leave the cooked porridge in the large container with the lid on top. Do not seal the lid, just place it on top.
Allow to cool for the rest of the day and overnight.
Day 3
Add the remaining 3 kg wheat malt to the cold porridge mixture and stir the ingredients together.
Leave the cold porridge and wheat malt mix in the large container with the lid on top. Do not seal the lid, just place it on top.
Leave the mixture to ferment overnight on a mat in a warm room.
Day 4
On the morning of day 4, you should have a drink that closely resembles umqombothi. The mixture should have a thick, rich foamy layer flowing out of the container.
Stir the ingredients and brace yourself for one last bout of hard labour.
Ivovo is a woven sieve and it is ideal for brewing umqombothi. Fill it with the mixture and twist to strain the liquid into the second large container.
Empty the sieve of the grains and repeat step 3 until all the mixture is strained.
Bring out ukhamba, the calabash, and serve your umqombothi.
*Juba and Joburg Beer are the commercial versions of umqombothi.
I'm taking a class on Colonial Wars (Europeans in Africa). For my final project I offered to make Zulu beer called "umqombothi" and explain its cultural significance. I looked up the recipe and it didn't seem to difficult. I'm planning on cutting the below recipe by half so I can use my equipment.
From what I can tell, I need white cornmeal, malted corn and malted wheat. The cornmeal, I'll just pick up from the grocery store.
I'm assuming, I can order malted corn and malted wheat from a brewing supply store?
I'm not sure if what I see on homebrewing store websites is what I need to make the recipe. The youtubes and interwebs are not as enlightening as I had hoped they would be. I appreciate any advise. Otherwise, I'll fall back on making Zulu pineapple beer which is pretty much like making homemade ginger ale.
-------------------
You need these utensils:
25 lt bucket (=6.6 gallons)
2 Imiphongolo (Large containers for liquids, 40 lt or so. You can use buckets if you dont have large containers.) (=10.5 gallons)
The largest pot you have in your house
Ivovo (sieve)
Ukhamba (calabash) to serve the beer
You need these ingredients:
5 kg mealie meal ...White Cornmeal
2 kg umthombo wombila (maize malt) Malted Corn
4 kg umthombo wamabele (wheat malt)
Cold water
Boiling water
It takes 4 days to make umqombothi using this recipe but dont worry, your life wont come to a standstill. Lets get started.
Day 1
Mix 5 kg mealie meal, 2 kg maize malt and 1 kg wheat malt in the 25 lt bucket.
Add cold water to reach ¾ level of the bucket and add 1 kettle of boiling water.
Mix all the ingredients together and place lid on the bucket. Do not seal the lid, just place it on top.
Leave the mixture to ferment overnight on a mat in a warm room.
Day 2
The mixture should be slightly foamy at the top due to fermentation.
Stir the mixture to mix the ingredients resting at the bottom of the bucket.
Fill the large pot with 3/5 of water and heat it to boiling point.
Slowly add the fermented mixture to the boiling water until it forms the same texture as that of porridge.
Once cooked, empty some of the contents of the pot into the large container and leave a little cooked mixture in the pot.
Slowly add more of the fermented mixture to fill the pot. You will have to keep adding warm water to ensure the porridge is smooth.
Repeat step 5 and 6 until all the fermented contents of the 25 lt bucket are cooked.
Leave the cooked porridge in the large container with the lid on top. Do not seal the lid, just place it on top.
Allow to cool for the rest of the day and overnight.
Day 3
Add the remaining 3 kg wheat malt to the cold porridge mixture and stir the ingredients together.
Leave the cold porridge and wheat malt mix in the large container with the lid on top. Do not seal the lid, just place it on top.
Leave the mixture to ferment overnight on a mat in a warm room.
Day 4
On the morning of day 4, you should have a drink that closely resembles umqombothi. The mixture should have a thick, rich foamy layer flowing out of the container.
Stir the ingredients and brace yourself for one last bout of hard labour.
Ivovo is a woven sieve and it is ideal for brewing umqombothi. Fill it with the mixture and twist to strain the liquid into the second large container.
Empty the sieve of the grains and repeat step 3 until all the mixture is strained.
Bring out ukhamba, the calabash, and serve your umqombothi.
*Juba and Joburg Beer are the commercial versions of umqombothi.