Gut shots are a liquid fire starter for your digestion. Once you have your homemade gut shots stored in fancy glass jars in your fridge, you’ll want to pour an ounce into a shot glass. This elixir you custom design to your tastes, to the season, and to your constitution.

Fermented foods breed themselves. Once you start making your own gut shots, you’ll notice that you naturally use one batch to start the next. Experiment with these super nutritive fermented agni boosters. Play with colors and flavors. Gut shots are a much healthier and equally sour alternative to kombucha. And remember, just a shot will do you.

Basic Gut Shot Recipe
Yields 6 cups of gut shots

½ head of a large cabbage (red or green)
7 cups water
1 tsp sea salt

Tools:

½ gallon glass jar

Fine mesh strainer or cheesecloth

Sterilized glass bottles for storage: 3 16 oz. bottles with lids are preferable.

• Chop the cabbage in chunks
• Place cabbage in a blender
• Add salt
• Blend on low speed for 1 minute
• Pour the liquid mix into ½ gallon glass jar.
• Place plastic wrap directly on the surface of the liquid mix
• Cover with a dish towel.
• Store in a cool dark place for 3-7 days. The longer it brews, the stronger it gets.
• After 3 to 7 days, remove towel and plastic wrap. Scrape off and compost and browned material from the top.
• Pour through fine mesh strainer or cheesecloth into a bowl, preferably with a spout.
• Pour through a funnel into glass jars.
• If you want the gut shots to be stronger, store in a cool dark place for another 2 days. Otherwise, store in the fridge. Keeps for many moons.

Tips

• For it to brew faster, add a few tablespoons of a starter liquid from sauerkraut.
• Experiment with variations to create colorful healing brews.

Vata Gut Shots

(Deep red color for Autumn + Early Winter)

• Vata’s need more salt, spice and warming vegetables – like carrots and beets
• Double the salt, or add as much as tastes good to you
• Add 2 tbsp grated ginger
• Add 1 tbsp grated turmeric
• Try with red cabbage and add ½ cup chopped beets or carrots into the blender
• Vata gut shots warm and heal your digestive tract

Pitta Gut Shots

(Cool green color for Summer)

• If you have more Pitta in your constitution, you may omit the salt if desired
• Use green cabbage and add 1 cup cilantro
• Add 1 tbsp grated lemongrass
• Add 2 tbsp fresh mint leaves
• Pitta gut shots are cooling digestives

Kapha Gut Shots

(Golden fresh color and spicy flavor color for Late Winter and Early Spring)

• If you have more Kapha in your constitution, omit the salt
• Add 1 tbsp grated turmeric
• Add 2 tbsp fresh basil leaves
• Add ½ tbsp fresh jalapeno or another hot pepper
• Or add 2 tbsp of kimchi to your basic gut shot recipe
• Kapha Gut Shots are mucus busters

Invasive Weed Gut Shots

Invasive weeds are nutrient dense. These gut shots taste are as deeply nutritive as bone broth.
Use young thistle greens, dandelion greens or roots, chickweed, or other invasives around your home that are not sprayed with petrochemicals.
Add spices as desired according to guidelines above.