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This Fizzy Mexican "Soda" Is Bizarrely Easy To Make At Home — Here's How

Don’t toss those pineapple rinds... turn them into liquid gold instead.

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If you’ve never heard of tepache, here’s the fizz: It’s Mexico’s OG fermented soda, made from pineapple rinds. It’s tangy, bubbly, full of probiotics, and honestly? Way easier to make than kombucha, another fermented beverage that tends to steal the spotlight.

Ivanna Lopez Guajardo

I learned how to make it at a fermentation workshop at Four Seasons Resort Tamarindo with fermentation enthusiast David Garcia. He broke it down step by step, and now, I’m sharing the knowledge with you.

David holding a finished jar of tepache
Ivanna Lopez Guajardo

Editor's Note: The writer attended this workshop as a guest of the Four Seasons Resort Tamarindo, which provided the experience free of charge.

Here's everything we had on hand to make tepache.

A wooden table with various fresh fruits, spices, drinks, and a pair of hands resting on it, suggesting a setting for juicing or food preparation
Ivanna Lopez Guajardo

🍍 Step 1: CLEAN those rinds!

pineapple rinds
Ivanna Lopez Guajardo

Fermentation = bacteria + yeast. Lucky for us, pineapple rinds are packed with both. But clean them first with soap + water. Dirt is not a flavor we’re going for.

🫙 Step 2: Big jar, big success.

Hand placing pineapple pieces into a large jar on an outdoor table with various spices and ingredients around. Scenic view in the background
Ivanna Lopez Guajardo

Rule of thumb: 6 liters of drinking water per one pineapple’s worth of rinds. Use any container that can handle it, but glass is ✨chef’s kiss✨ — you’ll get to spy on the bubbles as it comes to life!

🍬 Step 3: Sugar, sugar, sugar.

adding sugar into large jar of pineapple rinds
Ivanna Lopez Guajardo

Yeast and the other microorganisms on the pineapple rinds need sugar to thrive, which, in turn, ferments the pineapple rinds and produces carbon dioxide gas. This turns the final drink bubbly and slightly boozy. Traditionally, tepache is made with piloncillo (molasses-y sugarcane blocks), but brown sugar or plain white sugar also works. Add 120–150 grams per liter of water, depending on how sweet you'd like it.

💧 Step 4: Add water!

Ivanna Lopez Guajardo

Carefully add your water to the jar of sugar and pineapple rinds, then stir until the sugar has completely dissolved.

⏳ Step 5: Patience is a virtue.

close up of pineapple rinds and sugar and water in jar
Ivanna Lopez Guajardo

Fermentation doesn’t happen in an instant. Tepache takes 2–3 days on average, but sometimes up to 7. Keep it somewhere warm and dark, and cover with a cheesecloth or leave the lid slightly loose so the gas can escape. You don't want your glass jar to explode!

PRO-TIP: Stir once a day to keep mold away.

🫧 Step 6: Let it bubble!

Tepache in jars
Ivanna Lopez Guajardo

When it’s bubbling vigorously, it’s ready. Strain it, chill it, and sip it. In the fridge, it'll stay fizzy for up to a week.

It's important to note that the final beverage does contain alcohol as a byproduct of the fermentation process, but the amount is very small, normally between 0.5–3% ABV. You don't really taste the alcohol, either — it's mostly a fizzy, sweet, and tangy pineapple soda that's super light to sip on.

Person outdoors, holding a tall glass with a drink, wearing sunglasses and a patterned top, smiling at the camera
Ivanna Lopez Guajardo

And once you nail the basics? Remix it! Add lemon, hibiscus, peaches, cinnamon, or maybe even green tea. Tepache is the kind of drink that we can love and nurture, and it will love you back. Happy fermenting, friends! 🥤🍍

Ivanna Lopez Guajardo

You can find TONS of other easy Mexican and Mexican-inspired recipes — like tacos al pastor — on the free Tasty app. Download it today to browse our library of 7,500+ recipes without a subscription.

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