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What is Kefir

Milk kefir is essentially fermented milk (amazon link). The fermentation process is facilitated by using Kefir Grains.

Kefir is a sustainable milk product that is so good for your body. It’s easy to make yourself, although it can seem intimidating if you’ve never made it before.

We are going to make our own milk kefir. I have taught many people how to make milk kefir and have been teaching it for a very long time.

I’m going to teach you how to make your own fermented milk kefir using kefir grains. Using this process, you can also make your own greek yogurt or regular yogurt.

The fermenting process will separate the milk whey from the milk and allow you to use the yogurt or mix it back in and drink it as kefir.

What are Kefir Grains?

Kefir is thought to have originated in Caucasus Mountains in Russia, but there are some who say kefir grains were around in Asia long before they came to Russia.

If you have a chance and the curiosity, research the origins of Kefir. It’s an interesting story.

To get even better results from making your own kefir or yogurt, use raw milk if you can get it. The fresher and more organic products you can get ahold of the better it will be.

For most families, a half gallon of kefir at a time is appropriate. If you have a bigger family you can make more. Start out with a half gallon at a time and see how fast your family consumes it and then make adjustments.

When you open the jar you’ll see some lumps and it might look kind of shiny. The lumps are the grains. They might look a little like cauliflower when you take them out.

Don’t ever rinse your grains! The water can cause them to become inactive.

Just strain them and get most of the kefir out of them and then you can put them into a clean jar with milk to start the process over again.

A fine mesh colander is best for separating the grains. Also, you want to use plastic if you can. I recommend this one from Amazon.

Make sure you sterilize all your equipment!

How Does Kefir Ferment and What Are Its Benefits?

Milk will ferment at a higher rate in a warmer area and a lower rate in a cooler area. We keep ours away from our stove so when we cook it doesn’t get too warm.

A very small amount, about 1 tablespoon, of kefir grains will ferment about 2 cups of milk. That will yield about 2 cups of kefir, or about 1 cup of yogurt and 1 cup of whey.

Each time to take off the fermented kefir, you’ll notice that there seem to be just a few more grains than the last time.

Once you start on this path of fermenting your own milk into kefir, your kefir grains will continue to grow.

Research in Germany has shown that people who consume two cups of kefir a day are healthier and less susceptible to disease.

Fermenation and Storage

To ferment, put your grains into a half gallon mason jar (amazon link).

While your grains are fermenting you’ll want to cover them with a towel or small blanket to keep them in the dark.

You can tell the milk is well fermented when you see the veins and marbling in the milk.

Always refrigerate your kefir after it’s finished fermenting. Make sure you shake it will as it will separate if it sits for a while.

The fermentation process always creates a little alcohol as a part of the process but it isn’t nearly enough to get drunk on.

Fermentation also creates the good bacteria that we’re after.

I’d recommend you use your kefir within about a week for best flavor. It will last up to 9 months, but it might not be as delicious.

If you forget about your kefir and it ferments for up to a week, you are not out your grains. But if it’s more than a week your grains are probably gone and you’ll have to start over unless you have split your grains into more than one batch.

Making Kefir

Once it has finished fermenting, you’ll dump out the whole thing into a strainer over a bowl and separate the grains out. If you have a small strained just pour little bits at a time until the batch is strained.

When you have them well strained you can wash up your container and put them back in with fresh milk to start the next batch.

Then, take the kefir you strained and put it into a blender and add your sweeteners and flavors and mix it gently on the lowest setting.

When you put your kefir into the blender, make sure not to fill it up completely because it will expand. That’s also why you want to blend it on low .Also, make sure you put your lid on so it doesn’t splash out.

Try to use all plastic utensils and containers. Metal can inhibit the growth of the friendly bacteria.

I always do my kefir with a sink of fresh dish water to wash everything up as I use it. That way I know everything is clean and nothing is contaminated with bad bacteria.

You can leave a tiny bit of kefir on your grains if you want. The grains like that because the good bacteria will help the new batch get started.

How to Flavor Kefir

Honey is an excellent sweetener for kefir or yogurt. If you want a low or no sugar option, you can use stevia like I mentioned earlier.

Add sweeteners to taste and when you have it where you like it, make a note so you know what to put in next time.

If you blend it before you add sweeteners and flavorings, it’ll tasted like a liquid sour cream.

You can also flavor with fresh fruit. We put the berries on the bottom of a jar and then add the greek yogurt on top and then put it the fridge. Then we mix it in when we eat it. In our family, we put the kefir in jars and keep it in the fridge.

One of the things we use to flavor our greek yogurt is maple syrup extract, erythritol, and stevia. These are all organic.

We usually use stevia to flavor kefir because we try to keep the sugar out of our diets. We also use erythritol (amazon link).

If you want, you can make the kefir a little earlier and it won’t be as tart. But, it won’t have as much friendly bacteria, so keep that in mind.

I’ve heard of people putting it into small individual size bottles so they can take them on the way out the door. This a very convenient way to enjoy your kefir on the go.

Making Yogurt

Kefir is essentially yogurt you can drink.

If you want to make yogurt out of your kefir, it’s really quite simple.

The clear liquid that separates from the cream is called whey. If you keep them separate, and take the whey off from the cream, you are left with greek yogurt.

When I want to make yogurt instead, I line a colander with unbleached coffee filters and put all the kefir into it. Then place the colander into a bowl so the whey will drain off into the bowl and the greek yogurt will be left in the colander.

If you make yogurt, don’t throw the whey away. It tastes like buttermilk and still has significant health benefits. You can drink it if you want or add it to other recipes.

Salad Dressing

Salad dressings are another great thing you can make before you add flavorings. If you want a salad dressing, you can add fresh berries and blend it.

You can also use preserves of your choice to flavor your dressing.

Whey

Whey is a bi-product of making yogurt. When you separate the whey from the yogurt, you’ll obviously have whey left over. What do you do with it? You can drink it! It has so many good things your body needs. Add a little sweetener if it’s too tart for you, but definitely use it. You don’t want to throw that good nutrition away. There’s a link at the end with some ways to use whey to make other products.

Resources

Check out my most popular article:

20 Holistic Supplements for 2022

Whey recipes:

https://www.thespruceeats.com/many-uses-for-whey-1327494

Benefits of whey from mayo clinic:

https://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements-whey-protein/art-20363344

Cultured Food Life:

https://www.culturedfoodlife.com/