Hi I'm Trish an organic gardener. I grow organically...
for healthy and safe food supply, for clean and sustainable environment,
for an enjoyable and rewarding experience.
Kefir is a delicious probiotic lacto- fermented drink.
Milk kefir originated in the Caucasus Mountains as a way to preserve milk.
In the new world, Mexico has a similar culture
using sugar water. For milk Kefir, you can use either kefir grains,
which can be re-cultured indefinitely as long as you keep them healthy
or a direct set culture for single culture. The milk kefir grains can be used
for cow, sheep, goat
or coconut milk. Make sure you use organic milk
that's not ultra pasteurized. Water kefir grains eat sugar water,
juice or coconut water and make a fizzy beverage that can be a fantastic soda
substitute.
A couple things to know before we get started: Don't use any aluminum utensils,
use only stainless steel or food grade plastic,
you're going to use glass jars to make your kefir,
make sure that there's no soap residue on them. The process for each type of
Kefir is similar
but there are some major differences. We're going to start with the Milk kefir.
To start, we need to rehydrate the grains. Add the kefir
to the glass jar and then pour in a cup of milk.
Cover it with a cloth or coffee filter and secure it with a rubber band.
Let the culture set for 24 hours
at 68 eighty-five degrees Fahrenheit.
The next morning strain out the grains and add them to a new cup of milk.
Don't leave the grains longer than 24 hours so that they don't starve. You're going to
repeat this process until the kefir grains
make the milk the consistency of buttermilk within 24 hours.
My kefir grains are ready to culture. I'm adding them to two to four cups
of organic milk.
Then I'm going to cover with the cloth or a coffee filter and let it stand for 24
hours.
My kefir is ready. It smells clean and a little bit sour.
Remember if it smells off throw it out. Now I'm gonna bottle the kefir.
Canning jars or these jars with wire bales and lids are great for storing the
kefir.
We're gonna strain out the grains and then we can store the finished kefir in the
refrigerator.
You can flavor it with fruit or you can strain it to make kefir cheese,
or you can drink it like buttermilk. If you're making kefir with a non-dairy
milk,
make a dairy batch every few times to keep the grains healthy.
if you take want to take a break from making kefir,
you can put the grains and fresh milk in a jar with a tight-fitting lid.
Put the jar in the refrigerator and it will hold for several weeks.
Now let's make some water kefir. Once again you're gonna have to reactivate
the cultures.
Heat three to four cups of water. Use tap water,
well water or de-chlorinated water. The kefir grains need minerals to be
healthy.
If you're using distilled water or water treated with a charcoal filter
add back some minerals. Use one of the following:
an 1/8th teaspoon of sea salt, 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda,
or a 1/2 teaspoon of Blackstrap
un-sulfurated molasses. Add a quarter cup of sugar
per court above water. Don't use less sugar or else the grains won't have
enough to eat.
Some good sugars to use are organic white sugar,
organic raw sugar, organic brown sugar. Let the sugar water cool to 68
to 85 degrees Fahrenheit and add the packet of grains.
Cover with a cloth or coffee filter and let it stand
at 68 to 65 degrees Fahrenheit for three to five days.
When the grains are plump and translucent they're ready to make kefir.
Alright my water kefir grains are ready. Just
strain out the grains, toss the old sugar water and add them to a new batch of
sugar water.
The water kefir will be ready in 24 to 48 hours.
After the culture is complete, strain the grains and then flavor.
You can add juice, citrus zest extracts
or any kind of fruit to your kefir. After flavoring,
I'm putting my water kefir into these flip top beer bottles
and that will help build up carbonation. These bottles can withstand
pressure
but some glass bottles can't. If you're using bottles that can't withstand pressure,
make sure and burp every once in a while. Got Kefir!?
Grow organic for life.
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