OH has commercial kefir each morning with his breakfast.
We were wondering if it's possible to make this at home, similar to homemade yogurt (dollop of kefir in milk and leave in a warm place to ferment)?
Looking at internet recipes, all call for 'kefir grains' but reviews of quality have been mixed, plus grains seem expensive to buy mail order.
Has anyone had success making their own kefir? On the cheap?
Homemade kefir
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PatsyMFagan
- Posts: 631
- Joined: Mon Jun 13, 2022 9:21 am
Re: Homemade kefir
I used to make my own kefir .... Scullion does too.
I joined a facebook group called UK Fermenting Friends where kefir grains are offered just for the cost of postage.
I think the shop bought Kefir is pasteurised and so some of the goodness is removed. It is though a much more gentle taste. Home made is an acquired taste but does retain so much more goodness.
To make it, you need some grains (either bought online, or donated) and your milk of choice. I sometimes used the Channel Island milk as it was so much richer. Then you add about 10gms of grains to 100ml of milk into a jar with a breathable top (J Cloth, coffee filter) and leave in the kitchen away from the sun for at least 24 hours... once the grains start separating from the milk, strain through a nylon sieve, use/drink the the liquid then pop the grains into another 100ml of milk. They will gradually grow, so the amount of milk needed will increase .....
Hope this helps
I joined a facebook group called UK Fermenting Friends where kefir grains are offered just for the cost of postage.
I think the shop bought Kefir is pasteurised and so some of the goodness is removed. It is though a much more gentle taste. Home made is an acquired taste but does retain so much more goodness.
To make it, you need some grains (either bought online, or donated) and your milk of choice. I sometimes used the Channel Island milk as it was so much richer. Then you add about 10gms of grains to 100ml of milk into a jar with a breathable top (J Cloth, coffee filter) and leave in the kitchen away from the sun for at least 24 hours... once the grains start separating from the milk, strain through a nylon sieve, use/drink the the liquid then pop the grains into another 100ml of milk. They will gradually grow, so the amount of milk needed will increase .....
Hope this helps
Re: Homemade kefir
yup, i still make it and am happy to send you some grains if you pm me your address.
my grains tend to stay in a lump and so i just lift them out with a teaspoon and plop them in a jar with the next lot of milk. i make an ex-peanut butter jar full every day. i just leave them on the counter with the jar's original lid on and when the next jar is started off the first jar goes into the fridge.
when the blob of grains gets to about a teaspoon size i put half in the freezer (or give them away) - the individual, mini jam jars are really useful for that. lucky i do as i lost them over christmas by forgetting to put the jar in the fridge while we were away.
mine have developed into a thick, mild version, more like a thicker, gloopier version of the bottles you buy. not as 'fizzy' as when patsy first gave them to me. i don't put a breathable cap on, just don't tighten the jar lid too much while they are on the counter and tightening when they go in the fridge.
my grains tend to stay in a lump and so i just lift them out with a teaspoon and plop them in a jar with the next lot of milk. i make an ex-peanut butter jar full every day. i just leave them on the counter with the jar's original lid on and when the next jar is started off the first jar goes into the fridge.
when the blob of grains gets to about a teaspoon size i put half in the freezer (or give them away) - the individual, mini jam jars are really useful for that. lucky i do as i lost them over christmas by forgetting to put the jar in the fridge while we were away.
mine have developed into a thick, mild version, more like a thicker, gloopier version of the bottles you buy. not as 'fizzy' as when patsy first gave them to me. i don't put a breathable cap on, just don't tighten the jar lid too much while they are on the counter and tightening when they go in the fridge.
Re: Homemade kefir
Scullion, I don't know how to do a PM properly.
I've tried to send you our address but the 'outbox' or 'sent message' shows empty.
Edit: think I've succeeded at last.
I've tried to send you our address but the 'outbox' or 'sent message' shows empty.
Edit: think I've succeeded at last.
Re: Homemade kefir
i'm afraid your delivery will be delayed.
i halved my grains this morning, packaged them up, addressed the envelope and popped them in my bag to post while out.
the wool shop didn't have any matches for the wool i need (moth hole repair) only acrylic and mixed yarns ('try the wool shop in truro - it's a richer place than here, they might have real wool' was what i was told!) they didn't even have some i could dye.
i crossed the road for the post office only to find it was no longer a post office but a corner shop.
getting back to the car i took the letter out of my handbag and put it on the dashboard so i didn't forget to post it back in the village - however - as i opened the door a weirdly strong gust of wind nearly wrenched the door out of my hand and my partner said ' what was that yellow thing that flew off?' i couldn't think, carried on into lidl and realise when we went back to the car that it was the green envelope containing your grains (it would have been long gone after i had managed to stop the door hitting the neighbouring car).
if someone finds it before the rain comes later this afternoon and puts a stamp on and posts it you will be lucky but now i'm afraid you'll have to wait another week or so until my grains have increased again.
(or i might take the ones out of the freezer that i put in a couple of days ago and kick start those for you!)
i halved my grains this morning, packaged them up, addressed the envelope and popped them in my bag to post while out.
the wool shop didn't have any matches for the wool i need (moth hole repair) only acrylic and mixed yarns ('try the wool shop in truro - it's a richer place than here, they might have real wool' was what i was told!) they didn't even have some i could dye.
i crossed the road for the post office only to find it was no longer a post office but a corner shop.
getting back to the car i took the letter out of my handbag and put it on the dashboard so i didn't forget to post it back in the village - however - as i opened the door a weirdly strong gust of wind nearly wrenched the door out of my hand and my partner said ' what was that yellow thing that flew off?' i couldn't think, carried on into lidl and realise when we went back to the car that it was the green envelope containing your grains (it would have been long gone after i had managed to stop the door hitting the neighbouring car).
if someone finds it before the rain comes later this afternoon and puts a stamp on and posts it you will be lucky but now i'm afraid you'll have to wait another week or so until my grains have increased again.
(or i might take the ones out of the freezer that i put in a couple of days ago and kick start those for you!)
Re: Homemade kefir
Grains arrived with this morning's post. Will let you know the outcome of our kefir making. 
Re: Homemade kefir
Scullion, are the grains supposed to look like this? I wondered if Royal Mail sorting equipment had squashed them somehow.
Re: Homemade kefir
yes, they are fine, just pop them in milk and they should be good to go.
although it does look as though the bag burst (surprisingly) and there are more specks of other stuff in the photo than i when i posted them!
the bag was sterile. maybe they have been squashed but that won't effect the way they work.
although it does look as though the bag burst (surprisingly) and there are more specks of other stuff in the photo than i when i posted them!
the bag was sterile. maybe they have been squashed but that won't effect the way they work.
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PatsyMFagan
- Posts: 631
- Joined: Mon Jun 13, 2022 9:21 am
Re: Homemade kefir
I would just add not to put them in too much milk.
The ratio is usually 10 gm grains to 100 ml milk iirc
The ratio is usually 10 gm grains to 100 ml milk iirc
Re: Homemade kefir
when i halved mine and sent half to Binky i just popped the remainder in a jar of milk of the normal size i use (honey jar/peanut butter jar) and it was fine. i may have forgotten to refresh it the next day (i occasionally do to no detriment) but it's behaved normally since it's partition..