Making Fresh Kefir Drinks in Cardiff -
Home Made Kefir Milk Yoghurt

Kefir is a fermented milk drink that originated in The Southern Caucasus mountains and the Balkans. Its name is a derivative of "keif" meaning pleasure (the same name given to ... Cannabis in Turkish and Russian). It is very popular across Eastern Europe. Kefir shares a lot of similarities with the popular Chinese (Beijing style) yoghurt drink and the Indian Lassi yoghurt drink. It tastes very similar to Buttermilk.

Making your own kefir drink at home is extremely easy. It will probably take you under a minute to prepare your kefir, an extra 20 seconds per day of maintanance and perhaps another minute to bottle the kefir - if you grow too much to consume daily.

Unlike making regular yoghurt, Kefir DOES NOT need a steady or constant temperature and it certainly DOES NOT need to be refrigarated when ready. Once bottled, the Kefir will last for months in the fridge (or in the larder) ... and best of all ... you can use your kefir cultures (and share them with your friends) again and again.

If you are amazed by the 10 billion live bacteria in an Activia / Actimel bottle - then be prepared to the 150 billion live bacteria per table spoon, or over 2 trillion per cup in a freshly made Kefir drink ... without all the additives, colourings and sugar ...

NUTRIENTS AND HEALTH BENEFITS

Bacteria
Acetic acid bacteria
Acetobacter aceti
Acetobacter pasteurianus
Bacillus subtilis
Enterococci
Enterococcus durans
Enterococcus faecium
Escherichia coli
Lactobacillus acidophilus
Lactobacillus brevis
Lactobacillus bulgaricus
Lactobacillus casei
Lactobacillus paracasei
Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus
Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. delbrueckii
Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. lactis
Lactobacillus fructivoans
Lactobacillus fermentum
Lactobacillus hilgardii
Lactobacillus gasseri
Lactobacillus helveticus
Lactobacillus kefiranofaciens subsp. kefiranofaciens
Lactobacillus kefiri
Lactobacillus kefirgranum
Lactobacillus parakefir
Lactobacillus paracasei subsp. Paracasei
Lactobacillus paraplantarum
Lactobacillus plantarum
Lactobacillus rhamnosus
Lactobacillus sake
Lactobacillus viridescens
Lactococci
Lactococcus lactis subsp. cremoris
Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis
Lactococcus lactis
Leuconostoc mesenteroides subsp. cremoris
Leuconostoc mesenteroides subsp. dextranicum
Leuconostoc mesenteroides subsp. Mesenteroides
Micrococcus spa.
Pseudomonas
Pseudomonas fluorescens
Pseudomonas putida
Streptococci
Streptococcus thermophilus

Yeasts
Candida humilis
Kazachstania unispora
Kazachstania exigua
Kluyveromyces siamensis
Kluyveromyces lactis
Kluyveromyces marxianus
Saccharomyces cerevisiae
Saccharomyces martiniae
Saccharomyces unisporus

By contrast, the microbes generally found in yogurt are:
Bifidobacterium lactis
Lactobacillus acidophilus
Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus
Streptococcus thermophilus

 

DIGESTION

If you suffer from Crohn's disease, IBS, flatulence, a leaky gut or just poor digestion, kefir will be a God-send.

As your body needs as large a variety of bacteria as possible to properly break down any food you ingest, the kefir cultures will not only speed up your natural metabolism, but also maximise the nutritional benefits from your diet. Furthermore, as the kefir feeds off the starch and fibre in your gut (pre-biotics) having a constant supply of your own fresh kefir will minimise flatulence and IBS effects.

MAKING KEFIR AT HOME

Take the live kefir cultures and add any type of milk to them (raw, fresh, UHT, goat's, cow's). I grew my kefir cultures on organic UHT Moo full fat whole cow's milk, and the cultures will certainly thrive on any other UHT milk (as this process kills all harmful bacteria). If you are using raw or fresh milk, give the kefir cultures 3 or 4 rounds (24-hour cycles) to adapt to this new environment. Its best to use whole milk, but not absolutely essential. Just add 60-80ml of your raw/fresh/UHT milk to the kefir in a small glass or porcelain jar (200ml jar) and filter the cultures in a sieve, but throw away the liquid after 24 hours. Taste the liquid drink on the second attempt, as it may already be ready to drink. It should certainly be ready after the third round. After 6 or 7 days, your kefir cultures should produce a fresh tasting, tart and slightly fizzy yoghurt drink.

If you keep the kefir fermenting in a sealed jar, be sure to 'BURP' THE JAR at least daily, to let the fermentation gas escape. The bigger the 'burp' the healthier your cultures are!

If you are milk / lactose intolerant, you should certainly find that kefir (similar to most home-made natural live yoghurts) should not cause any ill affects. They are consumed in large quantitties in Asia - and a huge majority of Asians are lactose intolerant! The longer you leave the Kefir cultures to ferment, the less lactose remains, as they feed off the lactose content. PLEASE NOTE: The Kefir grains thrive on new milk daily (even every 12 hours in hot weather). If you are lactose intolerant, carry on sieving / decanting the liquid daily and only leave the decanted liquid to further ferment / second fermentation, for a further 24/48 hours, without the grains. This will certainly remove almost all the lactose. Be aware, that after the third day of secondary fermentation, the kefir drink will now have circa 1% alcohol...

If you are vegan, and would prefer to grow your kefir on a diet of almond / oat or rice milk alternatives - the kefir will certainly adjust to this and thrive within three weeks or so! Please use organic milk alternatives, as the preservatives would otherwise kill the kefir cultures!

When you have your kefir cultures ready to their new environment and your new type of milk, just add your cultures in a ratio of 1 to 7 or 1 to 8 (culture to milk) and keep on replacing the milk daily.

Keep the fermenting kefir in a glass or porclain jar at room temperature, out of DIRECT sunlight, but not in total darkness. If you decide to keep it in the cellar or cupboard - please bring them out for at least half of the time! Do not fill the jar above 3/4 height as the cultures need space to move into - YES, the lovely rubbery formations (a little like cauliflower florettes) at the top and the bottom of the jar are the kefir cultures - they need to be evenly spread around, so stir or shake daily!

If you want a fast fermentation, then at 22c to 24c it will take about 12 hours.

At 15c-17c or so, the kefir will take about 24 to 36 hours and if you have plenty of ready made bottled kefir already in the fridge, you can continue the fermentation process in a cellar at 10c which will take around 4 days. The drained kefir will last for months in the fridge.

REMEMBER TO BURP THE KEFIR JAR! - When fermenting the kefir, if you enjoy your kefir drink very fizzy and gassy, then keep the jar closed, but remember to stir the cultures with a clean spoon or just twirl them around in the jar every 8 hours or so and 'burp' the jar by allowing the gas to escape. Even after straining 99% of the kefir cultures from the liquid and refrigerating the kefir drink, it will still continue to ferment (very slowly) in the fridge. Kefir has been known to last up to ONE YEAR (then tasting very sour, but still not going off!).

If you enjoy your kefir LESS FIZZY, continuously keep the jar slightly open during the fermentation process, as well as 'burping' it once every 8 hours, as above.

Keeping the fermented kefir drink (without the grains) in the fridge is a good option in summer, but in winter you can certainly continuously keep just one big jar at room temperature for a continuous supply - so just drain what you need from the jar and top-up with more milk on a daily basis. You may need to clean the jar once every 2 or 3 weeks.

The kefir cultures are live bacteria, so be gentle with them! Temperatures higher than 50c will kill them, washing up detergent will kill them and using aluminium or rusting sieves will kill them. Try to keep the kefir cultures growing on the same type of milk, and they will certainly thrive

In return for your gentle love and care, the cultures will make LOADS MORE KEFIR CULTURES, so be prepared to share them around, make lovely cottage cheese style spread with them and just add the kefir cultures to your salad - they taste lovely!

THE KEFIR IS VERY VERSATILE

It can be thick and tangy / almost yoghurt - like or, it can be more like a sweet cottage-cheese

Remember to drink the whey, as the whey has plenty of excellent nutrients!

 

Remember that if you are making regular FRESH YOGHURT at home, you could add 2 good sized table spoon of kefir liquid to your blend (instead of the Bio-Kult probiotic capsule). This might suit younger adult / teenagers better, especially if they find Kefir yoghurt too sour!

Question: What happens if I forget all about the grains?
Answer: The kefir cultures are very versatile and resilient. They will survive in the fridge for as long as a full year and survive at room temperature for many months! As you have not been feeding them, they will certainly be in shock and deeply traumatised. You must bathe them and nurse them back to health. First, remove all the slime and fungus carefully with a spoon and then with your (clean) hands. Please try not to break off the kefir grains. Then place them inside a sieve and pour some milk over them. Gently press out this milk through the sieve. Finally, leave for 24 hours in a small amount of milk (50ml is plenty). AND REPEAT THIS PROCESS at least 4 or 5 times over 4/5 days. If they were forgotten about for many months, be patient, as it might take you a full week or longer. Gas release from the jar (burping) is a great sign of healthy bacteria!

Question: Can I use any type of milk?
Answer: Yes. All types are fine, except lactose free milk. Milk alternatives are also fine (rice, oat and almond - best organic). If you must chop and change between cow's, goat's and other milk alternatives, please be patient with the kefir cultures, as each time you do this it will take them at least a week to re-adjust and acclimatise.

Question: How can I make kefir sweeter or nicer?
Answer: Feel free to add single cream to the blend about once a month or so. Remember that cream has very little lactose - so add more milk than cream when you do this! When the kefir is ready and after sieving out the grains, you are able to add some berries or a banana or some maple syrup (but NOT HONEY) in a blender etc.

Question: Can Kefir be dangerous?
Answer: YES. Like any bacteria, Kefir is susceptible to CROSS CONTAMINATION. As you will always consume the Kefir RAW, it is essential that you keep the kefir away from other sources of bacteria! Keep it away from chopping boards, meat, fish and organic waste bins and always wash your hands before handeling the kefir.

Question: How long does it take to "work"?
Answer: It depends on the individual. Most people report a cleansing / detoxifying effect within 3 to 5 days. If you experience frequent toilet visits - that is a good start! Clinically, it take the bacteria up to 4 or 5 weeks to really 'colonise' your gut - so be patient.

Question: When, how much and how often to drink?
Answer: There is no set/fixed amount. 30ml to 50ml a day on a daily basis is fine. After ten days or so, you may increase this to 100ml a day. The kefir is BEST DRUNK ON AN EMPTY STOMACH and AT ROOM TEMP - to allow maximum chance to 'colonise' your gut/colon.

Question: Can Kefir grains be eaten?
Answer: YES. Absolutely. They have almost no real taste, but are extremely nutritious. Add them to salads or just eat on their own.

Question: Can Kefir grow bigger?
Answer: YES. Kefir are wild living bacteria. If you replace their feeding milk daily, they should easily DOUBLE in size every three weeks.

Question: I am going on holiday, can I stop Kefir from growing?
Answer: YES. If you need a break from the kefir or even if you just want to 'rest' the kefir grains themselves (good yearly) then just place in a small sealed jar, cover the grains with milk and place in the fridge. At 4c the grains become dorment, but are not killed. This is the reason why you should drink the kefir drink at room temprature, while they are fully active!

 

THERE IS LOADS MORE INFORMATION ABOUT KEFIR, WITH A GREAT Q&A SECTION
ON DOM'S WEBSITE.

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