Making Kefir (part 1 of 3)

Kefir is easy to make at home. You don't need to keep it warm like you do yogurt so no special equipment is required, just a glass quart jar and some bowls and strainers.

The first step is to get some kefir "grains." These tiny white-ish transparent capsules are cultures of live bacteria and yeasts that ferment milk into the kefir we eat and drink.

I bought my grains from Donna Schwenk, and she and her team got me through the nervous first stages of being sure I was doing everything wrong. (I've since learned it's hard to screw this up.)

The grains reproduce as they enjoy the sugars in the milk. With each batch you get more grains.

If you decide you want to embark on the homemade kefir journey and are coming to my office, give me a couple of days notice and I will bring you kefir grains. Otherwise the extra ones end up on my compost (I'm sure the soil loves the infusion of beneficial yeasts and bacteria). Some people eat the extra grains, but I feel that would be too much for my system.

The picture above right shows the grains I've removed from a fermented batch of kefir and am preparing to put in a jar to start a new batch.

Some people's grains grow like little cauliflowers. Mine tend to be more like tapioca pudding. I do bash them a bit when I'm straining them out of the kefir. But they don't seem to mind. As I say, they reproduce rapidly.

I make kefir using whole organic milk from grass-fed cows. Kefir grains feed on the sugars in the milk. While you can make kefir from non-dairy milks, you need to add some sweetener to feed the grains. I've not done this, but you can get more info on Donna Schwenk's website or from her book, Cultured Food for Health, which I borrowed from our library and highly recommend.

To make kefir, put the grains in a clean quart jar. Pour in about 3 cups of milk — leaving room at the top for expansion while it ferments — cover and leave on the counter, out of direct sunlight — for 24-48 hours.

Kefir ready to be strained.

When it's separated into curds and whey, strain out the kefir grains. The liquid that is left is the kefir, ready to eat or drink. (More on that tomorrow.) Put the grains into a clean jar, pour in milk and repeat.