How to Make Kefir
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I make my kefir using some packets that I got at the health food store. It says that it is freeze-dried kefir starter. The brand is Yogourmet. You may be able to find this at a health food store. When I went in to see if they sold any kefir grains, they looked at me kind of funny and said all they had was this starter. Anyway, there are 6 packets in the box…enough to make 6 quarts of kefir. But what I do is make one quart with the powder, then when I get low, I just put a few tablespoons of kefir in the bottom of a quart jar and fill it with milk. Cap it and shake it up. Let it sit out for 12-24 hours or until it gets thick. Then it can go in the refrigerator. You can keep doing this until it doesn’t set up good anymore or you feel you just need to start over. Then you can use the powder packets to make another fresh batch.
I really do like this method of making kefir over the grains. It is kind of cumbersome to have to work with the grains. I am hoping to keep the kefir going like I do the buttermilk. The kefir is great to put in smoothies, in popsicles, and in any recipe that you would use yogurt. Yummy! It is even good to just drink if you add some milk, sweetener like honey and some vanilla flavoring. It kind of tastes like a vanilla shake! You can freeze cream in ice cube trays and blend the kefir, milk, honey, vanilla, and cream cubes to make a thicker shake. That is REALLY yummy!
If you are still not convinced that you should give this a try, here is a list of some of the benefits of drinking Kefir:
Here are some of the known kefir health benefits:
- Strongest natural remedy against any allergy
- Strongest natural antibiotic without side effects
- Treats liver disease
- Treats gallbladder, dissolves gall bladder stones
- Clears the body of salts, heavy metals, radionuclides, and alcoholic products
- Cleans the body of chemical antibiotics
- Treats kidney stones
- Good bacteria in kefir are able to fight off pathogenic microorganisms
- Lowers level of LDL cholesterol
- Cleans the gastrointestinal tract
- Irritable Bowel Syndrome
- Treats gastritis
- Treats pancreatitis
- Treats ulcers
- Prevents and treats colon cancer
- Improves digestion
- Improves the body functions
- Improves the human immune system
- Cures Candida
- Cures hypertension
- Stops growth of cancer cells
- Speeds up healing process
- Treats psoriasis
- Treats eczema
- Treats inflammatory diseases
- Reduces size of tumors
- Treats heart disease
- Reverses calcination of blood vessels
- Clears the blood vessels
- Boosts the bodies energy
- Natural “feel good” food
- Treats lung infections
- Normalizes metabolism thereby can be used as for weight loss
- Cures acne
- Has anti-oxidants and anti-aging properties
- Nourishes hair
- Treats the gum disease parodontosis
- Lessens effects of medicines
- Replenishes body of good bacteria after antibiotic
- Balances the microflora of the body’s digestive system
- Regulates blood pressure
- Lowers blood sugar
- Lowers blood lipid levels or cholesterol and fatty acids
- Treats diarrhea
- Treats constipation
- Promotes bowel movement
- Anti-stress properties
- Treats sleeping disorders
- Treats depression
- Treats attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
- Improves the brains neuro functions like reflexes, memory retention, attention, the five senses
- Reduces flatulence
- Lactic acid fermentation enhances the digestibility of milk based foods. People who cannot otherwise digest milk, can enjoy the vital calcium rich Kefir.
- Treats yeast infection
- Eliminates vaginal odors
- Cures wrinkles
- Treats arthritis
- Treats colitis
- Treats gout
- Cures migranes
- Treats rheumatism
- Treats other stomach disorders
- Detoxifies the body
- Improves protein quality of milk, and enhances absorption and digestion
- Good bacteria manufacture B vitamins such as B3, B6 and folic acid.
- Aids in treating tuberculosis
- Treats stomach cramps
- Treats chronic intestine infections
- Treats liver infections
- Treats asthma
- Treats bronchitis
- Treats sclerosis
- Treats anemia
- Treats hepatitis
- Healing effects on catarrh, digestive nodes, astral nodes, bilious complaints
- Treats leaky gut syndrome
- Prevents metastasis
- Cures bad morning breath
So….why not give it a try!
So once you start running low on kefir, do you just add a few TBSP of kefir powder to what’s left of your kefir? Or are you starting with a clean empty quart jar each time? I wanted to be certain since I’m new to kefir and would love to try this. I know you said cam do this several times as long as it’s setting properly?
Now, what I do is once my jar of Kefir gets kind of low, I make sure I have at least a few tablespoons of kefir left. I put that in the bottom of a clean jar and fill with milk, shake it up, then leave out to set up for 24-48 hours. You can continue to do this every time until you notice that the milk does not set up good any more. At that time, then you can start a brand new batch with the powder starter. Does that make sense?
When you make your second batch of kefir, do you heat the milk before adding the kefir starter from your first batch? I was thinking yes, but wasn’t sure from the way it was written.
Hi Twila, No I do not heat it at all the second time. I just put a few tablespoons of kefir in the quart jar, add milk, cap and shake, then let sit on the counter for 12-24 hours until it thickens. I do this same thing with buttermilk to make multiple batches of buttermilk. Have fun making kefir!
Thanks for your speedy reply! I’m almost through with my first batch and wanted to try this. Sounds very simple! And I love your low carb gluten free wrap recipe. I eat them a couple times a week.
I’m so glad you like the gluten-free wrap recipe. I love it too…makes it so easy to keep those carbs down on my S meals! Have a great weekend!
Do you know where you can find the freeze dried kefir? I can only find it in liquid form at the local grocery stores. Thanks
Hi Amy, I found mine at our local health food store. You can also find it online if you can’t find it locally. Good luck!
Hi! Thanks for the encouragement about Kefir. I am going to try it, I think my family will really benefit from it! Plus the packet seems way less intimidating than the whole grains thing. Thanks, Sheri!
Hi Sunny, That’s what I thought too..the packets seemed much more doable for me! I hope your family enjoys it! My kids love it!