I didn't think of that Mike, maybe the kim-chee at the Asian grocery isn't so bad then; it certainly didn't taste sweet, although it could have been pasteurised. The idea of adding shrimp is a great idea, I assume you mean those small dried shrimp?

I just made kefir from almond milk and it came out very nice!

I like kefir best in homemade salad dressing. I make a ranch-type dressing by mixing the kefir in sour cream, spices salt. It is wonderful and I especially enjoy it with cucumbers and onions. My family enjoys my salad dressing too without even asking what's in it...I think they're too scared. It also goes well in smoothies. I prefer the raw kefir because it has a denser bacteria level. Raw kefir is actually called Qephor ( something like that ). Which reminds me. We're out of Qephor.

I've also began eating<<<yuck>>> saurekraut..

Why yuck? Fresh is delicious, but the cooked one is awful. Are you making your own?

necro-bumping the last 6-26-2011 post...

I found some Milk Kefir Starter Cultures on amazon, and they also sell a Kefir Fermenter (0.6l/20oz) - do I need that?

I may go with culturesforhealth - they have a Milk Kefir Starter Kit.

No, you don't need a special jar. Find a couple of quart jars with good lids. Canning jars are perfect, if you have any. If you don't, thrift stores often do. Or beg empty pasta sauce jars from your neighbours who use that sort of product :lol: Use one jar for fermenting (I just read through the thread; there are good instructions fairly early on in the discussion), and use the other one for storing the final product. You might want a third or fourth jar so that you can clean them periodically.

I'm in Canada; I use Yogourmet kefir starter. (for the record, I also use Yogourmet's probiotic yogourt starter :thup: )

I ferment one liter (= 1 quart) at a time with no fancy equipment. In fact, I ferment my kefir right in the carton :idea:

I put an unopened carton of milk into a tall pot of warm (not super hot or boiling) water to bring it up to room temperature or slightly warmer. I pour out a small amount of the warmed milk into a clean cup, then add one packet of kefir starter powder. Mix well until the powder is completely dissolved. Then pour back into the carton of milk and stir - or shake! - well to blend. Loosely close the carton (you want to allow carbon dioxide gas to escape) then put it aside somewhere free from cold drafts for ~ 24 hours. Room temperature is fine (23ºC) .. if your kitchen is coolish, that's okay . it'll just take longer to ferment.

I use ~ 1/4 cup of this kefir to make another batch, following the same steps above. I usually get 3 or 4 subsequent batches before I need to use another pouch of powdered starter.

This has been economically convenient for many years, but I'm seriously looking into acquiring some real kefir "grains". Meanwhile ... the powdered starter works well, and yields a delicious kefir product.

Hint .. try using goat milk for a real taste treat!!! :yum:

That looks great - thanks! Do you think it will ship ok in high heat? We're already getting up to near 38.8C / 100F around mail delivery time - so it'll be a tad higher than that in the truck / mailbox.

edit: I emailed them and asked.


:)

Good idea :thup:. I'm not sure of the answer myself .. The individual packets are lined with foil, but the box has this statement "refrigeration is recommended". The health food store where I buy it also keeps it in the fridge.

They said it should be ok.

edit: ordered some from amazon!

Found this how to make Kefir video.

:)

Good video. I use only straight sided jars -- way easier to clean if you don't have a dishwasher machine.

Might be hard to find the milk she recommends and expensive. I use "Promised Land" and it works fine. You can even add some Half 'n Half for a richer, creamer result. "Kafier"

I found some goat milk to try first. Interestingly, she talks about double fermenting at around 4:08. When I get some cultures I'll have to try that.

Kefir is good and I made it for about 6 months from grains, very good grains. I used whole A2 milk, and it came out creamy, tangy and very rich. I stopped when I realized my gut was very healthy, and I was producing more kefir than I could consume. Given the amount of carbs and trying to stay in ketosis, I gave the grains to a friend and retired my kefir making efforts. If I ever have a reason to require antibiotics in the future, I would not hesitate to make kefir to rebalance my gut microbiome. It's far more fertile in good bacteria than anything store bought, especially yogurt. Easy to make, almost too easy!