Here’s your Drive Thru Sue crash course in kefir making! Your basic recipe for it can be found earlier in this chapter on page xxx, but as I mentioned in the intro to that recipe… you’ll do yourself a favor by reading through this quick course before starting.
First, it will help you decide if you actually want to make kefir, and then it will help you understand what the heck you’re doing.
Don’t worry, though… kefir making is much easier than you probably thought it would be. Once you start, you’ll wonder how you ever lived without it! You’d think it would be Purist Serene teaching this course, right? I mean… she’s been the kefir-making sister for over 20 years. But no, it’s me… your not-so-puristy sister. I’m your teacher in this course because I want you to learn from the original kefir skeptic… a woman who said she’d never do it, as it seemed much too time-consuming and finicky.
So, if I can make it, you can, too. I watched Serene make kefir for over two decades, thinking it was “far too involved.” Then I finally decided to give it a try just three years ago. I realized I had judged kefir-making wrongly. It’s a cinch, and now I wish I had jumped on the kefir train sooner! My gut, bone density, immune system, metabolism, mood, hair, and nails… and taste buds all thank me for including it.
Aside from all the health benefits (which are plenteous, and we have entire chapters devoted to them in the big Wisdom book), kefir actually makes my food world simpler, less expensive, and reduces kitchen fatigue. I can rest easy knowing that at least one of my main meals or snacks most days will be a simple kefir-based one, and it will take me less than five minutes to throw together from start to finish. It will barely cost me anything, as plain old, non-organic milk (the kind I use) is not very expensive. You can make a smoothie, but I prefer using a spoon and actually eating my meals. For that reason, I love to do kefir bowls or puddings. Some days, I’ll pair kefir with my oatmeal to get my quota in. Some days, I’ll do both… kefir with oatmeal for breakfast and then a bowl or pudding for a snack.
This course is basically a series of FAQs. I want to cover the kefir questions that get asked in our social groups over and over. The first few FAQs will help you if you’re on the fence and have not yet decided to make kefir. The rest will help with the “how to make” details. Let’s get going!
Will I have to be tied to kefir day in and day out?
Short answer—nope. It’s a good question, though. What if you just don’t want to have kefir every day of the week? This was one of my original hesitancies about making it.
Well, there’s an easy solution. You can give your kefir fridge rests. Say you wake up and decide you don’t want to have kefir that day… perhaps you want to eat a blended cottage cheese bowl instead. Okay… instead of straining your kefir after its usual 24-hour ferment (you’ll learn how to do that soon), just transfer the jar of fermented grains and milk to the fridge and let it be for a day or two. This way, kefir doesn’t have to rule your life.
After its little fridge rest for a couple of days, take the jar out again… strain the kefir from the grains. Use this kefir (it’s good) and start another ferment again as usual.
Note—Fridge rests shouldn’t really go past two to three days in already fermented milk, or your kefir grains start getting really sleepy and won’t ferment as well for their next ferment. If you’ve rested your kefir for more than two days, the very cold and sleepy grains might take more than their usual 24 hours to ferment your milk; it might take them 36 hours, depending upon the health of your grains and the temperature of your home. But to be honest, I’ve gone longer, and they survived just fine!
After a day or two without kefir, I generally start to miss it and the gut benefits it brings me. I’m usually ready to go hardcore kefir again for a good while.
Will making kefir be time-consuming?
Nope! It’ll take you roughly three minutes per day.
What basics do I need to make kefir?
You can find some of our product recommendations HERE.
- Milk
- Kefir grains
- Pint or quart-sized jar
- Fine mesh sieve
- Optional bowl with pouring spout. You won’t need this if making a smoothie, as you can strain it directly into your blender jar.
I have milk sensitivities. Can I even drink kefir?
Typically, even those who are milk sensitive can drink milk kefir as the lactose in the milk gets a 99% conversion into lactic acid, which is not sensitivity-causing but rather helps heal sensitivities over time. However, when first starting on kefir, you may want to work your way up slowly. Perhaps start at just ½ cup daily (even less if very sensitive; some have to start with just a tablespoon) and gradually work up from there. If you find yourself still extremely sensitive to milk kefir, you can use nut milk to make it. The website culturedfoodlife.com has some good recipes using different types of nut milk.
I’ve tried kefir before, and I gained weight… what gives?
Trim Healthy Wisdom has a lot of info on how kefir helps you achieve your healthiest weight through far better insulin sensitivity, better gut and immune health, and lowered inflammation. The key is starting low and slow, and if you’re in a challenging pause season… use low-fat milk. Some people begin kefir-making and jump right into using two cups of the full-fat kefir in a smoothie each day. That may be just too much dense animal fuel for you if you’re not a Burner yet and have not restored your CLBM. That amount of kefir might also be taking the place of less dense foods, such as veggies, that are needed to scrub muscles and unclog fat cells.
If you’ve had issues in the past with kefir and weight gain, we suggest using just ¾–1 cup of the lean kind (1% is great) at a time, with a limit of 1½ cups per day. This limit is not for people who do well with kefir… only for those who have struggled with it in the past. You may wonder if you’ll receive enough benefits with a smaller amount of kefir. Under ideal conditions, the microbe count (CFU) for kefir is as high as 2.4 trillion per cup! But even if your conditions are imperfect, you’ll get several hundred billion just from one cup, so that’s still incredible.
Another thing to consider when adding kefir and seeing an uptick in weight may be the addition of lean body mass and bone mineral density. Kefir can aid in lean muscle mass, and that weighs something. Remember, your goal is to become a Burner… not just to get lighter on the scale.
Should I use low-fat or full-fat milk?
If you are in a challenging hormone situation and have lowered CLBM, we suggest using lean milk for your kefir as it is lower in density and, therefore, easier for your body to burn. Once fermented into kefir, lean milk (skim or 1%), which is an E in the THM plan, transforms into an FP since the milk sugars get eaten up during fermentation. This opens a whole new world of E Meal possibilities as you can add carbs to your smoothie or kefir bowl, or have it with oatmeal in the morning. If a lowered metabolism is not your issue, you can use whole milk if preferred. Fermenting it will transform it into an S from its original XO form.
Speaking of carbs… how many are in 1 cup… and what about protein content?
Donna, our good friend over at culturedfoodlife.com, has some great articles about the carb content of kefir, as it can trip many people up. Store-bought kefir has a shorter ferment time, and there are still some carbs left over. Home-fermented kefir generally leaves only about 1 carb in a cup, according to the scientists Donna has worked with. We consulted with our own scientist, who tested our home-fermented kefir and reported back with the same number, 1 net carb. Generally, there are about 8-10 grams of protein in a cup of kefir.
Must I use raw milk from a farm, or can I use store-bought milk?
This is totally up to you. Serene uses full-fat, raw, goat, and cow milk from her farm animals that get milked daily. This means her kefir creations are S due to the abundant fat in her milk, but Serene has amazing amounts of CLBM, so having the added density is perfect for her body. She usually makes her kefir smoothies as XOs as she adds carbs to the full-fat version in order to stay at a healthy weight (not get too skinny). If you do have farm animals or have access to raw, grass-fed milk, but you know you do better with less density in your meals at this time, you can still lean up your cow’s milk by skimming the cream off to make butter (or to use as cream) and using the lean milk for your kefir.
Unlike Serene, I buy regular pasteurized milk from the store… nope, not organic… just regular old milk. In fact, if purchasing from a store, organic is not the best choice when it comes to making kefir. Most organic milk is ultra-pasteurized, and depending on your grains, it can be harder to bring this ultra-pasteurized form back to life than the regular form of pasteurized milk. Some people find they end up with good kefir results even using ultra-pasteurized, so there is no hard law about this, though. I use 1% milk as I don’t have quite as much lean muscle as Serene, although I’ve come a long way in restoring my CLBM. Even using store-bought milk, I have received so many amazing benefits from kefir. The fermenting gets rid of toxins in the milk and brings this pasteurized form back to life, so it is teeming with gut-healing enzymes!
All I’m saying is… if store-bought milk is simpler for your life, then don’t think you have to milk cows or join a raw milk co-op to make healthy kefir. As a Drive Thru Sue, I am not as apt to do all sorts of “from scratchy” things as Serene does. But we can both receive the benefits of kefir in our own ways. And so can you… no matter which sister you relate to more.
Where can I find kefir grains?
You can find a friend who makes kefir and ask her for some grains to get started, or alternatively, buy your grains online. You can find the ones we use HERE. We’ve tried a lot of kefir grains over the years, and these are the best in the world in our minds.
Help! My kefir is separating.
Once you start making kefir, you may find that after a 24-hour ferment, there are large pockets of whey (transparent fluid) in the jar. Sometimes, the white-colored protein part of your kefir will rise to the top, and the whey will stay at the bottom in complete separation.
You might hear some people say this is not good… that your kefir is over-fermented. Actually, it is perfectly fine. Some of us even desire lots of separation. The visual indication of whey pockets means the lactose (milk sugar) has been fully converted to healthful lactic acid, which helps your muscle cells open up more effectively to insulin. If, on the other hand, your kefir does not separate like that… don’t worry too much about it. So long as it tastes good and sour, it will be fine.
Can I do a shorter ferment?
If your kefir shows obvious signs of separation and it is nice and sour at the 12-hour mark, then you can harvest it. Just don’t harvest much sooner than that. Some people prefer a less tart kefir taste-wise, so they harvest at 4–6 hours… but always remember… sour is power! For wisdom purposes, we want properly soured kefir. For this reason, we usually leave our ferments for the full 24 hours, whether they start separating before that time or not.
Help! My kefir is too thin!
Sometimes, using lean milk can result in kefir being on the thin side. Of course, this is no problem if using it in a smoothie or bowl, especially when adding thickening agents like baobab or protein powders. If you do prefer it thicker, though, there’s a wonderful little hack. Ferment your kefir well until there is good separation. As you pour your jar of fermented grains and milk into the sieve, you’ll notice the liquid whey coming out first and collecting at the bottom of the bowl. Normally, after that, you push the thick white protein part with a spoon, then stir it all back together. But for this hack, don’t do that straight away. Tip some of the liquid whey out first. You can pour it into a jar and save it up to use for the Insulin Sensitizing Mocktail. Now, after pushing the rest of the kefir through the sieve, your kefir will be thicker and even more protein-rich.
Note—if you purchase grains online, your first few ferments will be very thin and not soured properly. You’ll want to toss these first ferments. Things will begin to thicken up a bit more after about a week’s worth of ferments.
Can I double ferment?
You sure can, but you don’t have to. At one time, we thought kefir needed a double ferment for the milk sugars to be converted to lactic acid. Now, after consulting with a food scientist, we know it only takes one ferment of 24 hours using good kefir grains.
This typically leaves just one carb for a cup. A double ferment is not necessary, but if you prefer to do it, add a small amount of fruit, such as a couple of blueberries, and ferment for another 4–6 hours. Some people prefer a double ferment as it can boost health benefits even further, and it helps achieve a smoother flavor and less of what some folks describe as a “twangysour”. Although the sour flavor changes to a more sedate one, double-fermented kefir keeps all the requirements for insulin harmony. It is NOT to be confused with under-fermented or kefir made with weak grains with a milder sour taste. Second-fermented kefir is a mellow sour that many who are not so fond of excessive sourness find easier to take.
From Serene in the Trim Healthy Wisdom book—(S—Second fermenting is easy. Harvest your kefir like usual, then add a wee bit of fruit to your jar of harvested kefir. When I do it, I like to add a little lemon or orange peel. Or I cut up a strawberry or add a blueberry or two; it gives the microbes a little more food to multiply that much more, and also changes the twang sour into a smooth sour. It will also take on a hint of whatever you feed it! I also add baobab to my second ferment. Sometimes, you can even blend in the fruit, i.e., puree it for a stronger flavor burst after the second ferment.
Second fermenting has so many more benefits than just toning down the twang and boosting the gut-friendly microbes. It also increases the vitamin and mineral content. Your B vitamins, like B1, B12, and biotin, shoot through the roof, and calcium and magnesium are made way more bioavailable. If you stick a lid on top (not too tight so she will blow), you will get a champagne schwep and pop-like effervescence.)
Help! I have too many kefir grains.
After some weeks of making kefir, you’ll notice you have larger grains and more of them in your jar. The grains have babies while you’re not looking!!!! We (your sister authors) prefer keeping generous amounts of grains in our jars… some people say to only have one tablespoon or even one teaspoon of grains per cup of milk. Since we love a good, sour, well-fermented kefir, we allow our grains to get to a large handful (perhaps ¼ cup) for fermenting two cups of milk; that’s at least double what some others prefer.
But we get it… there is such a thing as too many grains. If you allow them to keep multiplying, your milk may get overly fermented, and the healthy microbes may diminish. Once you have more than about ¼ cup in your jar, you can blend up excess in the blender if making smoothies (they’re so healthy when eaten, they have anti-tumor properties) or add them to your kefir bowls, give them to pets, or just throw them out… which is sad, but some people do that, and we won’t judge—ha!
Can I take a proper kefir break?
Yes. Let’s say you have to leave your home for a while. If you’ll be gone for up to three weeks, you can leave the grains in some fresh milk in the fridge. Once you return home, you’ll want to strain this kefir and discard it. Start another fresh ferment. After the next ferment or two, your grains should be back to doing well again, as they’ll have fresh food to chow down on.
If you’ll be gone longer than three weeks, you’ll need to freeze your grains. You’ll do that by placing them in a small zip-lock bag with just a tiny bit of milk and placing them in your freezer. They’ll take a few fermentations to fully wake again and ferment properly… but they should be fine given some time and their favorite food… milk!
(Having suggested this three-week limit, some of us have pushed that guideline and left our kefir for up to a month, yet still managed to revive it… I won’t say which sister did this! Her name starts with P, though.)
