Kefir is similar to yogurt., but has 12 probiotics, whereas yogurt only has 3. It has a drinkable, thick, consistency. If you don't like the taste of plain kefir, you can make a smoothie with it. I buy Lifeway kefir. I don't like buying the flavored kind because it has extra sugar . i useplain kefir, frozen fruit ,2 pasteurized eggs, vanilla, ginger, and 5 sugar cubes(because i ran out of stevia)
I know this thread is dating back quite a bit 2015 but I’ve read through most of the posts with interest @Terry Page I’ve only recently started making kefir from scratch after I was given a few fresh kefir grains to try . After making my first batch I wasn’t impressed it was suppose to taste like plain yoghurt but more like a thick drink However the lady who gave me the grains was using fresh un pasteurized full cream milk and my first try tasted more like mature cheese, than drinking yoghurt ...... so I washed the grains in fresh filtered water My friends who make / consume it everyday ..... were horrified I’d washed it in water and said it won’t work now .....you are better off throwing the fresh grains out Well I put them in a glass jar with fresh milk and put them in the freezer while I was away in Queensland I decided I’d give it a try again after thawing the grains and it worked well, no nasty taste and nice thick kefir I now prefer doing a second ferment using fruit to give it a nice tang and it’s much sweeter even plain by doing the second ferment I became interested in it as I useally take a probiotic regularly to prevent diverticulosis It takes me about 5 minuites to put the fermented kefir into a jar tip the grains back in the jar and top,up,with milk each morning to are the next lot ready for the next day or two
I have recently been thinking about trying the Kifer. Are any of you still using it? Does it do all they say it will?
I haven’t made any for a while. I seem to go in phases where I will crave it, and then I make it for a while, and then it is like I have had enough and stop making it. Strangely, I was just thinking about making some the other night. After making it with the little packets, and then with the kefir grains, I have found that. (For me) the packets work best. For someone who consistently makes it, then the grains would probably be the best because they do have more of the probiotics strains. What I use is the Yogourmet kefir packet. Once you make the first batch, you can use some of that for a starter for more batches, and you can make about 4 batches and then it seems to get some unwanted yeast or bacteria in there, and the taste gets wonky. I tried that first, just to see how I would like making it, and I did; so then I bought some grains on ebay and started making kefir that way. It works fine, but you have to keep using the grains and making more, and for my intermittent use of kefir, it is more of a bother ; so I went back to using the starter. If you have never tried kefir, a good way to start is to buy some of the kefir at the grocery and try that. I first tried the Lifeway (I think a berry flavor), and then a plain one. After I decided that it was something that I would like, I bought the Yogourmet kit and started making my own, and then making a fresh smoothie drink using fresh berries. If you like buttermilk, or yogurt, you will probably like kefir, too, and it is much simpler to make than yogurt.
There are a lot of myths about kefir grains @Kate Ellery I have washed them in tap and water and used a metal sieve, which is another no no, contact with metal is supposed to kill them. I find they respond very much to the kind of milk you use, even down to where the milk comes from. I find using them here in Russia they produce a sweeter thicker liquid. As you say the grains also freeze well and come back to life after a couple of days in my experience, they work if you dry them as well. There is as much commercial kefir sold here as milk, and it's roughly the same price about 60 cents a litre. It tastes good but of course there are a lot less strains than the home made as @Yvonne Smith mentioned, I think it's 50 for the home made against 10 for the commercial. I find if I drink too much I become constipated, so I only have it a couple of times a week ....................Kefir cheese is good as well
@Terry Page kefir ready made is quite expensive here I was going to try some commercial made unitl I looked at it in the shops it’s $14 for a 1 ltr bottle I have tried it but the to me the taste is different to the homemade like you said it responds to the milk you are using . I believe from what I’ve read by doing the second ferment it increases the vitamins especially the vitamin b @Shirley Martin I personally like it now I’ve got it tasting like it’s suppose to the jury is still out at this stage there is heaps of sites out there you can look up I personally like this site I have two of her books as well https://www.culturedfoodlife.com/the-trilogy/kefir/how-to-make-kefir/
Thanks, Kate. I'll look at that. I am eating plain whole Greek yogurt lately. I eat a cupful of it each day. I put a packet of sweetener and a dollop of vanilla flavoring in it. It's soooo good. I wonder if kafir would taste like Greek yogurt?
While the taste is somewhat similar, the texture is very different, Shirley. I love Greek yogurt, and how much thicker it is than plain regular yogurt. Kefir is much thinner, more like a rich buttermilk, and you drink it rather than eat it. It is fine to use in a smoothie, and would be fine to have it just like you do your yogurt, except that it would be drinkable and not spoonable. Try getting a quart of the commercial kefir and see how you like that. It is more expensive than regular milk, but you can usually find it for about $2-$3 per quart. (I am horrified at the $14 per liter price that @Kate Ellery says it costs in Australia !) Since you only need to try one quart to see how well you like it, that is not a bad investment, and then when you decide to try making some, you will know what to expect it to taste like. I bought a gallon of milk when I went to the grocery store this afternoon, and I have some of the starter packets left, so I am going to start a quart today.
@Shirley Martin it tends to taste more on the sour side ,but I do what’s known as a second ferment which I add a single slice of orange to and leave it for up,to an extra 4 hours in the cupboard ,I then take the orange out and put the kefir in the fridge it’s delicious and tends to have a slight fizz to it when it’s cold Kefir is not made in the fridge you make it up,and leave it in a dark cupboard for 24 hours then if using grains you strain than out of the milk and the processs starts all,over agin I use about a table spoon of grains to two cups of milk . For the second ferment you can use any fruit or even garlic or herbs to,make a savoury dish after straining kefir you have made over the 24 hour time ...the milk you stain off is put into a loose fitting top jar add your fruit put in cupboard for up,to 4 hours ...take out fruit OR blend all together ...put in fridge to cool you will end up,with a nice thick milky type drink ...
Isn’t it funny how a thread can sit with no further replies for ages then all of a sudden a member who’s interested in the same subject comes along and it creates more communication between members. I’ve always been a believer of the fact no matter how much we read online we can still learn from one another everyday. I’ve read up,a lot about kefir before starting to make it mainly from the site I posted the link for ..but most of all my best hints came from Aussie long term dear friends ( whom I’ve met ) from another forum
Reminded me of very similar words: Definition of kefir : a beverage of fermented cow's milk kaffir: A perfect description used by both blacks and whites in South Africa, describing people with certain mannerisms and characteristics that are very biologically close to that of a monkey and have very minimal intellect whilst being very cunning. kafir: a grain sorghum with stout, short-jointed, somewhat juicy stalks, large leaves, and erect heads. kafir: Arabic for "Infidel", not "Christian" or "Jew" or "Hindu" or any specific group of people. Typically a derogatory term used to refer to a non-believer who has malevolent intentions towards Islam and Muslims.
@Frank Sanoica Kefir the drink can also be made from goat, sheep or cows milk or non animal milks such as coconut or soy
I bought a bottle of Kifer yesterday. They had several different flavors including blueberry. They all had a lot of carbs and I am eating low carb. I bought the plain, no sugar one. It has 110 calories in one cup and 12 carbs. I have organic blueberries that I picked from my blueberry bushes. If I eat ½ cup with a pack of sweetener and a few blueberries, it would have about 55 - 75 calories and maybe 7 or 8 carbs. That should be a healthy food choice. It cost $3.39 for a quart. I doubt if I can make it much cheaper than that.