Raw Milk Kefir
Raw kefir is a tart, fermented milk drink that can be used for smoothies, sauces, baking, salad dressings, or enjoyed by itself to give you a healthy dose of probiotics. It's a cross between yogurt and milk and is loaded with healthy probiotics.
Equipment
- 2 mason jars with lids (at least big enough to hold a few cups of raw milk)
- Strainer (preferably plastic, but I use metal)
- Non-reactive bowl
Ingredients
- 1-2 tsp Kefir grains (I sell my extras here if you want to buy some from me!) if just starting out, you can use 1 tsp and the grains will eventually multiply
- 1 cup-1/2 gallon raw milk (see explanation below)
Instructions
- Take a clean glass jar and add your kefir grains.
- Pour desired raw milk into the jar with your kefir grains.
- Loosely fit lid on your jar and let it sit at room temperature for about 10-36 hours. The timing will depend on how warm your house is, how established your kefir grains are, and how sour and thick you like your raw kefir.
- Every once in a while you can swirl the raw milk and kefir grains. I usually just do this if I pass by and think about it. This also helps me to see how thick it's getting.
- Strain your kefir and kefir grains through your strainer into a glass or ceramic bowl.
- Use a spoon or clean fingers to get all the milk residue off the grains (as much as possible) and then transfer the grains to a clean mason jar. Set that aside for now.
- Take your bowl of raw kefir and pour it into a mason jar. I like to use the same jar that I fermented the kefir in.
- Pour new raw milk into the jar with your kefir grains and repeat the process.
Notes
How much milk to use
This is a huge range because it depends on how established your grains are, how many grains you have, and how much raw kefir you want to drink.- If you just received your grains and they were shipped to you, the stress of shipping has made them go dormant. They will liven up again after a few rounds. To start out, just use about 1-2 cups of milk for the first few rounds.
- If you have a lot of kefir grains and they're well-established, go ahead and make up to a half gallon (or more) of raw kefir!
- If you're like me, and you're the only one in your household who drinks raw milk kefir, then you'll want to only make what you can drink within a few days. Because of this, I only make about 1-2 cups per day.
how to store raw kefir
Room temperature raw kefir storage
Store completed raw kefir at room temperature for up to 2 days.refrigerator storage (recommended)
Completed raw kefir can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks.freezer storage
Raw kefir can be stored in the freezer for up to 2 months.Kefir grain storage
Store your kefir grains (if not currently culturing any raw milk) in the refrigerator with some milk. Note that this may cause your grains to go dormant again, but nothing a couple of batches can't fix.homemade raw kefir Tips
- When all else fails, just let it ferment longer. Raw kefir is very low maintenance - it doesn't really mold or go bad as easily as other fermented foods. If it's not doing what you want, for example, not thickening, just let it sit out longer.
- Use fresh, raw milk for best results.
- Never use ultra-pasturized milk for milk kefir. It just wont work since there isn't enough bacteria in ultra-pasturized milk.
- Use clean jars, strainers, hands, spoons and anything else you're using to make your raw kefir.
- Once you start seing your grains multiply, you can give any excess (anything more than about 2 tsp) to friends, blend into smoothies, or just compost them.
- If your kefir sits out long enough the yellow whey will separate from the milk. Just mix it up, strain, and use as normal.
- If you have other ferments on your counter, you'll need to separate them by about 4 feet for best results for each ferment.
