Kefir Recipe - Champoeg Creamery

The Ultimate Guide to Creating the
Best Kefir
Champoeg Creamery
Kefir,afermentedmilkdrink,isthebestandmostpotentsourceofprobioticsoutthere.It’s
easytomakeandisessentialtohealingyourgutandbuildingastrongimmunesystemtofight
disease.
Drinkkefireveryday–sinceittastessostrong,youmightneedtomixitwithhoneyand
cinnamon,ormakeatastyberrysmoothie!Whateverittakestogetitdown!Startwith1cup
everydayandworkyourwayuptodrinkingmore.Nowadays,Idrinkawholequartofkefira
day(AndIhaven’tbeensickinyears!)!
Kefir Recipe
Ingredients
• WholeMilk
• TraditionalKefirGrains(apowderedstartermightmeanthekefirtakesalittle
bitlongertoferment,seetroubleshootingtipsbelow)
Steps
• Fillaglassjarwithmilkandthekefirgrains.Coverthejarlooselywithalid.
• Letthejarsitundisturbedatroomtemperature,outofdirectsunlight,for2436hours.Itwillthickenslightly.
• Sincethekefirgrainisstillinthejarofkefir,pourthewholebatchthrougha
colanderorremovethegrainswithaspoontosaveforanotherbatch.
• Youwillnoticethegrainswillgrowasthebacteriamultiplysoyoucancutup
thegrainandgivesometofriends!(Note,ifusingapowderedstarter,youwill
havetostrainthekefirthroughacolanderandsavethepowderedbitsforthe
nextbatch,theywon’tgrowbigenoughtoseparateformanyweeks)
• Putthejarofkefirinthefridgetostopfermentationanddrinkwithinacouple
weeks.Thekefirgrainscanbestoredinajarinthefridge,theywilllast
indefinitelysodon’tthrowthemout!!
Kefir Troubleshooting
Itseparatesintosolidwhitewithayellowishliquidlayer
Thiscanhappenforacoupleofreasonsbutitmeansyourkefirisprobably
fermentingtooquickly.Atroomtemperaturethekefirwillformandthickenupin
about12-24hours,butifitthickensin3-6hoursitstartstoseparateintothe‘curds
andwhey’.Thewhey,theyellowliquid,canjustbeintegratedbackintothekefirby
shakingthejarandmixingitalltogether.Itmaytasteprettystrongbutit’stotally
edible.
Topreventthisfromhappening:makesureyou’refermentingatroomtemp.Ifit’s
toohotit’llthickenupreallyquickly.Also,makesureyou’reusingjustabout1/4to
1/3cupofkefirgrainsto1/2gallonorquartofmilk.Whenyougetmorethan1/2
cupofgrainsitcanfermentveryquickly.Usecleanscissorstocutdownthegrain.
It’sistoorunnyandliquidyandtakestoolongtoferment
You’recountertoptempistoocooloryou’renotusingenoughkefirgrains.Itcanbe
toughtofermentkefirduringthewinterwhenthehousestaysprettycool.Itcan
takeforevertothickenupandjuststaystooliquidy.Whileit’sfinetodrink,it’s
betterwhenitthickensupabit.
Topreventthisfromhappening:Wrapaheatingpadaroundyourjarofkefirorset
thejarinabowlorthesinkfilledwithwarmwater.Ifyourkefirgrainissmallerthan
1/4cup,startwithonequartofmilk.
Itformstoofast,inonlyafewhours,andtastestoostrong
Seeabove:Likethefirstproblem,thekefirisfermentingtooquicklyeitherbecause
it’stoowarmorthekefirgrainistoolarge.
Topreventthisfromhappening:makesureyou’refermentingatroomtemp.Ifit’s
toohotit’llthickenupreallyquickly.Also,makesureyou’reusingjustabout1/4to
1/3cupofkefirgrainsto1/2gallonorquartofmilk.Whenyougetmorethan1/2
cupofgrainsitcanfermentveryquickly.Usecleanscissorstocutdownthegrain.
Itlooksdifferenteverytimeitferments
Totallynormal!!Sometimesmykefirisalittlechunkierthanusual.Sometimesit’s
superliquidy.Sometimesit’sfizzyandeffervescentandbubblesonmytongue.
Sometimesit’salmostalittlealcoholic-tasting.Allnormalpartsofartisankefir
making!
Theconsistencyofyourkefirdependsonthetemperatureofyourhouse,thesizeof
thegrainandanumberofothervariablesthataffectmicrobialgrowth.Tobemore
consistent,trysettingthejarinacoolerandfermentingittokeepthetemperature
moreconstant
Itsmellslikeyeast
Again,totallynormal.Thekefirgrainisasymbioticrelationshipofbacteriaandyeast,
meaningit’samassofmicroscopicorganismslivinghappilytogether.They’reall
friends,theyfeedoffeachotherandhavedifferentactionsinthisrelationshipthan
theywouldindividually.Thesedifferentmicrobesproducedifferentsmellswhile
theyarefermentingandifonebatchhasabitmoreyeastinitthananother,itwill
smelldifferently.Thiswillchangedependentontemperatureandsizeofthegrain,as
well.
Other FAQs
CanIbuykefirfromthestore?
Sure,youcanoftenfindkefirinthehealthfoodssectionatthegrocerystore,butyou
shouldstillalwaysmakeyourown.Iwon’trecommendanybrands,andhere’swhyI
stayawayfromstore-bought:
• Additives:lotsofstore-boughtkefirisflavored,sothatmeanstonsofextra
sugarandjunkthatnormallywouldn’tbethere.Youcanflavoryour
homemadekefirwithfruitandhoneysothenyou’llknowexactlywhatgoes
intoit.
• Notasmanyprobiotics:whenyoumakeitathome,youcanfermentitfor
howeverlongyouwant.I’vetriedstore-boughtanditjustdoesn’ttastethe
same!It’snotassouroryeastyashomemadesoIknowthere’snotasmany
beneficialmicrobes.Also,themanufacturersusuallyjustaddafewstrainsof
microbes,insteadofthehundredsofspeciesfoundinatraditionalkefirgrain
youuseathome.
CanIaddanythingtoittomakeittastebetter?
Totally.Tryaddingtheseflavorstohelpwiththesourtasteofkefir:
• Honey&Spices:mixinsomepumpkinpiespiceorcinnamonwithalittle
honey
• PureedFruit:trybananasorberriesandstiritintoaglassofkefir.
• Smoothie:usekefirasabaseforasmoothiewithhoneyandberries.
WheredoIfindaheritagekefirgrain?
Ifyouknowanyfriendswhomakekefir,theywillhaveextragrainsatsomepoint
sincegrainsgrowandmultiply.Otherwise,headouttoourfarmstoretopurchaseor
theKefirLady.
ShouldIuseskimorwholemilkforthekefir?
Ifyouarebuyingmilkfromthestore,usewholemilk.Thedairyfatisactuallyvery
goodforyouandwillhelpyoudigestfat-solublevitaminsfoundindairy.
ShouldIuseraworpasteurizedmilktomakekefir?
Youcanuseeither!Ofcourse,I’mluckytotoproducerawmilkonmyfarmandI
haveanunlimitedsupply.Rawmilkdoesmakebetterkefir,though,becauseit
alreadyhasnaturalprobioticsinit,sodefinitelyuserawmilkifyoucangetyour
handsonit.However,store-boughtworksaswell.
I’vekeptmygraininthebackofthefridgeformonths/years,isitstillgoodtouse?
Yes,itshouldbefineifitwasstoredinasealedcontainer.Youmayneedtomakea
fewbatchesforittorevivebacktoitsoriginalstate.Sincethemicrobesingrainseat
themilkfortheirfood,itmaytakethemawhiletogrowagain.
IforgotthatIhadkefirsittingonthecounterfermentingwiththegrainsinitfora
coupledays,doIneedtothrowoutthegrains?
No,youdon’teverneedtothrowawaythegrains(unlesstheyturnweirdcolorsor
getmoldy,whichisrare).Ifthegrainshavefermentedinmilkforseveraldays,just
putthegrainsinacolanderorstrainerandrinsethemoffwithalittlewatersowhen
youusethemforthenextbatchtheydon’tturnthemilksuperstrongtasting.
ShouldIrinseoffmykefirgrainsinwater?
No,youshouldnotmakeahabitofthis,howeverIwilldoitifmykefirstartstasting
superstrongorincrediblyyeasty(Ionlydothiseveryseveralweeks,washingyour
kefirtoooftenwilldilutetheprobiotics).
HowdoIkeepakefirgrainforlong-termstorage?
Youcanstoreakefirgraininasmalljarorcontainerformonths.Justaddinalittle
milktothejarasfoodforthemicrobes.Themicrobesinthegrainsarestillalive,but
theyjustaren’tactivelygrowing.Whenyoupullthemoutofthefridgetomakekefir,
youmayneedtomakeafewbatchesforthegrainstorevivebacktotheiroriginal
strength.Theycanstoreformonthsoryearsinthefridge.
HowmuchgrainsshouldIusetofermenta½gallonofmilk?Aquartofmilk?
Agoodgeneralruleofthumbistousetablespoontoa¼cupofgrainsper½gallon
milk.Aquartofmilkwouldonlyrequireaboutatablespoon,butifyouusemoreit
willjustfermentthemilkalittlefasterandwilltastealittlestronger.Asthekefir
graingrowstofillabout½cup,cutthekefirgrainswithcleanscissorsorpullthem
apartandgiveawaytheextra.
Mykefirgrainkeepsgrowingbigger,whatdoIdowiththem?
Asthegrainsgrowlargerthanabout½cup,youcancutthemwithscissorsorpull
themaparttogiveawaytofriendsortossintothecompost.
CanIuseothernon-dairymilkstomakekefir?
Yes,tryusingcoconutmilkfirst,itseemstohavethemostsuccesswithmakingkefir.
However,everyfewbatchesyouwillneedtoputyourkefirgrainsinrealdairyand
fermentsomedairykefir.Themicrobesinkefirpreferthesugarsfoundindairysoto
keepthemalive,theyneedtoeatmilk.
About Champoeg Creamery
Charlotte Smith
Are you struggling to find the products that will help you and your family live your best
life possible? Maybe acid reflux or regular upset tummies, eczema, auto-immune
disease are holding you back in life.
So many medical doctors are FINALLY recommending their
patients go find some bone broth and raw milk full of
enzymes and probiotics and grass fed meats to heal what
their meds are no longer able to help.
I have people sent to me regularly, finally, after all these
years, from area hospitals where the doc said you need to
heal your gut for you to start feeling better.
I have everything you need in our farm store to do that.
Ihelpputpeoplewhoarestrugglingwithhealthgetintouchwithfood
thathealstheirbody+mind.
About 10 years ago I had a health crisis in my family — doctors could not help so when
I started researching I was led to the idea of “food as medicine” and evidence that
changing our diet would help.
After finding some traditionally raised foods my kids were completely healed and now,
moving forward — none of us has been ill or visited a doctor for any sort of infection
since – in 10 years!
After losing our source of traditional foods several times as farmers went out of
business, I began my own farm in 2009 and here we are today. Serving thousands of
people’s health needs over the years, we now hear hundreds of health recovery stories
from our customers, and I’d love for you to be one of our success stories, too.
When you invest in our products, you are also
embracing social change.
We help support small farmers across America so they can be sustainable, stay in
business, and help people through expressing their unique and important role in this
world.
Days you will find me sorting cattle from the back of my horse, on stage sharing health
recovery stories at Weston A. Price and Mother Earth News Conferences, or trying to
squeeze in a night away with my brilliant husband.
If you want to eat food that sustains your good health, improves your current
state, and is the best choice for your family, visit
www.champoegcreamery.com/farm-store and check out our store hours. I’d love to
meet you in our farm store!
*Note: our milk is in high demand! Get immediate access by asking for Charlotte and
using the secret code “will trade for Oregon Pinot.”