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Homemade Milk Kefir

Have you ever thought about making your own milk kefir at home? It can be done, and with just two ingredients! Check out the full tutorial on how to make your very own cultured dairy at home.
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Course: Beverage, Breakfast
Keyword: Cultured Dairy, Cultured Food, Fermented Dairy, Fermented Foods, Make Your Own, probiotic, Traditional Food
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Fermenting Time: 2 days
Total Time: 2 days 5 minutes
Servings: 2
Calories: 104kcal
Author: Little Home in the Making

Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp. Active Milk Kefir Grains
  • 2 cups Whole Milk or goats milk

Instructions

  • Place your active kefir grains in a clean, pint-sized glass jar.
  • Add 2 cups of whole or goats milk and stir with a wooden or plastic spoon.
  • Cover your jar with either a lid, or a doubled-piece of cheesecloth secured with a rubber band.
  • Let the milk ferment on your counter, in a slightly warm spot, for 12-48 hours. The kefir is ready when pockets of whey start to appear, and the milk has thickened considerably.
  • Set a fine sieve over a small glass bowl or measuring cup. Pour the fermented milk kefir into the strainer and use a plastic or wooden spoon to push the kefir through the strainer, leaving the grains behind.
  • Retain the grains for your next batch of milk kefir.
  • Pour the finished milk kefir into a new clean glass jar and top with a plastic lid. You may store the milk kefir in the refrigerator for later use, or you may proceed with a second fermentation.
  • For a second fermentation, place the covered milk kefir in a warm spot on your counter for another 12-24 hours. Secondary fermentation further reduces the milk sugars, and may help those who are slightly sensitive to dairy or lactose (although not for those who have allergies or intolerances). A secondary fermentation helps mellow the flavor as well.
  • If you opt for a second fermentation, store your milk kefir in the fridge after the second fermentation.

Notes

Homemade milk kefir can be stored at least as long as the milk that was used in the fermentation process. I find my milk kefir lasts a very long time, and I don't recall a batch that really went bad yet according to the "smell test", but you must use your own discretion. For the safest option possible, be sure to drink the milk kefir by the expiration date of the milk you used. And of course, if anything seems off to you, don't drink it!
Calorie information is an estimate of the calorie total of whole milk kefir after the fermentation process has eaten up some of the sugars. This is an estimate only, and I source my information from Cultured Food Life. See the post here. 

Nutrition

Calories: 104kcal