Re: curds and whey question

[Guest guest]

Hi . I get curds and whey if my grains are kefiring too quickly.

For me the best way to prevent curds and whey is to be certain the ratio is

about 1 TBS grains to 1 cup milk.

When I have too many grains and have more kefir than I can consume, I set

out 1 cup of milk with 1 TBS grains on the counter to kefir at room

temperature and have a second batch slowly kefering in the fridge, using a

ratio of approximately 1 TBS grains to 1/2 cup of milk. It takes a couple

of days for the refrigerated kefir to get to the right ferment.

You can also pick out the grains from the curds and whey, and then separate

the curds from the whey by straining through a coffee filter to get a

cheese-like product. I made a really good chip-dip by adding in onion powder

and some dried minced onion.

I have not been able to sell my grains but have had good results giving them

away by posting an ad on Craigslist.

Ronna

On Mon, Jan 10, 2011 at 3:20 AM, <jumpin.jehosephat@...>wrote:

>

>

> Hello,

>

> I read over your FAQ on the kefirlady.com site but did not see an answer

> to my question.

>

> Am I suppose to have curds and whey? Is it ok not to? and when I get the

> whey do I strain it off and only drink the curds?

>

> I have been just mixing it all in together and making smoothies. Seems fine

> to me.

>

> I know that was a lot of questions. Sorry.

>

> Thank you for your time,

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

,

The reason your kefir is turning to curds and whey could be that you have too

many grains for the amount of milk, or you are fermenting too long. You may

drink your kefir however you'd like, there is absolutely no right or wrong way.

Mixing it all back together is the best, IMO. If you'd like a thicker kefir

that doesn't separate, try increasing your milk, decreasing your grains, or

shortening the fermenting time. It's a science experiment with many factors

involved and different for each house, so play around with it until you get it

the way you like it.

On Jan 10, 2011, at 3:20 AM, wrote:

> Hello,

>

> I read over your FAQ on the kefirlady.com site but did not see an answer to my

question.

>

> Am I suppose to have curds and whey? Is it ok not to? and when I get the whey

do I strain it off and only drink the curds?

>

> I have been just mixing it all in together and making smoothies. Seems fine to

me.

>

> I know that was a lot of questions. Sorry.

>

> Thank you for your time,

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Ronna,

Wow! Thanks a bunch for your answer. I am definitely still learning. This is

some great information. I am going to give some kefir away to friends. I hope

they don't kill it...lol

Thanks again for your help and great info!

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((¸¸.·´*~.·´*¨¨ ))

-:¦:- ·· ((¸¸.·´* .·´*((¸¸.·.·´ *-:¦:- ...

[Guest guest]

Thank you for your help and information on this question. I am probably

fermenting too long. I thought it was mandatory for 24 hours to go by before

replacing the milk.

I will do some experimenting..thanks again!

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[Guest guest]

Hi . I, too, get curds and whey to various degrees. Initially, I had

far too many grains for the amount of milk since my eyeballed estimate had been

way off.

Since I reduced the ratio to 1 T grains/cup milk, it has improved, but I've

never gotten the milk to thicken uniformly. I pretty much go from milk, to milk

and some nicely thickened parts around the kefir grains, stir gently after 8

hours or more to spread the wealth, and then sometime between 24 and 36 hours, I

get either curds and whey, or curds and watery milk/whey. My milk never

thickens throughout, and I do check periodically. Any time it looks like it's

thickening, it turns out it's just at the top/bottom, and I still have all that

watery stuff in between, or it has what Dom refers to as that gritty-mouth feel

(because it's basically small bits of curd, not smooth and creamy).

So far, my happy solution is to pour it all in the blender and drink it as is

(smoothie optional). Or strain out the whey and use that for other purposes

(see Dom's websites for loads of recommendations on things to do with the kefir

whey), while I eat up the yummy curds.

I've wondered how much of this is due to the milk I use and the temperature in

the house. I can't afford raw milk where I am, so I'm compromising with

unhomogenized pasteurized milk. Since I never manage to get the cream blended

into the milk, it ends up being nonfat, pasteurized milk that actually gets

used.

I'm still happily playing around with it, though.

--andra

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

I'm pretty new at this too, but I think I've finally found the ratio that works

for me. I add two tablespoons of grains to three cups of milk. It doesn't

separate, and it's thick and creamy. Hopefully, this helps.

Nina

>

> Hello,

>

> I read over your FAQ on the kefirlady.com site but did not see an answer to my

question.

>

> Am I suppose to have curds and whey? Is it ok not to? and when I get the whey

do I strain it off and only drink the curds?

>

> I have been just mixing it all in together and making smoothies. Seems fine

to me.

>

> I know that was a lot of questions. Sorry.

>

> Thank you for your time,

>

>

>