Raw milk separating during ferment

[Guest guest]

Hi all... New to the group and making kefir. Wondering if any of you raw milk

users are bothered by the cream separating? I try to shake or stir it, but

still end up with gobules of cream. My grains are small, and the finished

product still very thin, so maybe wont be an issue when it starts to thicken? I

have enjoyed reading the posts here! What a lovely healthy product we are

creating!

Cheers, B

[Guest guest]

Great question, because I have the same issue. I have taken to shaking the

raw milk to mix the cream in better, and this does help reduce the globules

in the kefir.

ly, though, I just don't like the texture of raw milk kefir, it's too

grainy. Now I buy it just to drink, or make kefir cheese out it.

What I am now using is gently pastuerised, homogenized whole milk

(sometimes I even add a bit of organic heavy cream to the mix ), in a

percentage of a lot of kefir to very little milk. It makes a thicker

kefir, which I like.

I guess it's a matter of personal taste (pun intended).

Kim

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

I use organic raw Jersey cows milk, grass fed, grass finished and I love the

cream that rises to the top. I thought it was odd at first as sometimes it's

super thick for the top 1/4 " to 1/2 " and didn't mix well into the jar prior to

straining. But now, I don't think it's strange and actually like it.

It is super creamy and smooth and I figured out what it's equivalent to...maybe

a slightly thinner cream cheese. I'm considering scooping off the top this

super creamy and thick kefir substance and separating any grains that may be

stuck in them and then letting it sit a little bit longer in the fridge. To me

it tastes just like cream cheese...yummy!!!

Oh, I still have enough milk kefir grains that I can share if you need to

replace yours. They grow sooo fast in my raw milk.

Al

>

> Hi all... New to the group and making kefir. Wondering if any of you raw milk

users are bothered by the cream separating? I try to shake or stir it, but

still end up with gobules of cream. My grains are small, and the finished

product still very thin, so maybe wont be an issue when it starts to thicken? I

have enjoyed reading the posts here! What a lovely healthy product we are

creating!

> Cheers, B

>

[Guest guest]

hmm.. I never have a problem with the separation of my raw milk

kefir.. It does separate, etc.. But I just give it a good shaking in

the bottle, or whisking with a whisk and it's smooth, thick, creamy

all over again. I can use it as is, or I then put it in to the

blender with whatever I flavor it with..

hth

Nichole

[Guest guest]

Wondering if any of you raw milk users are bothered by the cream separating? I

try to shake or stir it, but still end up with gobules of cream. My grains are

small, and the finished product still very thin, so maybe wont be an issue when

it starts to thicken? Cheers, B

I use raw milk, and the separation doesn't bother me at all. Before I found a

source for raw, I used non-homogenized so was used to separation. I never

bother shaking or turning the jar before straining out the grains. The grains

seem to really like the cream layer, and that's where they mostly hang out.

After straining I gently turn the jar before refrigerating the finished kefir,

and don't get much separation anymore after that point, except for the creamier

kefir that tends to cling to the jar. A little of that creamy stuff makes a

really excellent facial - no toxic ingredients like most store-bought stuff,

MUCH cheaper, no dripping, dries nicely, rinses off easily, and leaves skin very

moisturized, soft, and glowing.

Not sure where you live, but here in the Chicago area as it gets cooler the

kefir turns out thinner no matter the grains/milk ratio. Even the batch of milk

with storage grains and a high ratio of grains/milk on our kitchen counter is

thin, even after several days sitting (although of course it separates much

more, and more quickly.) My kefir was thickest in warm weather, regardless of

the grains/milk ratio.

You'll probably find your kefir varies depending on the season. I find that to

be true even with central heat/air conditioning. We generally keep it cooler in

the house in the winter, and just use the a/c in summer on very hot days. It's

generally around 65 or so in the kitchen during the day, and 60 at night when

the heat's on, with summer temps varying between around 75-85 daytime and 72 or

so at night. If we kept the temp warmer here in winter or rigged something for

the kefir to be kept warmer (like culturing in the oven with the light on, or in

a cooler with the jar submerged in warmish water, the results might be more

consistent.

I don't refrigerate my grains, they are protected from some of our hottest

summer temps thanks to the a/c, and find I enjoy the normal seasonal differences

in kefir. As long as the grains and the kefir are healthy, I'm cool with that!

Cheers, T.

[Guest guest]

Thanks for the offer, Al... Actually Im getting some grains from Marilyn this

week (yeah!), and will be interested to see any differences. But, it was funny

that this morning when I checked my jar the mixture was lovely and thick for the

first time. I shook it real well before putting a strainer, and it all came

through very smoothly. So maybe I will be fine now.

As to the cream, have you ever made creme fraiche? When I get my gallon of

grass fed raw milk tomorrow, I am thinking of pouring off a cup or so of the

cream, adding cultured buttermilk at rate of 1T to a pint of cream, letting set

for 20to24 hrs. Then using the rest for the kefir. From Nourishing Traditions

pg 84.

Thanks all for the input!!

B.

> >

> > Hi all... New to the group and making kefir. Wondering if any of you raw

milk users are bothered by the cream separating? I try to shake or stir it,

but still end up with gobules of cream. My grains are small, and the finished

product still very thin, so maybe wont be an issue when it starts to thicken? I

have enjoyed reading the posts here! What a lovely healthy product we are

creating!

> > Cheers, B

> >

>