excess kefir grains and kombucha

[Guest guest]

Hello,

I am new to both the list and traditional foods. My father went

through the prostate cancer process earlier this year including

surgery and radiation and as a result my mother started doing a lot of

research on diet/health etc. As a result of my mother's enthusiasm,

for my birthday I recieved kombucha and kefir grains for my birthday,

etc Imagine MY suprise.... <BG>

The latest incentive was reading " eat fat, loose fat " where i felt the

perspective really pushed the traditional paradigm of food and diet.

While i don't relish the taste of these healthy products, informing

and educating myself has become a stronger incentive towards acquiring

the taste

I was wondering if anyone had excess kefir grains they'd be willing to

send me? I did not use mine frequently enough, they turned yellow and

i eventually tossed them because they scared me. I'd like to try again.

I also have a kombucha which is scaring me as well, but before i toss

it i'd like to clarify it might have reached it's end. This is the

second batch i've made and both times mold has grown on the top of the

liquid. I'm not sure how/why as i did wash the jar in the dishwasher

before pouring the tea in. All i can think is the tea was somehow

contamiated in the cool down phase. The last parent did produce a

baby, albeit very thin and not as thick as in prior batches. I'm

presently using this baby in the batch i made last week.

I've been playing with the first stage of the eat fat loose fat diet

as i obtain all the necessary ingredients. It started with using

expelled coconut oil in my tea. uh, i realize we're talking science

here, but the oil and tea doesn't mix very well. And it's not a

pleasant sensation to be drinking liquified oil..... my virgin coconut

oil arrived yesterday so i will try that with my tea. But i'm not

very excited about this " new diet. "

In any case, that is all for now. I just wanted to drop a quick line,

say hello and ask about the grains. I ordered my requisite books

today, so hopefully i will recieve them around xmas time.

Regards,

[Guest guest]

Welcome, . I have several comments in response.

>This is the

> second batch i've made and both times mold has grown on the top of the

> liquid. I'm not sure how/why as i did wash the jar in the dishwasher

> before pouring the tea in.

There's your problem right there. Do NOT use antibacterial soaps or

dishwasher-type soaps. They're harsh and can leave a film on the

container, and will kill the yeasts that are part of the

yeast/bacteria culture. Instead, use a gentle soap such as Restore

the Earth, and rinse the container well with plain hot water before

setting out to air dry. I would use glass gallon jars, if possible,

but not metal. Neither kefir nor kombucha deal well with metal.

> All i can think is the tea was somehow

> contamiated in the cool down phase. The last parent did produce a

> baby, albeit very thin and not as thick as in prior batches. I'm

> presently using this baby in the batch i made last week.

Loose-leaf teas can have musty residue that can cause mold, IMO. This

happened to me last summer. I lost scoby after scoby and it finally

dawned on me... duh. I was using the same loose-leaf tea each time.

Now I use bagged tea, organic if possible, to avoid this problem.

Please go here to see what else you might want to do to improve your

results. http://www.geocities.com/kombucha_balance/#No%20SCOBY

Please note: Kombucha isn't the easiest thing to be learning when

you're just starting out with trad foods. It's easier than making

lacto-fermented soda, but not by much!

> I've been playing with the first stage of the eat fat loose fat diet

> as i obtain all the necessary ingredients. It started with using

> expelled coconut oil in my tea. uh, i realize we're talking science

> here, but the oil and tea doesn't mix very well.

Yuck. Is that really in the book? I haven't read it yet. Try

melting a spoonful of oil and taking it as you would cod liver oil.

Drink the tea separately. )

> But i'm not

> very excited about this " new diet. "

I should say not, if they're advising this kind of thing in that book!

Let us know if you have more questions.

~Joe