kefir questions (also kombucha)

[Guest guest]

i've been trying to make kefir..i think my house is maybe too cold as nothing

really happened in 24 hours. a friend gave me the grains recommended is store it

in the oven as it's warmer there with a pilot light but that didn't work..so i

had the bright idea to put the mason jar with kefir grains and raw milk on my

yoghurt warmer..that was too warm, so i put a plate and potholder on top and

covered the whole thing with foil...i think the temp for that is too warm

though. i hope i didn't kil my kefir grains but think not as they seem to be

multiplying (have done this twice now) what i end up with is curds and whey. the

smallish curds when drained seem to be about the consistency of ricotta

cheese...is this a low temp ricotta, lol? it sure tastes good with cinnamon a

pinch of sea salt and maply syrup...is the whey now less good because it's been

heated? can i still ferment with it in other words?

i'm soaking some rice in that now and will cook the rice in that whey...

also has anyone tried culturing their kefir in the fridge? i understand it takes

about a week but will be considerably thicker?

my kombucha doesn't seem to be succesful either i guess it's my cold house?

hmmm, how do other people with cold houses get this to work? thanks!

--

peace and blessings in Christ,

stefanie

joyous wife to terry, keeper of our home and blessed momma to three on earth,

one being knit in secret and more in heaven....

[Guest guest]

On Mon, 13 Dec 2004 20:01:01 +0000, bellumswife77@...

<bellumswife77@...> wrote:

> i've been trying to make kefir..i think my house is maybe too cold as

> nothing really happened in 24 hours. a friend gave me the grains recommended

> is store it in the oven as it's warmer there with a pilot light but that

> didn't work..so i had the bright idea to put the mason jar with kefir grains

> and raw milk on my yoghurt warmer..that was too warm, so i put a plate and

> potholder on top and covered the whole thing with foil...i think the temp

> for that is too warm though. i hope i didn't kil my kefir grains but think

> not as they seem to be multiplying (have done this twice now) what i end up

> with is curds and whey.

Stefanie, just take a wooden spoon or rubber spatula and stir it all

together. You'll find that the whey and curds easily stir into each

other and become creamy. Mine separates like that all the time,

especially the longer it kefirs, and there's no harm done. If your

grains are multiplying you haven't killed them.

What is unsuccessful about your kombucha?

Fern

[Guest guest]

bellumswife77@... wrote:

> i've been trying to make kefir..i think my house is maybe too cold as nothing

really happened in 24 hours. a friend gave me the grains recommended is store it

in the oven as it's warmer there with a pilot light but that didn't work..so i

had the bright idea to put the mason jar with kefir grains and raw milk on my

yoghurt warmer..that was too warm, so i put a plate and potholder on top and

covered the whole thing with foil...i think the temp for that is too warm

though. i hope i didn't kil my kefir grains but think not as they seem to be

multiplying (have done this twice now) what i end up with is curds and whey. the

smallish curds when drained seem to be about the consistency of ricotta

cheese...is this a low temp ricotta, lol? it sure tastes good with cinnamon a

pinch of sea salt and maply syrup...is the whey now less good because it's been

heated? can i still ferment with it in other words?

> i'm soaking some rice in that now and will cook the rice in that whey...

>

> also has anyone tried culturing their kefir in the fridge? i understand it

takes about a week but will be considerably thicker?

>

> my kombucha doesn't seem to be succesful either i guess it's my cold house?

hmmm, how do other people with cold houses get this to work? thanks!

>

coolers make a nice controlled environment...use a container of hot

water for heat. if it's not too much of an inconvenience, might wanna

keep varying cultures separate.

[Guest guest]

" " it sure tastes good with cinnamon a pinch of sea salt and maply syrup " "

As soon as I read that...I jumped up and went to the kitchen, and made myself

one of those! Pretty darned good, if I say so myself! Thanks for the idea!!

Delicious!

--

Steve ( as I relish my new discovery!!)

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[Guest guest]

[stefanie] i've been trying to make kefir..i think my house is maybe

too cold as nothing really happened in 24 hours. a friend gave me the

grains recommended is store it in the oven as it's warmer there with a

pilot light but that didn't work..

[MAP] Hi Stefanie, RELAX!!! Kefir just takes longer in cold temps.

With, say, 50F degree room temps, it might take two days or so. If

your house is too cold for kefir, then it's also too cold for humans

unless you're wearing 5 layers of clothing and have Eskimo genes.

The temps in my propane oven with just the pilot light seem to be

around 75F degrees on average, which is a great temp for kefir, so I

can't see how your kefir could possibly fail in there unless your oven

is a different type. In the oven like that, you only have to worry

about it being too warm, not too cold. I'd avoid that yogurt warmer

thingy because it's too much risk of overheating your grains and

killing them.

You asked about making it in the fridge. Some people attest to that

method, but I've never seen it work myself and I think it's a stupid

idea because you can just make kefir and store in the fridge later.

At those cold temps you probably aren't gonna get the normal mix of

kefir microbes. Also, I don't think it will be thicker. Thick kefir

is easy to get at warmer temps.

As far as your kombucha, that doesn't seem to do as well with the

lower temps, so just put it in your oven with the pilot light and it

should be okay. Keep in mind it can take as long as two weeks in

cooler temps. It's all about temperature.

Mike

SE Pennsylvania

The best way to predict the future is to invent it. --Alan Kay

[Guest guest]

> I think it's a stupid idea because you can just make kefir and store in the

fridge later.

Kefir made in he fridge is smoother(not chunky or clotty textured), and seems to

develop more kefiran and has less of the yeasty overtones. I use my excess

grains to make excellent tart tasting kefir in the fridge by leaving the grains

in to make more kefiran and letting it culture and age for a couple of months in

the fridge. If you make the kefir and then store it in the fridge I don't think

you will get the development of extra kefiran as this anti-cancer substance is

make by the bacteria that are encapsulated in the center of the kefir grains.

regards, Bruce

[Guest guest]

>Kefir made in he fridge is smoother(not chunky or clotty textured), and seems

to

>develop more kefiran and has less of the yeasty overtones. I use my excess

>grains to make excellent tart tasting kefir in the fridge by leaving the grains

>in to make more kefiran and letting it culture and age for a couple of months

in

>the fridge. If you make the kefir and then store it in the fridge I don't think

>you will get the development of extra kefiran as this anti-cancer substance is

>make by the bacteria that are encapsulated in the center of the kefir grains.

>

>regards, Bruce

Kefiili seems to work BETTER in lower temps, maybe because viili is from the

Finns

and you gotta figure their houses were COLD!

Heidi [HJ] [HTG]