Independence Homestead

A major part of homestead life is eating nutritiously, and for us that includes drinking kefir! For the month of August, we’re offering a free kombucha SCOBY or milk kefir grains with any purchase. Processing milk into kefir increases its nutritive qualities. If you’re new to milk kefir, you can use it wherever you use milk! Our favorite use is to put it in smoothies.

Here’s our milk kefir recipe:

You Will Need:

-Milk Kefir Grains

-2 Glass 1 Quart Mason Jars

-1 Quart Raw Milk

-Dish Towel & Rubber Band

-Strainer

-Spoon

-Small Glass Jar with Lid (to save kefir grains)

Instructions:

1. Pour milk in a glass jar. Add in kefir grains (usually about 1 teaspoon, but a bit more or less is fine).
2. Cover jar with dishtowel, and rubber band in place.
3. Set jar in a spot that will maintain a normal room temperature and is out of direct sunlight . Let jar sit for 24 hours. At that time, check if kefir is done. Signs that kefir is done include if it smells different (sweeter) than milk, and is thicker than milk. You may also see it separate into curds and whey, which indicates it’s done.
4. Now it’s time to strain out the kefir grains so the kefir is ready to drink. Place the strainer on top of the empty mason jar. Slowly pour kefir through strainer into the jar. The grains will get caught in the strainer, and drinkable kefir will be in the jar.
5. Take the grains and use them to start a new batch of kefir, or save them for later use. To save them, put grains in a small jar with milk. Store in the fridge.
6. Put a lid on the jar, and place kefir in the refrigerator. Once chilled, enjoy!

Notes/Variations:

-You can use more than a quart of milk at one time. I often use a half gallon. In that case, I put in a more grains and I let the kefir process for 36-48 hours.

-Your grains will multiply with each fermentation. Give the extra grains to friends so they can make milk kefir!