Can You Make Kefir From Prepared Kefir? - Cultures For Health (2024)

FAQs

Can You Make Kefir From Prepared Kefir? - Cultures For Health? ›

Since store-bought kefir is slightly pasteurized, using it as a starter culture for making kefir can yield inconsistent results. The pasteurization process can harm bacteria and microbes and may affect the balance of re-cultured kefir.

You can make kefir from store-bought kefir into fresh milk, but it's iffy, depending on the health of the culture, how fresh the kefir is, how fresh your milk is, and how quickly you get things going.

"It's a different fermentation process that is missing the traditional yeast and the bacteria," Willing said. "What you're getting in most available kefirs in the store is not going to have the same health benefits."

It's extremely simple. Add about a teaspoon of these kefir grains to a cup of milk, cover the glass, and let it sit out at room temperature for about 24 hours. During this time, the healthy bacterias and yeast in the kefir grains will ferment the milk, preventing it from spoiling while transforming it into kefir.

Kefir is a more powerful probiotic than yogurt

Yogurt is the best-known probiotic food in the Western diet, but kefir is actually a much more potent source. Kefir grains contain up to 61 strains of bacteria and yeasts, making them a very rich and diverse probiotic source, though this diversity may vary ( 7 ).

While both are still healthy choices, you are not getting the full spectrum at the full potency (some brands advertise 10 strains, genuine kefir has upwards of 40-60 strains) that home-made kefir with kefir grains will give. You may notice that most store-bought kefir is not carbonated.

Homemade kefir contains a higher number of cultures and probiotics than store-bought, which is typically made with a starter culture powder instead of the grains.

How much should you drink? Kefir can be a healthy and delicious addition to a well-rounded diet. For best results, stick to around 1–3 cups (237–710 mL) per day and pair it with a variety of other fermented foods and beverages to increase your intake of probiotics.

For starters, kefir has 12 different strains of live and active cultures and 25-30 billion Colony Forming Units (CFU), while the average yogurt can have anywhere from 1 to 5 strains with 6 billion CFU. That's more than double the amount of probiotics! Plus, it's also up to 99% lactose-free.

As long as your grains are converting milk to kefir that is not 'off' they are just fine. They may get stressed and change shape or smell a bit (more yeasty or more stringy looking), but they will bounce right back given the right conditions.

How much kefir a day is healthy? ›

We typically say a normal daily portion is 250ml (which is what is traditionally given to kids in schools in Russia!) which equates to a small bottle, but its fine to just have ½ or indeed have more.

Drinking kefir water daily can add good bacteria to your digestive system, fight inflammation, and boost your overall health. Kefir water is a fermented, dairy-free, and probiotic-rich drink made from water kefir grains, and sugar water.

You can end up drinking too much kefir. Therefore, you shouldn't go too overboard with your intake. Instead, stick to around a cup or less per day. Drinking too much can end up causing potential side effects to ramp up.

Kefir can contain up to 50 live, active species and over 20 billion Colony Forming Units (CFUs). In comparison, yogurt typically has 1-5 live, active bacterial species and around 6 billion Colony Forming Units (CFUs).

Side effects might include bloating, nausea, stomach cramps, diarrhea, and constipation. These symptoms usually go away after continued use.

Lifeway Kefir contains 12 live and active probiotic cultures and is fermented for 14-18 hours after pasteurization. This results in more CFU per serving (25-30 billion) compared to most other commercially available cultured dairy products, including yogurt.

If cared for properly, milk kefir grains have an unlimited life span and can be used repeatedly to make kefir. Kefir made with a direct-set style starter culture can often be re-cultured from 2 to 7 times. The exact number of successive batches will depend on the freshness of the kefir and hygienic practices employed.

Regular pasteurized milk HTST (high-temperature short time) makes great kefir and is affordable. Let me explain more about how milk is pasteurized and hom*ogenized, and then what happens when you ferment it. This kefir has helped me more than I could have ever imagined and is accessible and easy to make.