Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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I'm thinking about making kefir. Probably water kefir since I think it might taste better than milk kefir and I like the idea of having something a little fizzy to drink. But if I decide to make milk kefir later can I use the water kefir grains? Can I go back and forth between using them? What's the difference between them anyhow?

flag	asked Jun 13 at 21:35 MiMintzer 5,023●1●3●14

Eugenia · Accepted Answer · 2012-06-13 21:39:46Z UTC

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No, kefir grains don't like to be changed the kind of milk they use too often. They like it even less going from water to milk and back again. They won't thrive, they might even start dying out. What you need to do is buy your kefir grains (possibly separately for water and milk) and make two different batches daily. When it comes to milk, go for sheep/goat btw, not for cow milk. These have a much more tolerable casein. Ferment for 24 hours for less lactose. Also, make sure your strainer/utensils are made of plastic (kefir grains don't like metals).

answered Jun 13 at 21:39

Eugenia
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	The casein matters? Isn't the ferment simply going after the lactose? – Matt Jun 13 at 21:55
	I can't tolerate cow's milk (wheat and lactose intolerance seem to go together). Only goat or sheep dairy for me. Thanks for the tips. – MiMintzer Jun 13 at 22:02
	Matt, yes the casein matters for the humans (not the grains). Goat/sheep/buffalo dairy is much more tolerable by humans, because the casein is similar to that of human milk. Also, yes, the fermentation is eating the lactose, but it all depends how long you leave them to ferment. If you leave them 4-6 hours, which is how much commercial kefir brands ferment, most lactose will be intact. I do 24 hours for mine. – Eugenia Jun 13 at 22:29

AmandaLP · Answer 2 · 2012-06-13 22:04:26Z UTC

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No, they are different strains. Some people can get a culture or two out of the grains in non preferred substances, but the grains almost always die.

http://www.yemoos.com/strainswater.html

http://www.yemoos.com/strainsmilk.html

That said, once you have used the grains for a while, they will multiply, so you can use your extras as testing grains.

answered Jun 13 at 22:04

AmandaLP
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Thanks. That's really interesting. I see that there is a little bit of crossover between the two. Some of the strep species in the water kefir grains seem a little suspect though (faecalis, mutans, pneumonieae, pyogenes, and viridans). yucky?! – MiMintzer Jun 13 at 22:16

nana · Answer 3 · 2012-11-15 12:25:02Z UTC

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how can i make my kefir grow very fast??

answered Nov 15 at 12:25

nana
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Michael · Answer 4 · 2012-11-15 12:34:20Z UTC

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To the OP -if you haven't found it already, here's a useful website http://users.sa.chariot.net.au/~dna/kefirpage.html

I've been doing water kefir for a couple of months and some of the tips there have worked pretty well (interesting info also)

answered Nov 15 at 12:34

Michael
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Yeah, I've got that bookmarked already. Thanks. – MiMintzer Nov 15 at 14:14

Are kefir grains interchangable?

4 Answers