Milk kefir is one of the many ways you can get your probiotics. Milk kefir is a tart, fermented milk where you use specific “grains” that eat the natural sugar in the milk. With the fermenting process of the grains in the milk at room temperature, you get a sour/tart probiotic rich drink. Probiotics are essential for good gut health, why not give this tasty drink a try?

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I have been making milk kefir off and on for a couple years now. I purchased my live grains and started making this tasty drink and we haven’t looked back. My husband is quite the fan of it, he particularly likes it in popsicles.

We like to have milk kefer during the summer the most because of the delicious popsicles that I make every summer. They are a nice cool treat on those hot summer days and a great way to get your probiotics and vitamins.

I find that making fermented food is very easy. Milk kefir is a great place to start if your wanting to get some natural probiotics. The process is very simple and all you need milk, grains and a little time.

HEALTH BENEFITS OF MILK KEFIR

As you may already know probiotics are essential for good health and good gut flora. The probiotics in all fermented food, helps to build your good gut flora. In turn your healthier and many would say they don’t get sick very often because of it.

During the fermenting process, the grains turn the lactose into lactic acid. This gives the milk a sour flavor like yogurt but a thinner consistency.

There are many nutrients in it like protein, calcium, vitamin B12 and magnesium, just to name a few.

It is actually more probiotic rich then Greek yogurt. It can contain up to 61 strains of yeast and bacteria.

Then you have calcium, which we all know that calcium can help keep our bones strong.

So, think of it a super charged milk with probiotics and nutrients.

WHAT MILK SHOULD I USE?

Most commonly, cows milk is used as well as goats milk. Goats milk is actually similar to human milk and is easy to digest.

I use raw, grass-fed cows milk. I have also used raw goats milk.

If you can source raw milk, this will be best. You want all the healthy bacteria as possible. The grains will flourish on this type of milk the best.

You can use Pasteurized and Ultra-Pasteurized. Since the milk has been heated up and killed all the beneficial bacteria your kefir grains may not grow or multiply as fast and your milk may not ferment as fast.

WHAT IS A MILK KEFIR GRAIN?

Milk kefir grains are a specific type of mesophilic symbiotic culture made up of protiens, lipids and sugars. They are similar to how wheat and barley grains are for beer.

The grains look similar to little pieces of cauliflower though they have a soft jello consistency.

They originated from the Northern Caucasus Mountain region.

WHERE CAN I PURCHASE MILK KEFIR GRAINS?

I got my grains from Amazon HERE. These are ready to go when you get them in the mail. Since they are live grains, they are shipped fast so you can get them in milk sooner to keep them from dying.

You can also get them from the brand, Cultures for Health, HERE. These are dehydrated, so when you get them you will need to place them in milk to activate them. With this route you will have to wait a while before you get good productive milk kefir. This is a great route if you are not in a hurry or like the experiment of re-hydrating the grains.

Another way is to get them from a friend that may also be making milk kefir in their home. If they are making milk kefir, I’m sure they have an abundance of grains that they would be willing to part with.

CAN I EAT KEFIR GRAINS?

Yes, you can. A lot of people will add the excess grains to the blender when they make a smoothie.

TIPS FOR MAKING MILK KEFIR

• Make sure to place your milk kefir about 5 feet away from other ferments on your counter to avoid cross contamination of different cultures.
• If you find that there is yellow liquid separating from your milk, that is fine. That is “whey” and this is perfectly normal. This will happen the longer your milk ferments.
• If your starting out with new milk kefir grains, the first couple ferments may not taste right. It will take a batch or two for the grains to get used to the new environment.
• Milk kefir grains will eventually start to multiply. The more you regularly add fresh milk to the grains, the faster they will grow.
• The grains will last years, they do not go bad unless left out for too long or in bad environmental conditions.
• The longer you let your milk ferment the more sour it will get. I wait until the whey has separated from the kefir for a little bit. I find that is the perfect level of sour for us.
• I recommend using fine weave cheese cloth or a coffee filter to the top of your ferments to keep out unwanted bugs like fruit flies. This just makes a tight seal but still allows air flow that is needed.
• When straining the grains I will place a stainless steel funnel over a wide mouth mason jar and put a plastic mesh strainer on top and strain out a little bit of the kefir at a time. I can then place the jar right in the fridge. This just reduces the amount of dishes to wash. Note: I don’t find an issue using metal for the short period of time the milk kefir is on the funnel.

EQUIPMENT YOU MAY NEED

Strainer – plastic is recommended, try not to use metal

Jars for storage – I use these Half Gallon Mason Jars

Plastic cover

HOW TO MAKE MILK KEFIR

1. To a clean jar add your grains. Add about 1/4 cup grains per 3 cups of milk.
2. Pour in the milk to the very bottom of the neck of the jar.
3. Place some fine weave cheese cloth or a coffee filter over the mouth of the jar and screw on your cover LOOSELY.
4. Place on your counter about 5 feet from any other ferments you have have going on at the same time.
5. Leave on the counter to ferment roughly 24-48 hours.
6. Once your kefir is ready, strain your kefir grains from your milk kefir. You can use a plastic mesh strainer or a plastic colander, either will work as long as they have small holes. Place it over a large bowl so you can easily catch the milk kefir.
7. Add the strained kefir to your glass storage jar and place in the fridge to stop the fermentation, for a couple hours.
8. You can add your grains to a new jar of milk and start the process over again.
9. Serve chilled and Enjoy!

WAYS TO USE MILK KEFIR

You can drink milk kefir as is.

You can add it to your smoothies.

Make popsicles with it.

Pour it over your cereal like you would with regular milk.

Make ice cream with it.

This would even make for a good salad dressing.

HOW LONG IS MILK KEFIR GOOD FOR?

In the fridge it will last about 3 weeks and a couple months in the freezer.

WHAT SHOULD I DO WITH MY EXCESS GRAINS?

Since kefir grains constantly grow and are making more, some people have an over abundance of the grains. If you don’t want to eat them you can give them to your pets if they’ll eat them. Chickens love them as well.

You can give them to friends or family who are natural minded as you.

If you still have an over abundance of them you can compost them.

WHAT TO DO IF YOU NEED A BREAK FROM MILK KEFIR

If you find you need a break from making milk kefir, you can place the grains in a small jar of milk in your fridge. This slows down the fermentation process. I have done this for about 6 months before and I was able to restart my grains and get tasty kefir after a couple batches.

OTHER FERMENTED RECIPES TO TRY

• Homemade Sauerkraut
• Raw Milk Greek Yogurt
• Sourdough Banana Bread
• Homemade Kombucha
• Homemade Kombucha: Second Ferment

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The post How to make Milk Kefir appeared first on Natural Living Homestead.

What is Sauerkraut?

Sauerkraut is a fermented food, chocked full of probiotics. It is finely cut raw cabbage that is mixed with salt and allowed to ferment for a period of time from a process called Lactic Acid Fermentation. From this process it creates acid from bacteria, eating the sugar in the cabbage. This process creates a very distinctive sour flavor and a long shelf life from the acid that is formed.

Sauerkraut is fermented for days or weeks, depending on your level of sour preference. Other similar fermented foods are things like Kimchi and Milk Kefir. Sauerkraut is a Chinese invention from about 2,000 years ago but was most commonly used in Central and Eastern Europe. They fermented food a lot back then as a way to preserve their food. The name was borrowed from the German language Sauer (sour), kraut (cabbage).

Health Benefits of Homemade Sauerkraut

Fermented Sauerkraut is very nutritious containing a large portion of essential vitamins and minerals.

Like other fermented foods, like yogurt, it has a lot of healthy bacteria. All of this bacteria will boost your good gut flora improving your digestion. So with regular consumption it can help regulate the good versus the bad bacteria in your digestive tract.

It boosts your immune system. Your gut health plays a big part in keeping a healthy immune system. The healthy bacteria present in sauerkraut helps keep the gut lining strong and healthy therefor helping to keep bad bacteria at bay, which would otherwise cause an immune response.

Sauerkraut has Vitamin K2, this may also help your heart health by reducing your cholesterol levels and it may even help keep your bones strong.

So instead of spending $30 or more a month on probiotics at your local health store, why not make your own. It is far less expensive, costing just a couple heads of cabbage and a few tablespoons of salt.

With making your own and having it with a meal, taking your probiotics is no longer a chore and you get to keep that extra money.

What goes good with Homemade Sauerkraut?

I personally tend to eat sauerkraut in the morning with my breakfast which usually consists of eggs. Be it a scrambled or an over-easy egg or even a crustless quiche. I even add it on my dinner plate with some chicken or steak with a side of mixed veggies and some acorn or butternut squash. Sometimes I eat it as is, by itself.

Another good meal it would taste good with is spaghetti squash “pasta” and hamburg with spaghetti sauce. You can put it as a side or mix it in. Honestly, it tastes good with just about anything. You could even put it as a topping on your pizza or wrap it in your burrito or calzone! The possibilities are endless.

Tips for Making Homemade Sauerkraut

• Shred your cabbage in your food processor with the shredder/food grater attachment. This makes smaller pieces which I feel allows it to ferment better and I prefer the texture of small pieces then larger chunks.
• If this is your first time making sauerkraut and don’t want to spend any extra money, find some small rocks and give them a really good cleaning. Then place them into a ziplock bag or two, seal them and use those as your weights.
• If your new to sauerkraut, try fermenting your cabbage for 3 days and give it a taste. 3-5 days is a pretty good range of keeping it from getting too sour. 5 days was perfect for the first time I made it.
• Place your fermentation jar in a shallow container while fermenting. The cabbage may continue to sweat, or create a brine and will leak out of the jar and make cleanup easier.
• If you are fermenting other things in your kitchen, try to keep your ferments about 4-5 feet away from each other. This is to prevent your different ferments from contaminating each other with their cultures. For example: your sourdough starter or your kombucha may pass on their cultures to your sauerkraut and vice versa, making it taste funny.

Tools you may need

Food processor

Half gallon mason jars

Measuring spoon

Fermentation weights or very clean rocks in ziplock bags

Fermentation lid or the lid that came with your jar

Ingredients

3 small heads of cabbage or 1 large and 1 small – green or purple

Sea salt – 1 tablespoon for every 1 3/4 pounds of cabbage

How to make Homemade Sauerkraut

Step 1: Shred the Cabbage

Remove the outer leaves of your cabbage that may not be very appealing, rinse them off and set aside for later use.

If your using a food processor, cut up your cabbage into chunks that can fit through the tube on the lid. If cutting the cabbage by hand, cut it as small as possible, about coleslaw consistency.

Note: Don’t forget to cut out the core – it is very tough and not that tasty.

Once you have cut all your cabbage into small chunks go ahead and run it though the processor with the shredder/grater attachment.

Step 2: Mix in the salt

Once all the cabbage is shredded, add it to a large bowl and sprinkle on the required amount of salt for how much cabbage you have (1 tbs sea salt per 1 3/4 pounds of cabbage).

Mix the salt into the cabbage very well. You will notice that a brine is starting to form as you mix it in. This is the liquid you want your cabbage to sit below of in your jar. This will keep the air from reaching the cabbage, preventing it from going bad and molding. You may need to mix it in for a few minutes until you have enough.

Step 3: Pack it away

Add the cabbage and brine to your jar and pack it down well. With the cabbage leaves you set aside earlier, place them on top of your cabbage, just below the neck of the jar. Try to keep all the shredded cabbage and the whole leaves below the brine.

Add the rocks in the sealed ziplock bag or your fermentation weights to the jar. If your able to, try to get them below the brine as well. If there isn’t quite enough brine to cover all of the cabbage leaves on top, add some filtered water to make up the difference.

LOOSELY place your jar lid on or use your fermentation lid. Place it on your counter and let it ferment for 3 -10 days.

Once your sauerkraut has reached your level of sourness, pop it in the fridge to stop the fermentation.

Now, just serve it up with your favorite meal.

Voila! You’ve made your own probiotics!

Variations of Homemade Sauerkraut

Make it with purple cabbage for added color and a bit of a peppery flavor. Purple cabbage is also known to have more beneficial properties then green cabbage.

You could try adding fruit, some people will shred apples and mix that in with the cabbage. You can also add things like carrots, radishes or beets.

If you are interested in other fermented food, Kombucha is a sweet and tasty fermented tea. Read about it and learn how to make it HERE

Homemade Sauerkraut Recipe

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Homemade Sauerkraut

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Additional Time: 7 days

Total Time: 7 days 20 minutes

Make a probiotic rich side dish thats salty and sour. Add it as a side or put it as a topping on your pizza. It's an easy way to take your probiotics every day.

Print

Ingredients

• 3 small heads of cabbage or 1 large and 1 small - green or purple
• Sea salt - 1 tablespoon for every 1 3/4 pounds of cabbage

Instructions

Step 1: Shred the Cabbage

Remove the outer leaves of your cabbage that may not be very appealing, rinse them off and set aside for later use.

If your using a food processor, cut up your cabbage into chunks that can fit through the tube on the lid. If cutting the cabbage by hand, cut it as small as possible, about coleslaw consistency.

Note: Don't forget to cut out the core - it is very tough and not that tasty.

Once you have cut all your cabbage into small chunks go ahead and run it though the processor with the shredder/grater attachment.

Step 2: Mix in the salt

Once all the cabbage is shredded, add it to a large bowl and sprinkle on the required amount of salt for how much cabbage you have (1 tbs sea salt per 1 3/4 pounds of cabbage).

Mix the salt into the cabbage very well. You will notice that a brine is starting to form as you mix it in. This is the liquid you want your cabbage to sit below of in your jar. This will keep the air from reaching the cabbage, preventing it from going bad and molding. You may need to mix it in for a few minutes until you have enough.

Step 3: Pack it away

Add the cabbage and brine to your jar and pack it down well. With the cabbage leaves you set aside earlier, place them on top of your cabbage, just below the neck of the jar. Try to keep all the shredded cabbage and the whole leaves below the brine.

Add the rocks in the sealed ziplock bag or your fermentation weights to the jar. If your able to, try to get them below the brine as well. If there isn't quite enough brine to cover all of the cabbage leaves on top, add some filtered water to make up the difference.

LOOSELY place your jar lid on or use your fermentation lid. Place it on your counter and let it ferment for 3 -10 days.

Once your sauerkraut has reached your level of sourness, pop it in the fridge to stop the fermentation.

Now, just serve it up with your favorite meal.

Voila! You've made your own probiotics!

Notes

• Shred your cabbage in your food processor with the shredder/food grater attachment. This makes smaller pieces which I feel allows it to ferment better and I prefer the texture of small pieces then larger chunks.
• If this is your first time making sauerkraut and don't want to spend any extra money, find some small rocks and give them a really good cleaning. Then place them into a ziplock bag or two, seal them and use those as your weights.
• If your new to sauerkraut, try fermenting your cabbage for 3 days and give it a taste. 3-5 days is a pretty good range of keeping it from getting too sour. 5 days was perfect for the first time I made it.
• Place your fermentation jar in a shallow container while fermenting. The cabbage may continue to sweat, or create a brine and will leak out of the jar and make cleanup easier.
• If you are fermenting other things in your kitchen, try to keep your ferments about 4-5 feet away from each other. This is to prevent your different ferments from contaminating each other with their cultures. For example: your sourdough starter or your kombucha may pass on their cultures to your sauerkraut and vice versa, making it taste funny.

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The post How to Make Homemade Sauerkraut appeared first on Natural Living Homestead.