KEFIR grains-Mind if we give them their own thread?

[Henrietta23]

Oh, I had labels....I just put them on the wrong bottles!

oops. I can see myself doing that too....

 

[ORChick]

free, this is why, when dehydrating grains to send out to you I also did some for me. They are now in the fridge, in their own little jar, with some powdered milk as dessicant, as back up "just in case" . I will keep them no longer than 6 months, at which point I'll do another batch. DH doesn't touch my jars of "rotting milk", but one never knows when something might happen.

 

[freemotion]

That is a great idea. I keep a kombucha scoby in a jar in the fridge. I should keep some dried grains there, too. I was in a panic when I thought I'd lost them. In such a short time, I couldn't imagine living without kefir even for a short time!

 

[ORChick]

That is a great idea. I keep a kombucha scoby in a jar in the fridge. I should keep some dried grains there, too. I was in a panic when I thought I'd lost them. In such a short time, I couldn't imagine living without kefir even for a short time!

free, I know I sent you this when I sent you the grains, but maybe it will be useful for others. This is the progress of my kefir grain dehydration experiment which I did before sending some on to free. I did this as I had never dehydrated them before, and wanted to be sure that I did it correctly, and that they could be successfully rehydrated.

Kefir Experiment -

6/30/09 – Took about 1 Tbls of kefir grains, rinsed them in filtered water, and divided the clump into several smaller clumps. Dehydrated on lowest temperature setting (100*) till thoroughly dry, about 5-6 hours, turning them over occasionally. When dry, they were put in a small jar with dry milk powder as desiccant and protection, then covered securely, and put in the 'fridge.
7/5/09 – Rinsed the grains with filtered water. Covered them with about cup milk, loosely covered the jar, and left at room temp.
7/6/09 – Sniff test – milk doesn't smell bad, nor does it smell particularly good. None of the pleasant sour smell of kefir (not unexpected; Dom's kefir site says that the various bacteria, yeasts, etc. need to find their correct balance again after drying). Poured off milk and discarded it. Covered with another cup of fresh milk, covered loosely, and left at room temp.
7/7/09 – Smell is still not very pleasant, though it smells more of kefir today than yesterday. Today there was some coagulation. About half of the grains are back to “normal”, the other half still feel very firm, as though not entirely re-hydrated. Drained, and re-covered with fresh milk.
7/8/09 – Again, the smell is getting to be more like it should be, but it is still “off” enough that I didn't keep the coagulated milk. Drained again, and covered with fresh milk.
7/9/09 – The milk was coagulated within 12 hours, and the smell is still improving. Strained out the grains, and rinsed them in filtered water (I probably should have been rinsing them each time). Back in the jar with more milk, about a cup this time.
7/10/09 – The smell was much more pleasant today, though not yet exactly “kefir”. Strained out the grains (forgot to rinse), and returned them to the jar with a cup of fresh milk. The kefir went to the chickens this time, and not down the drain.

*Note on rinsing: I do not usually rinse my grains when making kefir, just strain them, and add new milk. For re-hydrating rinsing is probably more important, and also when preparing the grains for dehydrating. Always rinse with filtered or otherwise chlorine free water, as chlorine will kill the grains.

*Note on straining: I find that using a strainer is an exercise in futility; even milk that has only thickened, not separated, will not drip through the strainer. I use my fingers – dump the contents of the jar into a bowl, and strain through with fingers, removing grains back into the jar to be re-covered in milk. To look at the grains and curds look very similar, but are easily separated by feel. The grains feel like little spongy blobs that spring back when pressed. They look sort of like tapioca pudding.
(During the re-hydration process the grains, or some of them, will be more solid).

 

[big brown horse]

Thanks ORChick!!

This has me thinking, do you think it would be possible to dehydrate some scoby for kombucha tea?

 

[ORChick]

Thanks ORChick!!

This has me thinking, do you think it would be possible to dehydrate some scoby for kombucha tea?

Sorry, I've never dealt with kombucha, and haven't any idea. Maybe free knows? If I had a scoby to work with I might think it worthwhile to take a small piece, dehydrate at the lowest possible temperature (< 110*), and then rehydrate, and see how it works. That is essentially what I did with the kefir. Let us know if you try it.

 

[freemotion]

No clue, never heard of drying one. They are so prolific, I can't see the need to dry them. You can't lose them in the wrong bottle of milk! And if you need a break from kombucha, you can just leave it and it will be ok in the fridge. It seems much more sturdy than the kefir grains, which seem a bit more touchy to me.

You will have plenty to experiment with, so let us know if you try it!

 

[big brown horse]

Bumping this back up due to new interest.

 

[QueenRed]

Ha, thanks BBH. I'm hoping I can get my husband interested in this as soon as I get the grains. I think it would help him out a lot. He doesn't really do dairy so much, but he really needs probiotics, such as in yogurt. I just can't get the booger to eat it. The key is to find him something he likes. I know I will use it, but I would really like him to eventually drink it as well.

 

[delia_peterson]

Got my kefir grain today..