# Kefir and Yogurt the easy way...



## BasecampUSA (Dec 26, 2010)

Remember that lady "Ellen" that sold the surplus 1 1/2 gallon mylar wine bags for water storage on the forum here last year?

Well, I bought 200 of them from her for various future storage purposes.

I was reading how they make kefir inside the skins of goats over in the Caucasus region of eastern Europe:

_"A goat-hide bag, which was washed with sterile water, was filled with pasteurized milk and the intestinal flora of a sheep. It was shaken every hour and was kept for 2 days at a temperature of about 25°C. During 12 weeks, each time the milk coagulated, three quarters of it was replaced with fresh milk. When a polysaccharide layer developed on the surface of the hide it was removed and propagated in pasteurized cow's milk where kefir grains developed. These were grown with fresh milk daily."_

Sooo... I took the black plug out of the already sterile mylar bag, poured milk in it and added 4 heaping tablespoons of commercial plain kefir.

*







4 Tbsp +







4 Qts ==> 
==>









(Ellen's mylar bag)*

I then put the plug back in it (it fits tight and won't leak), and put it in a warm place that stays that way all the time - _on top of the water heater _- where it stays 80 degrees all the time. Everytime I passed by it, I would "massage" it for a couple of seconds to help mix it.

After 3 days, I pulled out the black plug and filled 4 quart canning jars with tasty kefir, _leaving just a little bit in the bag_. These jars I put in the refrigerator to be used for eating and cooking.










I then put the black plug back in the bag with the few tablespoons that I left in it, folded it up small, and put it in the freezer till I need another gallon of kefir. I could just use the bag for making AND storing, but quart jars are easier to store in the fridge.

Next time I need kefir, I only have to fill the mylar "kefir" bag in the freezer with a gallon of milk and put it on top of the water heater for 3 days. I will be able to make a dozen batches in that same bag if I'm careful.

No muss, no fuss, no cleaning up... just easy... :2thumb:

You can do yogurt the exact same way...

- Basey

PS... the rest of the plain kefir I bought at the health food store ? I poured it into 2 ice cube trays and froze it (made 28 cubes). Then I dumped the frozen kefir cubes into a ziplock bag and stuck them in the freezer for future kefir production. When the kefir in this first mylar bag don't work anymore, I'll toss the mylar bag and use 4 of the frozen kefir cubes in a new bag to start all over again. -- I won't have to buy another $4.99 bottle of kefir again for years, (it's expensive)


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## oconnor1981 (Jul 22, 2011)

I'm an huge kefir fan but didn't realize it was so easy to make. Any serious separation issues? I usually by the commercial kefir and for all I know it may separate and look nasty but tehy have the plastic wrap to hide it perhaps.

I don't have any of those mylar bags. Any other suggestions on something to use other than them. I'm assuming spout, sterility, and maybe UV rays play into why you have chosen to use the mylar bag? I'd love to make my own kefir and appreciate any feedback people have.


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## BasecampUSA (Dec 26, 2010)

Irish whole wheat / kefir bread... (I used to use store-boughten buttermilk for this, but now that I make my own kefir, I use it instead)

4 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup bread flour 
1/3 cup rolled oats
4 heaping Tbsp sunflower seeds
2 Tbsp millet
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups kefir
1 cup milk

This works better in a dutch oven and a campfire, but in a kitchen:

Place a 4 qt ceramic bowl with cover in oven and preheat to 425 F (HOT MITTS READY)

In a large bowl, stir together all the dry ingredients.

Mix the kefir with the milk and stir it into the bowl until a soft moist dough is formed.

Flour the top of the mass and both your hands, "gather" the dough up and plop it into the hot 
ceramic bowl waiting in the oven and cover it. (Watch out, everything is HOT so the bread won't stick later when it's done)

Bake for 35 minutes, then remove the cover and let it bake for another 10 minutes to get a "crust".

Take out of oven and dump out onto a cooling rack... keeping everyone that smelled it a bay till it cools.
-- put hot ceramic bowl and cover back in oven to cool down gradually so it won't crack.

Makes a 9" diameter x 5" high loaf, 2 1/2 lbs

(If done at a campfire, set cast iron dutch oven on coals till hot, dump in "gathered" dough, place cover on top, and heap coals over. -- Check at 5-10 minute intervals to get the "feel" if it's hot enough 
and add more coals top/bottom if necessary.)


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## BasecampUSA (Dec 26, 2010)

oconnor1981 said:


> I'm an huge kefir fan but didn't realize it was so easy to make. Any serious separation issues? I usually by the commercial kefir and for all I know it may separate and look nasty but tehy have the plastic wrap to hide it perhaps.
> 
> I don't have any of those mylar bags. Any other suggestions on something to use other than them. I'm assuming spout, sterility, and maybe UV rays play into why you have chosen to use the mylar bag? I'd love to make my own kefir and appreciate any feedback people have.


Haven't noticed any problems with my batch...

Those mylar bags are the same ones they sell bulk table wine in boxes at the store.

Actually, I used to make kefir and yogurt in gallon glass jugs with the wide screw-tops on them. The kind that pickles etc. comes in. You can find them around if you look... like restaurants or school cafeterias.

Buying one bottle of commercial kefir and preserving it by freezing in "ice-cube fasion" is my whole strategy of saving tons of money. Each cube is good for at _least_ a quart of homemade kefir. As long as the culture is kept "clean", it can propagate many times.

That thing with Ellen's mylar bags was a test-run to see if I could make kefir "on the fly" (by sticking it close to the BOV motor for warmth, or putting it next to me in the sleeping bag at night, or placing it in the sun etc). Since you seldom have refrigeration while "moving", this gives you the opportunity to preserve milk for consumption or cooking, albeit in another form than fresh milk. Due to the high acidity and CO2, other bacteria can't thrive in the environment of the mylar bag since the kefir bacteria have the upper hand.

That was the whole idea behind kefir and yogurt in the first place, - to preserve milk safely without refrigeration.


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## Emerald (Jun 14, 2010)

is it making the grains?


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## Magus (Dec 1, 2008)

I bought some unpasteurized keffir and mixed it 50/50 with organic buttermilk,let sit for two days in the cupboard before putting it in the fridge, it makes pancakes and flap jacks to die for!I'm going to try it in Seattle day bread next.


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## Immolatus (Feb 20, 2011)

Just started my water kefir this morning. I'm not that into milk. I cant help looking at it anytime I go into the kitchen.
Basey, can you/do you use those bags for LTS? How good is the seal? I assume you can buy those bags like that in bulk, no?


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## cybergranny (Mar 11, 2011)

*Kefir grains/seeds*

I've been making kefir from grains/seeds for about a month now. Never had it or made it before. Started with a tiny packet in a pint jar full of milk and now I use a quart every day the grains have grown so, I have enough to give away. Won't do it yet though as I want to make cream cheese, use the whey for fermenting vegetables and I have already started soaking my wheat for bread, pancakes etc. It makes fantastic baked goods. It's so simple and so much cheaper. The grains will last forever if you take care of them. Instructions are all over the net. Put the grains in a clean glass jar, pour the milk up to the neck (leave about 2 inches as the gases that form could run it over) cap loosely and sit on the counter for a day or two depending how strong you want it. Strain in a fine mesh strainer by gently moving the liquid around til only the grains are left (mine looks like a clump of cottage cheese now). Pour into a clean glass jar and refrigerate til ready to use. Place the grains in a clean glass jar with a little milk to cover if you arn't going to make any more right then and refrigerate. If you're going to make more fill with milk as before. We make it nearly every day now to get our probiotics. My daughter puts it in our morning smoothies.

From my research the grains/seeds make a more potent kefir and far outlasts kefir starter in reproduction. I've used the starter and personally prefer using the grains. It is said you can even dehydrate them and restore for later use.


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## Magus (Dec 1, 2008)

In case anyone cares, the day bread was NOT as I hoped.maybe too much oil?


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## Emerald (Jun 14, 2010)

Magus said:


> In case anyone cares, the day bread was NOT as I hoped.maybe too much oil?


You are going to have to put that recipe up here for us as I've not heard of Seattle day bread before..


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## BasecampUSA (Dec 26, 2010)

Immolatus said:


> Just started my water kefir this morning. I'm not that into milk. I cant help looking at it anytime I go into the kitchen.
> Basey, can you/do you use those bags for LTS? How good is the seal? I assume you can buy those bags like that in bulk, no?


Those bags Ellen sold me are fantastic! I just filled grains and beans through the removeable spout with valve, then put the valve back in, removed air with a vacuum cleaner, closed the valve and stored it... -after 6 months it was still under vaccuum.

@ Emerald... The kefir grains? Hmmm, I never checked that close, but it is sure good tasting kefir!

When I need another batch, I'll simply take the same bag that I put in the freezer that has a few tablespoons of the last batch in it, fill it with warm milk and set it on top of the water heater to keep it at 80 degrees. In 2-3 days I'll have another finished batch to pour into mason jars. The bag will go into the freezer again till the next batch is needed. etc etc. I'm curios hoaw many batches I can make till some foreign "bug" gets in there and ruins the culture.

PS... I tried one of the bags out as a "camelback" type water carrier... they are rugged! Just twist the valve open and sip, then twist it shut. I'm sure you could rig some type of tube to it to "drink on the run".


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