So, I finally got back to a point that I felt my kefir grains were capable of making good tasting, healthy kefir!

When last I left you…

After letting the kefir grains sit in sugar water for a few days (the batch I’ll be showing you in this post sat for three days) you take them out of your cupboard and strain the liquid from the grains. I use a plastic mesh strainer that fits perfectly over my 1 gallon, plastic, pitcher.

I then pour the kefir grains back into the jar they just came from. (These kefir grains are very dark because they’ve been in succanat for the past few weeks)

I then pour my juice of choice (100% pomegranate juice today!) into the pitcher of kefir liquid. The amount you use really depends on the taste you want. The rule of thumb I use for my family is 4:1 kefir to juice. So, with 8 cups of kefir in the pitcher, I added 2 cups of juice. My kids like it very fruity, though. I only use 100% fruit juice and try to stay away from sweeter juices like apple, grape, etc. We’ve used cranberry, blueberry, pomegranate and lemon. (I use considerably less juice for lemon!)

Give it a good stir, then pour it into your bottles!

I use these bottles:

Close them up and you’re ready for a second ferment! Notice that I did not fill the bottles up all the way! There is a chance of them exploding, so I try to leave the neck completely empty.

Put them back in your cabinet (along with the new mason jars of kefir grains with sugar water, as demonstrated in my previous post) and leave them there for 12 hours. You can maybe go to 18. I wouldn’t do any longer than that in those bottles because, as they continue to ferment, pressure builds, and you don’t want a mess on your hands! (My grandpa had a closet that smelled like beer because his bottles of beer exploded during the fermenting process…the smell NEVER went away!) The reason I use those jars instead of mason jars is that the mason jars aren’t air tight and they lose a lot of their fizz. My kids like really fizzy kefir! Plus, they’re easier to drink from!

After 12 hours, throw them in your fridge. The cold will keep them from fermenting further, and my family prefers them cold!

There you have it. Enjoy!