I am about to start fermenting milk Kefir grains Question: Does the jar of milk stay out at room temperature indefinitely? Is this safe?
Posted by Summer3 (Member # 35286) on :
I've heard it should stay out fermenting for 24 hours and then you strain and put it in the fridge. Some people leave it out slightly longer, but I personally wouldn't.
Posted by Dave6002 (Member # 9064) on :
I am doing Kefir like this: put the jar of milk at room temperature around 70 degree for two days then remove the grains and store the Kefir in fridge for over one week.
Posted by TF (Member # 14183) on :
Let it stay out until the kefir thickens. That can take 12 hours or so.
If you leave it out longer than that, the kefir will just get more sour.
It is perfectly safe to let it sit out until it thickens. It does not spoil.
If it is warm in the room, it will thicken quicker; colder, it will take longer.
It is like making yogurt or cheese.
Posted by Lauralyme (Member # 15021) on :
Thanks folks, that is helpful
After I remove the grains, what do I do with them? Can they be used again?
Posted by GiGi (Member # 259) on :
When Kefir thickens (in my house it takes about 12-16 hours) in the open with a tea cozy over it to keep temperate even, pour it through a non-metal (never use metal with kefir) strainer into container you keep in the fridge and use; briefly rinse the grains with clean water and keep in small jar in fridge until you make the next batch. If you wait longer than a week, freeze grains in a bit of clean water and use them for your next batch.
Google Kefir - you will find a lot of information - endless!
I use them over and over again. If I am traveling, I make sure the grains are in the freezer to be there for the next batch.
You can make a superb sauerkraut with cabbage, a bit of good salt, and a splash of the kefir. It moves the fermentation process along. But that's another chore.
Posted by Lauralyme (Member # 15021) on :
Thanks so Much Gigi!
I have been wanting to make saurkraut/fermented vegetables and you gave a great idea to put some Kefir in. Body Ecology diet sells bacteria starter, I can use Kefir instead.....you just saved me money!
Posted by daystar1952 (Member # 3255) on :
I'm having fun experimenting with fermentation. I've made kefir, sauerkraut, ginger turnips and ginger carrots, real fermented salsa(delicious!), fermented bean spread and now I want to try fermented sliced beets.
The potential health benefits are amazing! The links below show a bit of what I have been doing and there are also some articles on the benefits of probiotics by Beatrice Trum Hunter. Scroll down the pages to see several posts at each link
Easy To Make Lacto-Fermented Foods Presenter: Annie Dru
�Life in all its fullness is mother nature obeyed�. This quote from Weston A. Price summarizes his research and is included on the cover of every issue of The Price Pottenger Journal of Health and Healing. Annie Dru, the presenter of the video �Easy To Make Lacto-Fermented Foods�, strongly believes that we can restore society back to health, harmony and fullness of joy, by following the principles of Weston A. Price.
This video is divided into two basic sections. The first part summarizes the work of Weston Price and explains why it is so important. The second section deals with the actual demonstration of how to prepare different types of food for the fermentation process.
Oodles of interesting facts and helpful hints are sprinkled throughout the entire video. Immediately upon watching this presenta tion, I was very impressed with Annie Dru�s effervescent nature and clarity of thought. I felt that her presentation flowed beautifully, was very well organized and very entertaining.
Her exuberance is a testimony to the six principles which she lays out for us in the first part of the video. She is a natural speaker and engages her audience with her wonderful examples and descriptions.
Annie begins the six principles with fermentation and the fascinating role this process plays in transforming already nutritious foods into even more nutritious superfoods. She explains that vitamins, enzymes and beneficial bacteria are all increased upon fermentation.
Principle number two involves the importance of bone broth. Dru includes complete instructions on how to make bone broth and discusses the role gelatin plays in aiding the digestion of meats.
The next principle focuses on why we should be soaking, sprouting and sour leavening beans, seeds and nuts. Dru explains how these processes neutralize the anti-nutrients found in these foods and makes them more digestible.
The fourth principle discusses why certain animal foods should be eaten raw. Special attention was given to liver and dairy products. Principle number five centered on organ meats. Information was shared concerning the practices of animals in the wild and of indigenous people. When there was an abundance of food animals and indigenous peoples went straight for the organ meats and discarded the muscle meat of their prey. The animals instinctively knew what parts of their prey contained the most dense nutrition. People learned the same lesson either from experience and/or from watching what the animals did.
The last principle revolved around saturated fats and cholesterol. Dru explained how indigenous people made it a priority to save the fat from the animals and how important it is to include fat along with the meat we consume. Fat aides in the digestion of meat and also increases the assimilation of various vitamins and minerals.
Dru stressed the idea that in order for people to be healthy, the animals that they consume must be fed their natural diets. For example, chickens are supposed to eat insects�..not corn. When animals or people eat a food they are not designed to eat, then their health suffers and their fat ratios also change. The animals pass their health status and their fat properties on to us.
In the second half of Dru�s presentation she actually demonstrates how to ferment vegetables and milk products. Included are sauerkraut, ginger carrots, beet kvass, cr�me fraiche, and soft cheeses. She encourages the audience to experiment with fermented foods and stressed the idea that fermentation is not a laboratory science. She added the fact that every batch of a specific fermented food will result in a little bit different end product and that this is ok.
Because our medical system is based on Pasteur�s Germ Theory, we have been taught to fear and obliterate all germs. Dru shares the fact that the human body is largely composed of bacteria and that instead of fearing these organisms, we need to learn how to coexist with them and how to put them to work for our benefit. Better health will result from working with nature instead of against it.
After I finished viewing �Easy To Make Lacto-Fermented Foods�, I realized that watching this video with my family and friends would be an exceptional way to share with them the vital research of Weston A. Price. The information was presented in such a clear, friendly, and interesting manner that it may even convert the most diehard junk foodie �or it would at least plant the seed for further exploration into real nutritional wisdom.
Our fast food technological society is depriving people of the joy of real connections to the food we eat. However, we don�t have to let this continue. We can once again experience the rhythm of the seasons through growing and preserving our own foods. We can increase our health by preparing our foods using more traditional soaking and fermentation methods.
When we turn our focus to restoring and maintaining health as a foundation for increased harmony, not only will the individual benefit but society as a whole will begin to heal. Annie Dru provides a much needed stepping stone in this learning process and I encourage those who want to make a difference to watch this video and to share it with others.