Six Figs Farm LLC

About Water Kefir

I think we’re all looking for ways to keep ourselves and our families healthier these days. Making water kefir (pronounced keh-fear or Kee-fer) is the easiest and possibly least expensive way to add delicious probiotics into your life. My kids LOVE water kefir. In fact, my kids are able to prepare it, it’s just that easy.

First, a word about any fermentation you do. Cleanliness is big. Wash hands before you begin, and if you are interrupted during the process. Using clean equipment and washing bottles thoroughly is important. Don’t ferment within a few feet of the trash or the compost. You only want to ferment the bacteria that you want to ferment! I read in some places that you should de-chlorinate your water. I never did this in the years I had chlorinated water, and never had a problem, but if you’re worried about the chlorine, setting the water in an open container for 12-24 hours is the usual recommendation to de-chlorinate.

Any time I’ve added a new ferment to my routine, it seems really hard. This looks like a lot of steps, but really, it takes about 15 minutes once you have it down. Start with just trying it. New grains might not carbonate for a while, it doesn’t mean you’re doing it wrong. Cultures For Health has a ton of resources, including videos of the process.

You have to have water kefir grains to make water kefir. These can be bought online (mine are from Cultures For Health). Here’s a link so you know what you’re looking for. If you’ve bought them online, follow the directions to reconstitute them. They look something like this.

I use a 64 oz mason jar to hold my 2 sets of water kefir grains. You can use a regular quart, wide mouth mason jar for one set. I use swing-top, 16 oz glass bottles, purchased on Amazon. 1 set of water kefir grains makes 3 – 16 oz bottles each time you make it. I also use a plastic funnel and a stainless steel strainer. You will read in various places not to use stainless steel or metal of any sort. It has worked for me for 5 or so years now, but I don’t leave the grains in the metal for any length of time.

• 

• 

Steps to the process

Strain off your liquid from your grains into the swing-top bottle, using a funnel. Fill the bottle a little over halfway. Water kefir is very forgiving. No need to measure this. You just want a bit more water kefir than juice.

Once your water kefir is distributed into your bottles, return the grains to their mason jar home. Add in 1/4 cup (per 1 set of grains) any kind of sugar, but it has to be sugar; not agave or honey or maple syrup or any other sweetener. Water kefir grains eat sugar and spit out carbonation. Some folks add a pinch of pink salt here, but nothing iodized. Fill the jar the rest of the way with room temperature water and cover with a coffee filter secured with a ring lid and return it to its home (mine lives above my refrigerator)

Using a funnel, add juice to your swing-top bottles to the base of their “necks.” Strong juices taste best. Make sure it’s 100% juice. There are some preservatives that can cause your water kefir not to work.

Cap them and set them in a place where they will be left alone, at room temperature. A cooler is a good place to keep them, with the lid shut. Morning and night, burp them carefully- when they are ready, the carbonation will bubble up. If they are a bit past ready, the carbonation will shoot out with pressure. If you’re not sure, take the bottle outside. Bring a glass with you to attempt catching some of the water kefir as it shoots out. If it’s been too long, the pressure can “explode” out even without opening the cap. I have stains on my ceiling that can attest to that. I have never had the glass shatter, but I have seen pictures of that happening, as well. All that is to say, be careful.

When ready, refrigerate the bottles. This will stop further carbonation from developing. The “how long” of all this is the hard part. In the summer time, or any time it is warm, the water kefir will be ready much quicker, sometimes in as little as 12 hours. In the winter time, or when it is cold, it can take a few days. Start checking at 12 hours. The liquid fermenting in the mason jar with the grains is more forgiving. I don’t bother mine at all until I’m ready to make the water kefir. It can sit there for 2 weeks, or 3 days. It should smell yeasty, fermented, but never outright bad.

Cheat sheet

• Strain fermented liquid into swing-top bottles.
• Add 1/4 cup sugar to grains in mason jar, add room temperature water to fill the jar.
• Cover with coffee filter and ring from mason jar lid.
• Set in room temperature spot where it will be undisturbed.
• Add juice to swing-top bottles.
• Cap the bottles and set in a safe place (a cooler is a good option).
• Burp twice daily, starting 12 hours after you capped the bottles, until ready
• Refrigerate

Grape juice is by far our family’s favorite water kefir. Blueberry pomegranate juice is also up there on our list. Apple juice by itself, or with a cinnamon stick in the bottle is fantastic. I use our elderberry kit, boil it for the juice, and add a tablespoon or two of cooled elderberry juice to each bottle, before I add in the regular juice. I have read not to try orange or lemon juice, as these make yucky stringy stuff, so I haven’t tried those. What are your favorite water kefir recipes? Let us know in the comments!