Kefir, Anyone?

Ok...so what IS kefir anyway, you ask?

It's a cultured milk product similar to yogurt, but differing enough to make it vital to digestive health. The thing about yogurt is that it only feeds the friendly bacteria that you already have in residence. Kefir actually replenishes the bacteria, and is considered a great probiotic. I've been doing this Colonix cleanse, and they strongly encourage a probiotic. So I use kefir, and on occasion, Garden of Life's (Jordan Rubin) Primal Defense supplement with homeostatic soil organisms which promote healthy bacterial count and Ph levels in the gut. His products are all cultured as well, to take advantage of the way the enzymes break down and improve the assimilation of nutrients. Oh..and he emphasizes whole foods to feed the body verses a specific supplement to treat a problem. I haven't totally given up on supplements, but I'm coming around to the "whole food" way of thinking. 'Nough said...

Ok...back to topic. It's really cool how kefir is made too. You can start off with the packets from your health food store, but the best is to use the little globules called "grains" that host the bacterial culture. They propagate through the medium, whether milk, water, or fruit juice. There are different kinds of grains for different things, and if you make kefir cheese the whey can be used to make other cultured foods like kraut or kimchee. (Sally Fallon has a ton of cultured recipes.)

I've done a lot of research, and finally found some one to send grains to a friend and I. There are several "sharing" sites where people offer to send or let you pick up their extra grains. We are able to get almost organic, whole creamline milk that is not ultra pastuerized to make it with.

It might take a little patience to get to "know" your grains and how they work. It took a few weeks for the grains to recover from the trip, and I was so relieved when I tasted a batch and it tasted cultured and NOT soured like the previous. It's similar to yogurt in flavor, and after it ripens it can get a pleasant, effervescent "tang" to it. Yumm!

It's great in smoothies too. Many people report feeling so much better after starting to drink kefir on a regular basis, and I think it has helped my digestion as well.

The best site for info is Dom's Kefir site. He talks a lot about how kefir works, its properties and things you can make with it, etc... Check it out! There's a yahoo group as well that will bombard you with reasonably useful info and discussions on sourdough and things of that nature.

It's been amazing to me to think about how "clean" America is and how concerned we (I!) am with that. And it's that very thing that robs us of organisms necessary for life! And the whole cultured food goes against our American way of thinking too. We want clean countertops with no weird growing things on it. *grin*

The best part of kefir will be sharing with someone when my little guys decide to make some babies. Supposedly as the grains grow pieces will break off to become a globule of their own. I guess I'll have to keep a close eye out.

Ok...time to go drink a glass and gross my family out!