Making milk kefir cheese. What is milk kefir cheese? How does milk kefir work?

Today we are Making milk kefir cheese. We will be answering the questions what is milk kefir cheese? And How does milk kefir work? This video will take you step by step through the milk kefir cheese making process and also talk about where you can get milk kefir grains.
We also talk about how milk kefir grains work to make cheese, timings for the fermentation process of milk kefir cheese and anything else related to the milk kefir cheese making process.
I have been making milk kefir cheese for a few weeks now and really wanted to share my process as milk kefir cheese is now one of the staples of our homestead food production.
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[@blueanchor1440]

Definitely going to try this, thanks for the concise and well thought-out instructions!

[@SelfSufficientHub]

Thanks 😊👍

[@serenawood6991]

It is just hilarious how excited I am about this! 😂 Thank you for a great video! ❤ Well done!

[@bbrown6515]

Great video, thank you. I keep my grains in a small butter muslin bag or a stainless steel tea ball hanging over the side of the jar. Makes it very easy to separate the grains when the kefir has fermented.

[@SomewhereInIndiana1816]

great idea!

[@americanmade1701]

Me too

[@CarlaLemar]

I thought stainless was a no no??

[@LovethisLife785]

Metal and Kefir donot go together. Use glass or plastic, but never anything metal.

[@karenzimmer7607]

​@CarlaLemar I did too

[@psrosemary]

I buy kefir (as starter!) at Costco every six months or so. I don't separate the grains from the kefir. I simply add 2T of kefir (milk + grains) to about 850 gr milk in a glass jar with a loose lid, then place the jar in a yogurt incubator for 5 hours. I pop the jar in the fridge and use it like yogurt, saving 2 T for the next batch. Strain for cheese. Use the whey from the cheese + more milk for ricotta. Use the whey from the ricotta for dogs, plants, rice, bread, and smoothies. In Mexico we buy milk in packs of 12 1-liter boxes for apprx $1/liter. I can't believe how much kefir and cheese and whey I can wring out of every box!

[@sherrykunkle1776]

1 : 1 ratio one tablespoon of Kefir grains to one cup of milk - 24 hours set up strain the Kefir and for the best do a double fermination add a orange peel and a vanilla bean allow to set up for one hr then put in the icebox until the next day ---

[@Backwoodsgardener]

Thank you soooo much. I have been attempting to make this cheese unsuccessfully for years!! I think you nailed it by placing the strained kefir in the fridge first, then days later begin the process. I can hardly wait to try. Thanks again, Backwoods Gardeners from N. Idaho, USA

[@Jloppy23]

I was having the same issue. I couldn't get the kefir thick enough to stay in the cheesecloth. I have a batch going now. I will remove the grains and put the strained kefir in the fridge for a day or two before putting in the cheesecloth. This should greatly increase my yield. Thanks!

[@5FmUke]

I feed my Kefir Grain Inulin as well in the milk to make them grow. The Kefir is extra extra thick.

[@karenzimmer7607]

Oh great..I have a big bag of inulin I use for making yogurt

[@susanbrauchli]

Try adding some dried garlic crumbs and a pinch of curry and turmeric, it’s awesome.

[@gracematerski9487]

I have been making kefir cheese for about 6 months but I also make my own butter from it too😀

[@wendya9973]

How do you make butter from it?

[@gracematerski9487]

Look for a video on KZbin " how to make a butter from kefir grains. It will explain the whole process. Easy and delicious

[@tilly-apearce124]

WOW been looking to do something like this for ages, been making milk kefir for long time....thank you so much for sharing your experience and great video, very well explained, short and sweet to the point. brilliant subscribed

[@BaconBeerBullets]

This is worth a subscribe.

[@karenreaves3650]

I have only made yogurt I cannot wait to start making Kefir and Kefir cheese. Thank you for sharing your experience. ❤

[@SomewhereInIndiana1816]

great video, thank you, sir! Looking forward to trying this.....

[@urbantone]

Thank’s I just made some magic tasting of Kefir cheese, Garlic powder, vegan variant of Parmesan that’s powder, A.Vogel Hebamare herbal salt. Tastes similar to sour cream onion chips

[@krispringle83]

Will add the list. Just started my bacon yesterday after your video a few days ago. Your very much inspiring me before more self sufficient. Thanks :-)

[@SelfSufficientHub]

That is awesome to hear!! Thank you 🙏😊

[@fionn5305]

Thank you so much, I have been buying kefir cheese for years and love it better than yogurt, buying this cheese is really expensive now, since the gaugers are benefiting from the pandemic. So now I will make my own thanks to your magical video. This is how I love my kefir cheese for breakfast, kefir cheese with fresh blueberries, unsweetened cocoa powder, ashwagandha and MCT 8, I love the taste of tang so I do not sweeten. It is also magical as a substitute for creme fraiche, sour cream and similar; again loving the tangy taste I use it all the time in savory cream dishes even, creaming up soups.THANK YOU!!!!

[@Fizzicist21]

Great video. It was so nice that you compared kefir to kombucha and sour dough.

[@RaiseYourVibes333]

TY🥰just made butterMilk & sour cream which is amazing. So now I’ll try cheese next!

[@sandraolsen6596]

That sounds amazing, do you think you could tell us how to make both of them please. That would be ever so nice to try to make. Thank you very much for your support and appreciate your help. I am from Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin USA 🎉🎉😊😊😊😊

[@kindredk9standardpoodles280]

So I bought some kefir from a farmer's market. I took some of the kefir without the grain and put it into some raw cow's milk. That bacteria causes my milk to clabber into a solid. I keep doing this over and over again. At this point what product do I have, Is it a kefir clabber?

[@christopherrixon3941]

Just made first batch ever and it’s fantastic thank you for video.

[@binathere2574]

Thank you for pronouncing it correctly.

[@laurenpro9957]

I mean are you really that bothered by people mispronouncing it that you had to comment thanks for saying it right?? Weird. People mispronounce things all the time, it’s not a big deal.

[@ricengo7219]

learn so many tips here! thank you so much!

[@llt4000]

Great demonstration!!

[@SelfSufficientHub]

Thank you 😊👍

[@geoffanddebshipton6797]

Have some draining in the fridge right now! We tried our first little test batch of cheese on the weekend Carl - loved it! It will definitely become a staple. Thanks for confirming we were on the right track with ours. 👍

[@SelfSufficientHub]

Great stuff guys 👍

[@bevc8306]

Thank you so much for this great tutorial ❤

[@christopherrixon3941]

Going to try it for first time will let you know how it turns out.

[@austin2842]

Thank you for sharing. I'll give this a try tomorrow with my kefir grains. How much milk did you ferment to produce that amount of cheese?

[@vickiehat1074]

Thank you. Same way I do it.

[@shannonward4393]

Bear with me... Don't throw the whey aw-hey, you can use it in so many different wheys... I'll show myself out. I'm definitely considering trying this. My partner grew up in the country and in a situation where certain self sufficient activities aren't so fun. Particularly fermented food. Do you think this would be a good start to introducing fermented food, or is there something better? I know she loves her cheese, so I'm thinking yes. Love your work old man

[@SelfSufficientHub]

Thanks Kiddo! Yes this would be a great place to start, particularly if they like stronger cheeses like goats cheese. I personally haven’t enjoyed fermented veges until this year - for me it’s been an acquired taste that I needed to work at, and my tip there was to reduce the length of my fermenting time so they weren’t as strong, but that’s really a whole new can of worms..

[@longandshort6639]

What about making cheese from the excess kefir grains? Have you done that?

[@jesuisravi]

Good job!

[@suzanneouellette1736]

You can add spices or herbs

[@FitforKings_ley]

Adding it to the list!

[@SelfSufficientHub]

You won’t regret it 😊

[@carmenzamastil1545]

Awesome, Thankyou

[@chqshaitan1]

great video, you have another subscriber :D

[@alextodd6828]

Dear Carl, Have got, got, got to have a go at that one!!!🥛🐐🧀👍 Looks fantastic, and so simple. As soon as we start producing goats milk that's definitely my first option. From milk to cheese in four days! And, I'm already thinking of putting a bit of green egyptian walking onion in - what a homestead treat! Keep up the content - Fabulous as always!!! Best, Alex - NetZero Homestead

[@SelfSufficientHub]

Thanks Alex! Yep the onions will work perfectly 👍

[@LouiseLishmanct]

I bought goats milk from a store and made kefir milk, I tell you it smelled and tasted gross I had to throw it away. I dont know if it has to do with the goats feeding or maybe the stables were not clean enough. Really disappointed

[@billiesheads212]

Loved this info. I just started with 1 tblsp of kefir grains a week ago. Now I have close to 300 g of kefir grains. If I wanted to store them in the fridge to slow them down (I'm overwhelmed with kefir right now)how much milk should I put in the jar.?

[@barbsdee3831]

I’m on a mission to get my gut biome in order. I’ve been doing lots of research as I want to make kefir. So many pronunciations 🤣🤣 Google says Kee-fur! I’m also making kombucha so I should be skipping down the street 😂 Feed your veg patch and compost with the whey! 👍🏼

[@mikairu2944]

fair warning that kefir probiotics die quickly once you sweeten them and die instantly if you heat them beyond certain point, so kefir cheese that you spread on toast might lose a great deal of their probiotic appeal. It's great that you can do spreads to eat on room temperature crackers for example, or sweetening kefir yoghurt right before eating and still get the probiotics

[@ranns160]

Thank you so much. Are you on any other social media?

[@alexwidmer7421]

Even though it is store bought, is it raw or is it pasteurized milk please?

[@altjudit]

Many sources on milk & water kefir state that metal utensils should be avoided. I see that you use metal spoon.

[@timguinn5376]

I would like to know that too

[@donpaul1355]

Stainless steel is just fine to use

[@franceswatts4001]

Provided the kefir is not in direct contact with metal for a long time (an hour or more), it’s fine. Rinse the sieve and spoon very well. The lactic acid causes rust, which will end up in the kefir and ultimately you.

[@thehighlandlife2023]

Love this! How and where do you get the kefir grains from? Am really wanting to give this a go!

[@SelfSufficientHub]

Hi Faye, you can get them from Amazon for just £3.99 at the moment Live Milk Kefir Grains to make kefir milk drink amzn.eu/d/gXjkDWX

[@riddersjc]

I tried making my first kefir cheese a few days ago - it was edible but tasted quite strongly of cheap white wine - is this just the general flavour or can this be avoided or mellowed somehow?

[@mscekennedy]

👍 new subscriber.

[@SelfSufficientHub]

Awesome - thanks 😊

[@mariajackson7024]

Hi Carl, hope your all well, I know you said you can keep the cheese for up to 2 weeks in the fridge, but where and how long can you keep the grains without using them? I’m guessing you still have to feed them etc, I hope this makes sense, great video as ever, keep smiling x

[@SelfSufficientHub]

Hi Maria, thanks! Yes they still need feeding but if you keep them in the fridge you could give them a pint of milk and not worry about them for 3-4 weeks then feed them a fresh pint of milk. They could probably go longer but that would be the same as 3-4 days at room temperature and mine have done that with no trouble.

[@dfertefwergwergrfgwr]

I dry mine in a airfryer at the proof setting. I set it at 105F, flipping them over have way through. Probably had it drying for 4 or five hours. Once I decided to start using them again I had to rehydrate them in an inch or two of milk each day for maybe three days.

[@mscekennedy]

Are grains reusable? And how do you save grains that are unused? Thanks for any help, as I'd like to start up making cheese.

[@SelfSufficientHub]

Yes the grains are reusable- and they multiply. If you see the first part of the video where I am using the colander, what I am doing is separating the grains from the batch I have just made and putting them into the next batch. Hope that makes sense but please do follow up if it doesn’t.

[@mscekennedy]

Thank you. I just ordered on amazon 😊. ...Also I subscribed to your channel today.

[@gracecotton9819]

Thank you for this. I am new to kefir and recently used up some out-of-date goat's milk. It had separated extremely quickly, and I saved the curd for cheese, which we found too strong. Did you use cow's milk or goat's milk for your demonstration? I noticed that you said it was goatie, and I was hoping that cow's milk would not be goatie.

[@SelfSufficientHub]

Hi Grace- I used cows milk and it wasn’t the same goaty as goats cheese (which I also make), just moving along that spectrum. It’s kinda hard to describe - I hope you get the results you are looking for 🤞😊

[@argentumenimrex3578]

Do you still have the same bacterial colony in the cheese as in the initial kefir ?

[@ooXChrissieXoo]

so by that theory can I put some kefir cheese into milk to cultivate kefir grain? I want to start growing kefir again, but I cannot find anyone with a colony. I can find kefir cheese. Let me know if you know that work thanks. more than likely I will have to buy the cheese and find out

[@LeeHill66]

Do you still get the benefits from probiotics with cheese ?

[@nellymollica7125]

How do you start from scratch where you bay the starter please thank you soo I can make thank you

[@sabiahchumari3567]

where to get the kafir grain . can we make our own grain? I am from Japan

[@johnshankster2464]

It takes a week in the fridge. But it’s more sour.

[@whereisgeorge1226]

Using a METAL SPOON?! 😮

[@lorettamargaret2243]

Stainless is fine to use

[@lesley-annmathews7971]

Should you use a metal spoon 😮

[@lorettamargaret2243]

Stainless is okay to use, I have never had a problem

[@beautytounveil320]

Is it similar to an American cream cheese?

[@richardpearson9337]

No we have cows here not buffalo.

[@franceswatts4001]

I would think so. I am confused by the other person’s comment about buffalos though. To me, it’s like a very thick Greek yoghurt but not as sweet.

[@KarmaCal57]

KEE-FUR, not KEF-EAR. Never use a metal spoon or sieve to strain Kefir. It will react with the acidity of the Kefir. Plastic colander/sieve and a plastic/silicon spatula. Just a word of advice, not a criticism. Happy farming 🙏

[@franceswatts4001]

No, he is pronouncing it absolutely correctly KUH-FEER. Ask any Turkish, Asian or Middle Eastern person, which is where kefir originated. It is usually Americans who use KEE-FUR. Also, it is perfectly ok to use a metal spoon and sieve as the contact time is very short. The lactic acid in the kefir does not have time to start the rusting process on the metal.

[@caretakerfochr3834]

@@franceswatts4001 Quite right - and for the record I have had a gut full of hand-me-down internet lore posing as the gospel on what you can and cannot do in making kefir.

[@presidentoxford]

Hey viewers. This guy couldn't teach chewing gum. " Grains" of Kefir are a misnomer. They resemble cauliflower florets. His method is crap. Pour kefir milk off the grains into a clean jar & let it coagulate on yr table. Use cloth or stocking to strain. Store curd in airtight plastic container in fridge.

[@gooberfries6692]

Looks great! Thank you for sharing.😋