water kefir?

[Tina D]

Is water kefir or kombucha? I was thinking of getting some starter.

[strangedahlia]

Tina, I brew both kombucha and water kefir daily, but what exactly is your question?

[spicyfull]

Tina, I brew both kombucha and water kefir daily, but what exactly is your question?

What is Water Kefir? I tried doing Kombucha from a Bottle of RAW Organic but had NOOOOOOOOOOO Sucess. NOPE..NONE.. What are you doing to be SO SUCCESSFULL? PLEASE SHARE...........

[EZ rider]

What do u use for a starter ?

[Tina D]

Sorry,I ment is water kefir ok on a raw diet as it need sugar.

[strangedahlia]

Tina,

There's a lot of debate over Kombucha/Kefir. My own personal life philosophy tells me life is too serious to be taken seriously and not sweat the petty things, so let that be my disclaimer.

I decided to shift to a mostly raw/living food lifestyle for the benefits I gain from it, not as an opposition to other movements, so what I do might not always be considered "100% raw" by some purists. However, my body and soul are satisfied, and I'm happy.

So here's the debate: Kefir and Kombucha are live cultures that are healthy for you and are an amazing source of nutriments, trace minerals, and all the goodies that will keep you in balance and shape.

As long as you are careful because every ferment product becomes acidic (a tip is to mix lemon juice with it to balance it before ingesting).

Now, the culture requires concentrated sugars to grow and remain healthy, which is un-raw and processed. But the process sugar is transformed chemically and serves as food for the bacterias to live on while they grow and replicate, so what you drink is essentially raw in this aspect...

The debate could go on for pages, so I think it's best for everyone to make their own mind about it and see where their own ethics and philosophies will allow them to go. I just don't like rejecting something that is good for me on the basis of faith - no matter what kind.

EZ Ryder and Spicyfull: A friend shared some of his cultures with me, as they both grow and create new ones during the during process and can easily be given away or stored for backup use.

I've never tried growing them straight from the bottled product, although I know some claim to have done it, I find it much easier and more satisfying to go with a healthy culture first.

If you're interested I might share some of my future batches, or if you can't wait, the first ones I had were obtained on e-bay relatively cheap.

Oh, and water kefir is a different brand of Kefir that thrives in sugary water rather than milk and produces healthy probiotics amongst other benefits similar to those of kombucha. The drink is sparkling and can be mixed with juices or have vanilla added to for a very refreshing summer drink and an alternative to soft drink cravings :)

[green jeanie]

hey hey strange dahlia

please expand on your kefir moves :D

i am crazy for kefir but have yet to feed the frenzy in a vegan way

i would love to make vegan kefir.

i have no love for making nut and seed mylks

please tell me more, water and sugar.......water and : honey? maple syrup? agave?

[strangedahlia]

green jeanie,

I have heard that it might be possible to turn milk kefir grains into water kefir, but have never tried it myself. Otherwise, if you can get your hands on water kefir grains, the process is very easy.

Use mineral or spring water if possible, if that is not possible, tap water will have to be left at room temperature for about 24 hours in advance to let the chemicals evaporate, and it's a good idea to mix in half a crushed mineral/calcium tablet to make sure the culture can feed on it.

I myself use turbinado sugar for mine, but you should be fine using syrups although you will have to experiment with dosage yourself.

I also like to chop half a small banana into thin slices and drop them in the mix to help feed the culture with natural sugars and nutriments, while giving the water kefir a bit sweeter taste.

Same as with milk kefir, 24-48 hours is usually all you need to brew your water kefir depending on quantity and your own taste.

You can then drink it as is, mix in a bit of vanilla extract (tastes similar to cream soda, yummy!) or pour in some juice and go for a second fermentation cycle (but you should never use juice in first fermentation, stick with plain water, sugar, and fruits bits if you want a light flavor) and enjoy! :)

[green jeanie]

wow this is exciting

i find the energy of the milk ingestion to be pretty heavy and i swear it gives me a mental consciousness of fear "there won't be enough"......so much so that i have stopped to think about it deeply. I would guess that would be the experience of a lactating parent if someone was coming to take their milk.."what about my babies!!!"

i also hate the plastic containers it comes in.....the raw milk or the pre-packaged kefirs

ANYWAY, thanks! kefir has helped me so so much

so thanks, i'll get some grains asap!!

[strangedahlia]

Happy I could help spread the love :)