If you’ve never made kefir before, this is probably the easiest way to start. No kefir grains, no fancy equipment, and no expensive starter kits. We used plain store-bought kefir from Aldi and turned a half gallon of milk into homemade kefir right on the kitchen counter.This method worked surprisingly well and cost only a few dollars.
What We Used
1/2 gallon whole milk
1 cup unsweetened plain kefir
Clean milk jug
Thermometer (optional)
We used:
Friendly Farms Whole Milk from Aldi
Friendly Farms Unsweetened Kefir from Aldi
The Process
We started on:
Sunday, May 31 at 8:30 PM The house temperature was: 76.6°F
Steps
- Open the half gallon of milk.
- Remove about 1 cup of milk.
- Shake kefir well.
- Add 1 cup of plain unsweetened kefir.
- Put the lid back on and gently shake.
- Leave the jug out at room temperature.
- Check the taste periodically and gently shake once or twice a day.
- When it becomes tangy and slightly thickened, refrigerate and enjoy.
We let it ferment until:
Tuesday, June 2 at 5:30 PM
That’s about 45 hours total fermentation time.
The Result
By the end, the milk had thickened into kefir with a tangy flavor and cultured smell. The live bacteria from the store-bought kefir successfully fermented the milk. Now we have nearly a full half gallon of homemade kefir for a fraction of the price of buying individual bottles.
A Few Notes
Use plain unsweetened kefir with live cultures.
Whole milk makes a thicker kefir.
Keep everything reasonably clean.
Fermentation time changes with room temperature.
Refrigerate once it reaches the flavor and thickness you like.
Is This Traditional Kefir?
Not exactly.
Traditional kefir is usually made with kefir grains, which are a living colony of bacteria and yeast. This method is more like a “backslopped cultured milk,” similar to how yogurt starters are reused.
But for a simple homemade probiotic drink, it works great.
Final Thoughts
Sometimes old-fashioned kitchen experiments are the best ones. A jug of milk, a little patience, and a cup of kefir turned into a whole new batch sitting right on the counter.
If you already buy kefir, this is an easy way to stretch your grocery budget and keep probiotics in the fridge.
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Open the half gallon of milk.
- Remove about 1 cup of milk.
- Add 1 cup of plain unsweetened kefir.
- Put the lid back on and gently shake.
- Leave the jug out at room temperature.
- Check the taste periodically and gently shake once or twice a day.
- When it becomes tangy and slightly thickened, refrigerate and enjoy.