Source
r/Kefir•
-Slugz

struggles starting out

I just started trying to produce kefir from dehydrated grains, and they appear to be working but I'm getting an extremely overpowering yeast smell and flavor after 24h of fermenting at room temperature with a cloth overtop the jar's opening. I'm not sure if this is normal since I've never had homemade kefir before.

Is this normal? If not what are some possible steps I can take to remedy it? For context I got my dehydrated grains 4 days ago and went through the process of activating them as outlined by the instructions

Posted Nov 3, 2019, 6:59 PM UTC

14
ReddyFreddy11•

Dude, you need to have some patience. These are brand new grains (plus, they're dehydrated), so they need some time to get back to normal because they're very stressed. This can take up to 2 weeks (or longer). Just follow the instructions from your seller, and you should be fine.

3
Neofinetia•

Give them time to adjust. If you can’t drink it, toss and try a few more batches. It will take some experimenting with milk amounts and temperature to find what you like. You can also do second ferment. I advise every new person to YouTube how to make kefir by Donna schwenk and watch her video. If you have any other questions she can’t answer go ahead and come back and I’ll try to help.

3
zilsbebechan•

yep and Donna Shwenk said with kefir you should close the jar with the lid

2
JeremyR_•

Change the milk right before it turns to whey or when whey forms.. Dont go by time but looks, but also dont go over 24 hrs in the beginning to revive the grains. Keep doing it every day to get the grains back to life. Probably take a week or so from dehydrated before you even have a drinkable kefir.. Start tracking and timing each ferment so you can stay on top of then and get fast growth.

1