Everyone knows about the beneficial properties of such a delicious fermented milk drink like kefir. Many people are happy to improve their health by consuming it regularly. This drink is produced using a unique technology and differs from its fermented milk counterparts not only in taste, but also in properties.
The main condition for the preparation of real kefir is the presence of only two main components: milk and sourdough prepared on kefir fungi. It is on them, and not on lactic acid bacteria or any bacterial starter cultures, that this product is produced.
Nowadays it is very difficult to purchase natural kefir, most of what is presented on the shelves is just an "imitation", an attempt by manufacturers to wishful thinking. Therefore, many are interested in the question of whether it is possible to prepare this healthy drink from milk at home and how to do it correctly?
What should be kefir?
The most useful for our digestive system and the body as a whole is fresh kefir, which has not yet turned 3 days from the date of production. It is such a product that stimulates intestinal peristalsis, helps cleanse the body, helps to get rid of extra pounds and restore slimness to the figure.
However, finding such a product on store shelves is quite problematic, since all the most " fresh and correct " is dealt with by buyers quickly enough.
In this case, the only way to get a fresh, tasty and real product on your table is to prepare it yourself at home. Making a homemade fermented milk drink is not so difficult, the most important thing is to purchase high-quality milk and still get the right kefir to use as a sourdough.
If you still haven't found a good product, don't be upset, because the second option for making a delicious homemade drink is to use a special sourdough.
It is important to remember that for any method of making this fermented milk drink at home, the milk used for these purposes must be subjected to heat treatment.
So, pasteurized store milk is enough to bring to a temperature of 40 degrees, and whole homemade milk must be boiled. Baked milk or skim milk can also be used.
It should be understood that the lower the fat content of the milk, the more liquid and "light" the final product will be.
Many people confuse the product that is obtained when milk is sour with kefir. In fact, these are slightly different things.
When milk turns sour naturally, this process occurs due to the activity of lactic acid bacteria. The result is a product called curdled milk. If the milk is sour, no matter how hard you try to make kefir from it, it will no longer work.
Classic recipe
The most popular and time-tested is the so-called classic recipe for homemade kefir.
Ingredients:
- 900 ml of milk;
- 100 ml of natural kefir, always fresh (for sourdough);
- Optionally 1 tbsp. a spoonful of sugar.
Cooking method:
- Pasteurized milk must be heated to a temperature of 37-40 degrees (boiled - cool), put 100 ml of the starter in it and carefully place.
- Further, the container with the mixture must be covered with a thick cotton cloth and sent to a warm, dark place for a day.
- After this time, you need to place the finished drink in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours.
- Stir it before use.
It is best if the resulting fermented milk product is eaten within 1.0-1.5 days, because during this period of time it is most useful. The most important thing is not to forget to leave 100 ml of the drink for the next batch of sourdough.
How to quickly make kefir from milk? In the case when you just need kefir for the next 6-7 hours, and you do not intend to drink from the store, you can use a yogurt maker or a slow cooker.
In this case, it will take 3-6 hours to prepare kefir using these devices, depending on the model and type of device. When using a yogurt maker, the cooking time is also influenced by the ambient temperature - the lower it is, the longer it will take to cook the kefir.
How to make dietary kefir from milk? If you want to use this drink for weight loss, then you must use skim milk to prepare it.
The method of preparation is no different from the one described above, only you should not add sugar to it, and drinking such a drink is best on the second day. Those who, on the contrary, want to gain some weight in milk for making kefir need to add 3-4 tablespoons of fat sour cream.
Nowadays it is not difficult to buy sour cream. But still, homemade sour cream cannot be compared either in quality or in taste with store-bought sour cream. If you think that it is difficult to make it at home, then you are mistaken. Very tasty sour cream can be made from regular kefir.
It turns out to be quite thick, and most importantly, without any thickeners. How much sour cream you get in the end depends on the amount of kefir. For example, from 1 liter of kefir you will get about 350-400 grams of delicious sour cream.
The fat content of sour cream also depends on kefir. The fatter you take kefir, the more high-calorie sour cream you get.
To make homemade sour cream, you will need: kefir, colander and gauze. 
Take a deep bowl, put a colander on it. Fold the cheesecloth in four to six layers and line the bottom and sides of the colander.
Carefully pour all the kefir onto the cheesecloth so that it does not overflow over its edges.
Put the whole structure in the refrigerator and forget about it for six to eight hours.
Now look at what you have done. 
Thickness remained on the gauze, and all the liquid (serum) went into a bowl.
Transfer the resulting sour cream to a plate or jar. 
Based on the numerous reviews of nutritionists, fermented milk drinks should be included in the daily diet. They are healthy, so today we will tell you how to make delicious and completely natural kefir from milk. Everything is quite simple to implement at home, let's get started.
Milk kefir: "classic"
- kefir - 60 ml.
- high fat milk - 500-550 ml.
If you wish, you can replace kefir with sourdough, it is used according to the recommendations on the pack.
1. It doesn't matter what kind of milk you use, homemade or purchased, it still needs to be boiled. Pour the product into a saucepan, place on the stove, when the first bubbles appear, remove and cool slightly.
2. Add kefir (or sourdough, if you use it) into the warm composition. Stir until smooth. Keep in glass, covering the neck with several layers of gauze.
3. Leave the container warm and dark. Timed 8-10 hours. After the allotted time, gently mix the contents, wait another 10 hours.
Kefir from milk and sour cream
- high-fat sour cream - 140-150 gr.
- milk - 1 l.
1. Pour the dairy product into a fireproof dish, place it on the stove and wait until it starts bubbling. Turn off the heat, cool the composition slightly.
2. Introduce sour cream, stir, leave the ingredients for souring in a glass container. Be sure to cover the jar with layers of gauze.
3. After 10 hours, the fermented milk drink will be ready. Try it! It is suitable for babies who are already 8 months old.
Now you know how to make natural kefir from milk with sour cream sourdough. Everything is simple and understandable at home!
The easiest milk kefir recipe
- kefir - 330 ml.
- milk - 1 l.
We will tell you how to make kefir from milk quickly.
1. Pour the milk product into a fireproof cooking container. Send it to the fire and wait until it starts bubbling.
2. Remove from the hotplate and leave to cool partially. Milk should not be cold or roomy, rather warm.
3. Pour kefir into it, stir and transfer the contents into a glass container for infusion. Tie 3 layers of gauze on the neck, mark 12 hours and taste.
Milk kefir with "Narine" sourdough culture
- "Narine" - 1 bottle
- milk - 1.5 l.
The whole process is conventionally divided into 2 steps: the preparation of the leaven and the kefir itself.
1. First we make the leaven. Measure out half a liter of milk, send to the stove and boil for 15 minutes. Turn off, cool to 38-40 degrees.
2. Sterilize the jar, pour this milk into it and add the recipe starter. Leave for 16 hours until creamy and viscous. Refrigerate, refrigerate and keep there.
4. Timed 10-12 hours, insist the fermented milk drink in warm and dark. After the specified time, move the contents to the cold for 2 hours and taste.
The leftover starter culture can be used as needed. Kefir is allowed to be kept in the refrigerator for no longer than 3 days.
Milk kefir with bifidobacteria
- bifidobacteria - 5 servings (1 bottle)
- milk - 0.4 l.
- high-fat sour cream - 30 gr.
1. Measure out 0.15 l. milk, boil it for a quarter of an hour. Cool slightly, stir in sour cream with bifidocteria. Leave on for 3.5 hours.
2. After a specified time, combine the remains of the dairy product with the finished infused starter culture in the amount of 30 ml. Stir and wait 12 hours. After this time, the kefir will be ready.
Homemade kefir is a delicious, healthy and completely natural fermented milk drink. It is easy to make it on your own using milk, sour cream or bifidobacteria. Try and experiment!
