The health benefits of consuming water kefir are endless. They are a natural supplier of probiotics to our digestive track. Probiotics refers to the healthy bacteria that usually feeds on the “bad” unhealthy bacteria in our stomach and intestines. Bacterial overgrowth can lead to many illnesses some of which include fungi, yeast infections, indigestion, obesity, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Crohn’s Disease, skin disorders, etc. By drinking water kefir you will bring balance to your internal microflora. Many people take a probiotic supplement daily for this particular reason but I prefer to drink the water kefir. It’s much tastier and more affordable in the long run.
Dr. Gabriel Cousens, a leading expert in the raw food community, writes in his book “Rainbow Green Live Food Cuisine“:
“Kefir grains produce right-rotating L(+) lactic acid, which is an important constituent of the human body. It is particularly important in the prevention of cancer and has been used experimentally with success in the treatment of cancer. In addition, right-rotating lactic acid may help maintaining healthy functioning of the heart. According to some researchers, the cells of the heart muscle obtain their energy primarily from right-rotating lactic acid.”
Another health advantage of water kefir is that people who do not wish to consume dairy or have a vegan type diet may find that water kefir provides the living probiotics without the need for dairy or tea cultured products, like kombucha.Vegans also may like to know that through the fermentation process kefir becomes an excellent source of vitamin B12, and is high in vitamins B1 and B6.
Diabetics, in particular, could greatly benefit from drinking kefir. Since the finished product, if bottled, will produce a carbonated beverage, it provides an alternative to sweet soda drinks. In that sense, anyone from children to adults can enjoy water kefir guilt-free.
How to make water kefir
Making water kefir is super easy and fun. To help illustrate the process I have created two video tutorials – one on how to make the basic water kefir recipe, and the other on how to make flavored water kefir. You can watch them below.
Tools Required:
- Plastic strainer
- Plastic measuring spoons
- Plastic spoon
- Measuring cup
- 8-cup (1/2 gallon) Ball Mason jar
- 2-3 Glass pitchers or Ball Mason jars
Notes: it’s very important that you NEVER use any metal utensils or tools when handling living cultures such as kefir grains. They don’t like metal and may be adversely affected if exposed to it.
Ingredients needed:
- Filtered or spring water
- Water kefir grains
- Organic cane sugar
- Sucanat, raw sugar or coconut palm sugar
- Unsweetened, unsulfured dried fruit (apricots, figs or raisins)
- Organic lemon (optional)
Notes: never use tap water because it contains chemicals such as chlorine and fluoride. They will kill the grains. Make sure the dried fruit doesn’t have any sulfur dioxide added to it. Many conventional brands add this chemical to keep the dried fruit looking bright and fresh.
Check out this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7svkQuUYYc
Basic water kefir formula:1 Cup of water
- 1 Tbsp. of sugar
- 1 Tbsp. of kefir grains
- Few pieces of dried fruit
Notes: The ratio of 1-1-1 is what you need to follow.
My video tutorial recipe:
- 6 Cups of water
- 6-8 Tbsp. kefir grains
- 4 Tbsp. organic cane sugar
- 2 Tbsp. coconut palm sugar
- 4 pieces of dried apricots and figs
- 2 lemon wedges
Notes: When dividing the sugar always add more organic cane sugar and less sucanat, raw or coconut palm sugar. Kefir grains thrive primarily on the organic cane sugar. The other sugar and dried fruit are added to give them additional nutritional support their growth.
Check out part 2 of the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8YYkzBaNzM
Source: http://zoevblog.com/2010/03/17/what-is-water-kefir-and-how-to-make-it/
