Depending on which website you read, milk kefir grains are said to have been either a gift from the Prophet Muhammad, food eaten by Abraham, impossible for scientists to recreate, or over 4,000 years old. Surprisingly, much of this isn't supported by historical evidence. The true story of kefir is even more fascinating and bizarre.
Modern kefir has a surprisingly well-documented history dating to the North Caucasus and early twentieth-century Russia, while many of the much older stories are fascinating but poorly supported by historical evidence. Some parts of kefir's history have been lost entirely. Other parts can be pieced together from historical records, archaeology, and later evidence.
In this article, I'll look at what archaeology, historical records, scientific research, and religious traditions actually tell us about kefir. Some of the oldest and most often told stories that sound perfectly believable are surprisingly poorly supported, some of the newest discoveries are genuinely exciting, and one chapter in kefir's history is so bizarre it sounds like it was lifted straight from a fairy tale.
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| Straining my milk kefir |
The Extraordinary Story of How Kefir Reached Modern Russia
Evidence level: Strong
Remember the fairy tales/fables where something bad would happen, and everyone would lament if only someone could tell the Tsar then he would make everything alright? Well, this is pretty much what happened with milk kefir.
The first reliable references to kefir grains that can be traced to today come from Russia, and are surrounded by a true story that sounds like a fairy tale.
Until the early 1900s, kefir wasn't produced in Central Russia, it was only occasionally brought from an area of the Caucasus in south west Russia, and sold in Moscow at a very high price. Only the drink itself could be bought, and it was generally used as medicine. At this time kefir was only for the rich, as common people could not afford the high price attached to this 'miracle drink'.
The first mention of Kefir in literature I can find is: 'Сиповичъ. Сообщеніе о кефирѣ въ протоколѣ засѣданія Кавказск. Мед. Общ. 1-го Іюля 1867 г'. This roughly translates to: Sipovich. Report on kefir in the minutes of the meeting of the Caucasian Medical Society, July 1, 1867.
Russian officials heard of the rumored health benefits of the nomadic Karachay people living around Mount Elbrus (in the Caucasus region), these stories combined with claims in the early literature mentioning the health benefits of kefir made it sound too good not to investigate further.
Historical texts vary a bit here, most documents refer to milk kefir coming from the North Caucasus, and a number of references are made to Khurzuk and the Karachay communities near Mount Elbrus. All of them agree on one point: the region where the earliest kefir history is documented was within Russia.
To keep the people strong and healthy, the government wanted to obtain kefir grains and make kefir themselves. Studies of the drink itself were always positive, but kefir can't be made without using grains. To benefit the people and society as a whole, they hoped to make kefir themselves and eventually be able to make kefir available for average people.
Around 1907 or 1908 the All Russian Physicians’ Society (the name of this society varies a bit, and may have been translated slightly wrong) requested Nikolay Ivanovich Balandov, who was head of the Moscow Dairy, to source milk kefir grains. The story goes that Balandov tried to buy kefir grains, and was refused multiple times. He knew his chances of getting anything were low, so he sent a woman named Irina Tikhonovna Sakharova.
The idea was Irina would go with a team to the Caucasus, and she would charm a prince called Bek-Mirza Barcherov (I am not sure how to spell this name, or if he was even a 'prince', but he did rule over an aul) into giving her some kefir gains. The prince was apparently quite taken by Irina, but there was strong tradition never to share kefir grains with outsiders, so he refused to give her any kefir grains. Irina and her team eventually left to return home empty handed.
On her way home, Irina and her companions were stopped by the prince's men, and Irina was kidnapped to become the prince's bride. This 'kidnapping a bride' thing was common in that part of the world at the time.
The rest of her party returned to Moscow, and petitioned the Tsar for Irina's release. The Tsar intervened, ordered Irina's release, and demanded that she be offered adequate compensation. This is where the story takes a twist.
Irina could have asked for money or gold, but instead asked for kefir grains. Not wanting to contradict the Tsar and start a war, these demands were begrudgingly met. As compensation for being kidnapped, Irina was given around 4.5 kg (10 pounds) of milk kefir grains.
There is an alternate version of this story that is far less told, and far less romantic. Shortly after arriving in Kislovodsk, Irina (accompanied by a factory manager) set out for a Karachay aul to visit 25 year old Prince Bek-Mirza Barcherov. The prince supplied milk to the Balandov firm. Barcherov was captivated by Irina’s beauty, and presented her with 10 pounds of kefir grains as a gift. I don't know which version is true, but I can understand why this less incredible version would not be shared as widely across the internet.
In both versions of this story, the milk kefir grains were then taken to the Moscow Dairy, and studied and multiplied and divided. Production of milk kefir was ramped up rather quickly.
The first milk kefir produced from these grains was given to patients at Botkin hospital. Later it was sold through pharmacies as a health tonic.
While kefir was intended to be made as a medicine, it was so simple to produce that it was then sold in shops and (after kefir grains found their way out of the dairy) started to be made in people's houses.
By September 1908 the first bottles of milk kefir were sold in Moscow. By the 1930s milk kefir was produced in large scale and was widely available across Russia.
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| Modern Russia has significant historical ties to milk kefir |
Kefir in archaeology
Evidence level: Moderate
Researchers recovered ancient proteins and microbial DNA consistent with kefir-like fermentation from ~4,000 year old tombs of Tarim mummies. This has sparked many over-hyped and over-simplified reports of the Chinese making the world's oldest cheese.
The Tarim mummies were discovered in the territory of the Uyghur Autonomous Region, this is located in present-day Western China. The story gets more interesting, as while this is in current day China the mummies are not 'Chinese' in the true sense of the word. It has been determined that the mummies had blonde hair, a genetic trait that is remarkably uncommon/absent among genetically Chinese people.
While the tombs sit within the borders of modern day China, in times past various Siberian people and other groups also inhabited in that area. While the ancient tombs are located within the boundary of present-day China, the people in these tombs were genetically South Siberians.
Current evidence suggests that the Tarim mummies had eaten something similar to kefir ie it had kefir proteins. We don't know if they had kefir. We don't know if the kefir of today descended from what was being consumed by the Tarim mummies, or if it was lost and the grains we use to make kefir today emerged some time later in history.
Religious references to kefir
Evidence level: Weak
Kefir and the Bible
Milk kefir is old, it has been around for a long time, and we don't know for sure when or how it was created. While there are a few claims on the internet about milk kefir and the Bible, and there is a vague claim about milk kefir coming from Mohammad, it is unlikely that any of these claims are true.
Some people claim that kefir is mentioned in the bible. Most of these claims are highly improbable, though not entirely impossible. The bible repeatedly mentions eating 'curds' which may possibly be referring to kefir, but it probably just means they were eating curds.
Abraham lived to around 175 years old, which was not overly uncommon for people of that time. The internet has a few pages that claim scrolls in Turkey exist which attribute Abraham's longevity to consuming kefir. I am not sure that these scrolls ever existed. Other than a few internet sites (which reference nothing), I can find no mention of these scrolls. From Genesis 18:8 we learn that Abraham consumed milk curd, and it is safe to assume he likely consumed various types of fermented milk. While it is not impossible he had kefir, it is extremely unlikely the kefir of today is descended from those grains. Without finding huge numbers of references in historical literature, as well as strong religious traditions mentioning kefir, it is more likely that if kefir existed in Abraham's time, it later died out, and was recreated at a later date.
I have read internet claims that Noah received kefir grains from God to help him and his family survive on the ark. I find this claim to be highly unlikely at best. I am yet to find any source of this claim other than web pages that don't reference anything other than other web sites also making this claim.
Moses lived until about the age of 120. Around 40 years of his life he was in the desert eating (among other things) manna. There are some highly dubious claims online that manna was kefir grains. Given that manna is described as tasting sweet, and kefir is best described as sour, this interpretation seems difficult to reconcile with the biblical description. While we don't know for certain what manna was, it is likely that manna was actually secretions from scale insects.
Even if fermented milk resembling kefir grains existed in biblical times, there is no evidence linking it directly to the heirloom kefir grains used today.
Kefir and Islam
There are a few internet sites mentioning kefir grains as being a gift from Mohammad to his people and/or to Orthodox Christians. Many of these internet claims say the grains were a gift from Mohammad to his people and to Orthodox Christians.
Kefir is not mentioned in Sunnah or Hadith, and kefir being a gift from Mohammad is not a universally held belief among Muslims, all of which immediately casts serious doubt upon this claim.
Kefir is not a common traditional religious food of all Muslim people. Many nomadic Muslims produce and consume various other types of fermented milk instead of kefir. There is little evidence that kefir occupies a unique or honoured place across Islamic tradition today, which further weakens claims that it was universally regarded as a gift from Muhammad
It seems illogical that Mohammad would only give this gift to Orthodox Christians, and not to his own people as well. Again this part of the story casts serious doubt on this claim.
I am not certain, but don't think Mohammad travelled into the Caucasus mountains or any part of south west Russia (which is the location of the first modern historical references to milk kefir). It would be more likely that if kefir grains came from Mohammad, they would have entered the world somewhere else, and spread from there.
I also found IslamQA which states they "haven’t come across any authentic narrations citing the incident above". While I don't know how reliable that site is, the response was prepared by Islamic scholars.
For the above reasons, I find it highly unlikely that Mohammad giving the grains to his people or to Orthodox Christians could be the origin of kefir. The only thing that gives this story any weak credibility is that milk kefir recently came from the Caucasus region, which is Muslim dominated and would have had Orthodox Christians in early years. The part about Mohammad not travelling there makes this story difficult to reconcile with the historical evidence currently available.
Scientists can make kefir grains (but not the ones people use at home)
Evidence level: Strong
Contrary to a common internet claim, scientists have successfully produced kefir grain-like microbial structures capable of fermenting milk. They are not identical to the heirloom grains used today, but they demonstrate that kefir grains are not beyond scientific understanding.
There are several published, peer reviewed papers where kefir grains have been reproduced, either entirely artificially, or by using somewhat natural methods (such as this, or this, and this).
These incorrect claims of scientists being unable to make kefir grains are possibly because most kefir sold in supermarkets is not usually made using grains. Supermarket kefir is usually made by adding a very small number of isolated strains to milk. This is not because scientists can't make kefir grains.
Commercially produced kefir not being made with grains has nothing to do with scientists' ability or inability to make the grains, its about keeping everything uniform.
Instead of making kefir by using traditional grains, commercial kefir is usually made by adding a few isolated strains to milk. Using a very small number of isolated strains ensures consistency of the final product, and makes it easier to batch test for safety. Kefir made with grains often has vastly more cultures than store bought kefir, but it is different each batch, it changes from season to season. Foods need to be tested to ensure safety. Kefir made with grains is very safe, yet it is difficult to test each and every batch to demonstrate its safety, so it is not usually made this way commercially.
The grains available to home fermenters were originally family heirlooms, passed down through generations. While kefir grains you get from one person will be slightly different than grains you get from the person next door to them, they are still kefir grains.
Even though scientists can make kefir grains, you cannot get kefir grains that descended from the ones that were originally made by scientists. The heirloom grains passed between home fermenters remain the traditional way of making kefir.
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| Scanning electron micrograph of natural kefir grain |
What We Know (and What We Don't)
What we know
- Kefir was documented in the North Caucasus region of Russia by the nineteenth century.
- It spread to wider Russia in the early 1900s.
- Irina Sakharova played a central role in that story.
- Kefir grains are living microbial communities.
- Scientists have successfully created kefir grain-like structures.
What we don't know
- Exactly when kefir grains first formed.
- Whether today's grains descend from ancient fermented milk cultures.
- Whether biblical or religious stories have any historical basis.
Kefir Today
By the late twentieth century, kefir had spread well beyond Russia and today is produced around the world.
There are various companies mass producing and selling what they call kefir. These fermented milk drinks are marketed as kefir, but they are usually produced using a few isolated bacterial cultures rather than traditional kefir grains. There are also some sachets that are used to make fermented milk, this is meant to taste vaguely similar to kefir. Commercial kefir generally contain far fewer microbial species than traditional grain-fermented kefir, and is manufactured for consistency rather than wide microbial diversity.
After looking through the myths, archaeology, scientific papers and historical records, one thing becomes clear: the real history of milk kefir is fascinating enough without embellishment. We still don't know exactly where kefir grains first appeared, but we know considerably more than many websites suggest, and the documented journey from the Caucasus to modern kitchens is remarkable in its own right.
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| I cover with a strainer, but a cloth also works |
Why the origin of kefir grains is such a mystery
Unlike yoghurt cultures, kefir grains are complex self-organising microbial communities. They don't fossilise easily, they weren't deliberately invented, and before the nineteenth century almost nobody wrote about them.
That combination makes tracing their true origin extraordinarily difficult.
Where to get kefir to ferment at home
If you want to try fermenting milk kefir at home, you need to get some kefir grains. These are not a type of 'grain', it is just their common name. Much like a sea monkey is not a type of monkey, and a sea horse is not a type of horse, milk kefir grains are not a type of grain.
Milk kefir grains are complex and ever changing colonies of beneficial bacteria and yeasts growing in a matrix of kefiran. Kefiran is a microbial exopolysaccharide and is thought to be incredibly beneficial, this is often missing from commercial kefir flavoured drinks. Milk kefir is super easy to make, while slightly more work than filmjölk, it is about the same effort as kombucha.
If you want to try making milk kefir yourself, For Australian readers, if you want to try this yourself, I sometimes sell traditional milk kefir grains. My kefir grains are heirlooms, they contain living microbes, and they will live longer than you if they are looked after.
For US and international readers you should consider checking Amazon for Milk kefir grains.
Related kefir articles and guides
- Simple instructions for making kefir at home - my simple everyday technique
- Milk kefir beginner guide - simple guide on kefir, what to expect, and troubleshooting
- Milk kefir from grains vs commercial kefir - how supermarket kefir is different from traditional grain-fermented kefir
- Simple recipe for farmer's cheese (tvorog) from kefir - an easy way to use extra kefir
- Filmjölk vs milk kefir - my experience fermenting and comparing these two cultured milks
- Continuous Brew Kombucha Recipe - my simple and traditional continuous brew method
