Milk Kefir Bottle Strainer

Years ago I got some milk kefir grains, and we made milk kefir regularly.  

Milk kefir is kind of like a thin drinking yogurt, it has been around virtually forever, and is very good for health.  Kefir contains vastly more probiotics than yogurt, it is simpler to make than yogurt, and once you have it you can keep it going for ever as long as you have access to milk.  

Back when I was first making kefir there was very little information on kefir on the internet.  From memory there was a web page by Dom Anfiteatro (which seems to no longer exist) and basically no other internet sites mentioned kefir at all.  Things have changed a lot since then. 

At that stage lots of people made kefir at home, but no one really spoke about it.  There was no kefir (or kefir flavoured milk) available at supermarkets back then, and it seemed like no one had thought of selling those dreadful starter satchels.  

Kefir bottle strainer

I drank our milk kefir most days, and it was good.  We then moved house and bought the kefir grains with us.  Back then we had access to raw milk from a dairy, so making kefir was very cheap.  

Years later we moved house again, once again we brought the kefir grains with us.  As we no longer have access to a local dairy, milk kefir started to cost a lot more as store bought milk is expensive.  

I used to use a kitchen strainer to separate the grains from the milk.  When the kefir was thicker than normal or had a lot of curds I found it difficult to strain through the fine mesh.  I started to find that cleanup was bothersome and my strainer was starting to fall apart from old age. 

The cost of milk, combined with the hassle of clean up, plus being busy in general, meant I eventually let my kefir grains die.  I regret that, it was a mistake.  Don't ever let your kefir grains die.

Our kefir from years ago: Milk Kefir on left, Water Kefir on right

I missed kefir, so not too long ago I decided to get milk kefir grains again.  Milk kefir is very simple to make, you can't really do it wrong.  

To help with clean up, I got a cheap can strainer.  I figured this would be fast to use and simple to clean.  

Kefir can strainer

I won't be making a lot of kefir to begin with.  Perhaps a few cups or so for now.  This amount fit easily in a small jar.  

This strainer is made of silicon (or silicone, I can never remember how to spell this), and fits neatly on the end of a jar.  The holes are large enough that I thought it should strain thicker kefir much faster than the fine mesh strainers.  The holes also seemed small enough that I thought they should be able to retain most of the larger kefir grains.  

The bottle strainer was very cheap, and the jar was free.  Making kefir is simple, I don't know why people try to make it more difficult than it needs to be.  Kefir was made by generations of nomads using bags made of goat skin or horse skin, there is not need for much expense or high tech equipment when making kefir.  

Milk kefir doing its thing

I found a solid lid to keep out dust and insects

The other day I saw a kefir kit for sale at the supermarket.  This kit sells for $35 (plus postage if you cannot pick up in store).  This seemed overly expensive for what it is.  

That price only includes a jar, a strainer, some instructions, and a weird wooden spoon.  Even at this high price it does not come with any kefir grains.  My can strainer on the end of a jar should work much the same as the pre made expensive kit.  

Massively overpriced kefir making kit (not my photo)

This lid is prettier than mine (not my photo)

To get an idea if my strainer would work I looked at reviews for the kit online, but none seemed to be written by anyone who had used them for any length of time.  Some reviews speak of how their kefir tasted, or how the instructions were simple to follow, but few mentioned how well the kit worked.  How strange.

The jar I use was free, the strainer cost under two dollars including postage, I already own various spoons, and (while I don't need instructions) anyone who sells grains sends instructions or instructions can be found online for free.  My set up is similar to the kit, but cost me a tiny fraction of the price.  

I figured I would give this can strainer a try and see how it works.  Now that I have used this for a while I figured I would write a blog post explaining how it worked for me.   

Bottle strainer should be good for milk kefir

After using the strainer for a few days it was obvious that it doesn't work well enough.  It is a great idea in theory, but doesn't work well in practice.  I pushed on and kept using this to see if it got easier with time, and it didn't.  It looks like it should work a treat, and I really wanted it to work, but it isn't the best tool for the job.  

Over summer my kefir seems to get thick curds within a few hours of adding the grains to the milk.  I could probably have more milk to less grains to make it thinner, but I don't want to do that.  Much more importantly, the kefir grains also clogged up the holes and prevented any liquid from flowing through. 

The liquid would not go through the can strainer without being stirred constantly.  I tried first mixing the curds and grains through the liquid and then immediately tipping the kefir through the strainer, but it still didn't work well.  The grains almost immediately block all the holes, and the kefir would not go through the jar strainer without being stirred constantly.  What a hassle! 

Stirring got the grains off the holes and it made the liquid go through the can strainer easily while I was stirring, and it stopped going through when I stopped.  Stirring kefir while it was in the can strainer is more difficult than just using a kitchen strainer.  It worked, but was not overly practical.  Eventually I got frustrated and looked for something else to use. 

I found it a lot faster and easier to tip the kefir through a tea strainer that we already have.  The mesh is very fine, but I can stir it with my finger or a spoon, which is enough to make the kefir go through quickly.  I sit this tea strainer in a coffee mug which catches the kefir.  The fine mesh means it captures all but the tiniest of grains, retaining tiny grains has meant my grains have divided and increased faster.  

I don't love using metal with kefir, but stainless steel is meant to be ok.  The grains are only in the strainer for under a minute each day, and most of them are not in contact with the metal at any point, so they seem to be coping well and multiplying fast.  

tea strainer with very fine mesh

can strainer vs tea strainer

Cleaning the tea strainer after using it for kefir is simple and fast.  After tipping the kefir through I scoop the grains out, and then run the strainer under the tap for a few seconds.  That seems to be enough to clean it well.  This only takes a few seconds.  

I plan use the tea strainer for now, but my grains quickly multiplied to the point where they no longer fit in it and the jar I am using does not hold enough milk.  I find kefir grains multiply well in the warmer months, and not so well when it is cooler.  

Soon I will use a larger jar, and spend a few dollars and get a plastic kitchen strainer with fine mesh like I used to use.  We don't have one of these at the moment, but they shouldn't be too expensive.  

This is the type of strainer I previously used (not my photo)

I already have some very large jars that used to hold pickles or olives or something, so this won't cost me anything.  Instead of tipping the kefir into a mug I will use a bowl or something that we already have.  Other than a few dollars for the strainer, and buying milk, it won't cost anything to make kefir.  

Making milk kefir at home is very simple, and there is no need for it to cost a lot of money other than a once off purchase of grains, and buying the milk.  

Milk kefir bottle strainer - may work for water kefir

As mentioned, the can strainer seems like a good idea but is not well suited to straining milk kefir.  I also don't think the expensive milk kefir kits would work any better for milk kefir.  Or maybe they do work, but only if you use satchel starter instead of grains, in which case I don't know what you would be straining.  To be honest, I don't understand why you would bother making kefir using stater when grains are so much cheaper and vastly superior to satchel stater, but that is a topic for another time.  

This strainer looks like it might work well when making water kefir.  Water kefir is different to milk kefir, there are no curds or thick liquid to deal with, it is just the grains and the liquid.  Or perhaps the water kefir grains will clog the holes and it won't work, I don't know yet.  I plan to try using this can strainer with water kefir for some time and write another post on how it performs for me.