Here's a few waterkefir grains enlarged for a better view.
This is a moment in time in the middle of the regular rinsing process that happens weekly..
Add fresh sugar and watch them grow more..
Here's a picture of part of my waterkefir grains stock just after their regular wash.
15 comments:
I sure could use your help! I have my third batch of water kefir that I purchased on ebay, but no matter what I do I can't get these things to grow! I have always used non-chlorinated water, and on this last batch I am using Perrier mineral water mixed with Ozarka spring water, as we have soft well water and I read they prefer harder water with minerals. I am also using Turbinado sugar, but they just won't grow and I am so frustrated. When I lived in TX my grandmother gave me some, and they grew like crazy with me using water from the tap, after I let the water sit a day or two to get the chlorine out and would use just plain white sugar. But now I live in MS and for the life of me I can't figure out what is going on as I am going over and beyond to get them to grow. Could there be something in the air that is preventing their growth? Thanks for any help you give me. =)
HI! Are you using organic lemon in your batch of water kefir? How 'bout a few fruits? I have an idea: you post your recipe and we'll see better what we're looking at here, OK?
I'm so sorry that Narayani, the water kefir mommy, hasn't responded to your posts yet. Her email is posted here on this blog ... somewhere.
Hi Gohealthgirl,
I have indeed used a peeled regular lemon, and also dried raisins, but that didn't help...plus I don't like putting fruit in the water kefir due to the taste change. When I had a successful water kefir batch in TX, all I added was tap water that had been left out so the chlorine evaporated and reg cane sugar..no fruits at all, and my water kefir flourished like crazy. Here in Mississippi, I have tried using our well water, bottle spring water, and now bottled mineral water, but it doesn't help. I am using organic Turbinado sugar that has it's own natural molasses, and regular cane sugar, and still nothing. The only thing I can think of I haven't tried is using 100% mineral water, but since I can only buy Perrier for that, that would be too expensive to keep up or even try. At this point I am just ready to give up, even though I have an illness that responded very well to water kefir..but I just don't think there is anything left for me to do ya know? =(
Hi R. don't know whether i'll be able to help, but I'll give it a try.. If you read all mu posts on my kefir blog, you probably already got a lot of information... But I'll aks a few questions and maybe you can answer and we'll take it from there.
does the kefir have enough light?
Might lived on the fridge and loved it there. There was no heating in my kitchen. I don't think they like it very hot. I used ordinary belgian tapwater, nothing specal and biological canesugar and lemons with peel. Best is everything, all ingredients organic.
So what happens, it just dies on you?? Might be the kefir has been frozen.. My kefir stopped growing as soon as it had been frozen.. There is also a way to give the kefir a boost, is to wash it in 'baking soda' Sounds strange, but it can help.. Another very good source of information is Dom, he knows more about kefir than anybody.. Here's what he sent me when my grains stopped growing after I deepfroze them because i had no one to take care of them.
what else can I tell you.. They grew and grew in my kitchen on my fridge and I wasn't doing anything special at all.. Some people really do their best and don't seem to manage.. Maybe get your kefir from a different source next time, sometimes it is also the grains that are not of the best quality..
So good luck...
Narayani
*If water kefir-grains stop growing, or growth diminishes. Hard water or spring water [for its high mineral content and slight alkalinity]is essential, for water kefir-grains do not grow well in purified or dematerialized water-types. If spring water or hard water is not available, prepare a mixture with 1 part baking soda [sodium bicarbonate] and 1 part sodium-free baking powder and store mixed powders in a sealed jar. [Sodium free baking powder is available at good health food outlets]. Adding 1/4 to 1/3 tsp of mixed powders per 6-cups purified water-types [pH 7.5] ensures good growth of water kefir-grains. Common baking soda alone if non-sodium baking powder is not available will suffice. I also add a small piece of sea coral or lime stone, to prepare a ginger beer water kefir containing dissolved bio-active minerals of coral or limestone, and my grains love it too!
If the culture is left in the same ingredient/solution for longer than 3 days over a few batches, the grains may acquire an acidic tang when tasted, with a light brown film forming over the surface of each grain. The grains lose the typical opaqueness on the surface. This indicates poor culture-conditions, and the grains will not grow. In such cases, immediately rinse grains well in a bowl of cold water, then place grains in 4-cups fresh water with 1 tsp of baking powders [prepared as above], and let stand for two hours, gently stirring grains at regular intervals. Strain and immediately use grains to prepare water kefir with fresh ingredients per my instructions. This must be done as soon as symptoms explained above are noticed and it may have to be done over a few batches. If caught in time, the grains can be brought back to good health and grow well from there on.
www.kefir-grains.com
Hi Narayani,
Thank you very much for your reply to my post. I normally keep the grains in my kitchen right next to my refrigerator. I either think the problem is the quality of grains I am receiving (most have been dehydrated) or the water I have not being alkaline enough, as it is soft acidic well water. So I am going to try the baking soda solution that Dom recommended, as I can't find non-sodium baking powder here. Wish me luck, and I will keep you posted on how it goes. =)
Hi R, sorry you did not hear from me before.. I found your first 2 messages in my spamfolder when I checked the other day. Hope you found my response of a few days ago in the mean time..
Greetings,
Water kefir mummy..
(aka Narayani)
Narayani- I need you to contact me for an email address; if you don't have an email address on file for me then go to my website and use my contact page at gohealthgirl.com- "Patty" would like to purchase some water kefir grains- ~ AmyJane
Hi I would love to purchase 3 large tablespoons of water kefir from you as a starter. I live in London, England. Please would you be kind enough to give me the full cost in Euros including postage and packing. Please provide me with your address as I plan to send you cash in post. Thank you.
Anne, I am sorry but Narayani has not been regulating this blog for some time and has asked me to delete it. So sorry. I can suggest that you try searching on eBay for kefirwater grains.
She has such good info that I simply can NOT delete this blog as she has requested. ;-)
Dear Reader, do enjoy all the good stuff about water kefir here, but at this point I don't have water kefir anymore. You can try to find water kefir via ebay or just do a search. There is lots of good water kefir around..
Narayani aka waterkefirmommy
Can I buy some grains, please? Thx.
Thank you for your request. Please, check eBay as the kefirmommy hasn't any now. Sorry of inconvenience.
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