Easy Kefir in a Yoghurt Maker

Before you start: check your temperature range

This matters more than anything else in the method. Kefir cultures are mostly mesophilic — they work best at around 22–30 °C. Most yoghurt makers are built for yoghurt and run at 40–44 °C, which is too hot for this blend and will give you a sharp, yoghurt-like result rather than kefir, often with a grainy or separated texture.

Use a yoghurt maker only if it has an adjustable thermostat you can set to around 30 °C. The Reuter-i Pro's low-temperature range suits this. If your machine has a fixed yoghurt setting, skip the machine and culture on the bench instead.

The advantage of a yoghurt maker over the bench is consistency: a stable 30 °C through a cold Melbourne night gives a far more repeatable set than a kitchen that swings from 22 °C down to 14 °C.

Ingredients

• 1 litre fresh milk (full cream gives the thickest result)
• A sachet of Easy Kefir Starter

Goat, sheep, soy and coconut milk all work. Plant milks set thinner.

Equipment

• Yoghurt maker with low temperature settings like our Reuter-i Pro
• Clean glass jar or the maker's insert, plus a loose-fitting lid
  
• pH meter (optional, but the fastest way to make batches repeatable)

 

Method

1. Prepare the milk.
Using fresh pasteurised milk, heat it to 85 °C and hold for 10 minutes, then cool to 25 °C. This denatures the whey proteins and gives a noticeably thicker set. With UHT or long-life milk you can skip this step entirely and use straight from the carton.

2. Inoculate.
Sprinkle the starter over the surface of the 25 °C milk, leave it to rehydrate for 2 minutes, then stir for a few seconds until dissolved.

3. Set the Yoghurt maker.
Set the temperature to 30 °C. Place the jar in the maker with the lid resting on top, not screwed down or leave the vent open — these cultures produce carbon dioxide, and a sealed jar will build pressure. Alternatively you can ferment on your kitchen bench.

4. Culture for 18–24 hours.
Check at 18 hours. It's ready when the milk has thickened, pulls slightly from the side of the jar when tilted, and smells clean and tangy. If your kitchen runs cool or you prefer it sharper, give it the full 24 hours. If you're using a pH meter, a finished batch typically lands around pH 4.4–4.6.

5. Chill.
Stir once to break the set into a smooth, pourable texture, seal, and refrigerate for at least 6 hours before drinking. The flavour keeps developing in the fridge for the first day or two.

6. Keep it going.
Stir 2–3 tablespoons of the finished kefir into a fresh litre of 25 °C milk and run the same cycle. You can re-culture up to 6 times before starting fresh from the sachet.

Adjusting the result