Kefir: A fermented milk drink with a sour taste, made using a culture of yeasts and bacteria. (Oxford English Dictionary)
Have you discovered this little gem yet? A good friend of mine, J, introduced me to it a few years back and I have been hooked on it ever since! J is somewhat of a superwoman, she makes her own kefir, bakes her own breads and treats, homeschool’s 4 wonderful children, has chickens and grows things!!! Whereas I on the other hand, am somewhat of a kefir murderer but thankfully J is always there to resupply me when I inevitably neglect my poor kefir grains and they die.
This wonderful fermented drink can be used in a variety of ways and is full of naturally occurring probiotics which boost the health of your gut and therefore your health in general. According to www.draxe.com – “Besides being associated with a number of powerful health benefits, kefir also contains high levels of vitamin B12, calcium, magnesium, vitamin K2, biotin, folate, enzymes and probiotics.” So, this stuff is really good for us! It can be used in many different ways, drink it straight or use as a base for a smoothie, as a sourdough starter, use it to make porridge. You can add fruit to it and double ferment it which gives it a slight effervescence which is really refreshing. You can even use it to make your own cheese. One of my favourite recipes using kefir is Šaltibarščiai, pronounced “shal-ti-barsh-chai”, a Lithuanian cold beetroot & kefir soup. I’ll put a recipe below but don’t let the fluorescent pink colour put you off trying this wonderful soup, the colour is natural and comes from the beetroot and it is really refreshing on hot summers days! It is one of the foods I really look forward to whenever I’m in Lithuania.
Ok, so now you’re thinking “where can I get this kefir??” Well, there are numerous places online which sell the grains and you can also find community groups who are happy to pass along excess grains for free. https://www.culturesforhealth.com/learn/ is a great site for learning all about kefir and other fermented foods.
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Šaltibarščiai
500g kefir
100g cooked beetroot
100g scallions
50g dill
2 boiled eggs
2 pickled cucumbers (these are salt pickled, not vinegar)
100g sour cream
Salt
- Add the kefir and a good pinch of salt to a bowl.
- Chop beetroot into matchstick sized lumps and add to kefir
- Mix in chopped scallions, chopped dill, chopped pickled cucumber and chopped up boiled eggs and mix well.
- Add in sour cream and stir again.
- Chill in the fridge until ready to serve.
- Serve with warm boiled potatoes and enjoy!
