Milk Kefir Cheese
Homemade milk kefir cheese is a great option for being creative with your homemade milk kefir. It is a soft, tangy, spreadable cheese perfect for bagels, toast, crackers, and more!
Equipment
- 2 quart size mason jars (32oz)
- 2 coffee filters or breathable cloths
- 2 rubber bands
- 1 string of twine
- 1 fine mesh strainer
- 1 bowl (medium-sized)
- 1 spoon
- 1 funnel
- 1 flour sack towel or 2-3 sheets of cheesecloth
Ingredients
- 3 cups raw milk
- 1 tbsp activated milk kefir grains
Instructions
- Place kefir grains and raw milk in a quart size mason jar. Cover the top of the mason jar with a coffee filter or cloth, and secure with a rubber band or twine.
- Place on countertop and allow to culture for 12-48hrs, until the desired thickness of milk kefir is reached.
- Using a fine mesh strainer and spoon, strain the milk kefir into a bowl, separating the grains from the milk kefir. Save your kefir grains for future batches.
- Using your funnel, pour the milk kefir into a new mason jar and cover with a coffee filter or breathable cloth secured with a rubber band or twine.. Allow to sit at room temperature until the curds and whey separate, up to 12hrs. I usually let it sit overnight.
- After you see a significant separation of the curds and whey, place a flour sack towel, or several layers of cheesecloth, over a strainer sitting on top of a bowl. Pour the curds and whey onto the strainer and allow to strain for about 30min.
- Lift up the towel or cheesecloth from the strainer and tie the edges together with twine. You’ll also want to tie the towel or cheesecloth to a spoon in order to now hang the cheese. Hanging will allow more whey to be released.
- You can place the spoon with the hanging cheese on top of a tall bowl, a tall jar, a rack, or stick the spoon in between your kitchen cabinet door pulls. Any way that allows you to hang the cheese and let the whey drip into a bowl or jar will work fine.
- Allow to strain according to your desired texture for the cheese. The longer you strain, the more firm your cheese will be. I usually start the cheese making process in the morning and let it strain all day.
- After you are satisfied with the amount of whey that has been released, remove the curds (now cheese) from the towel or cheesecloth. Can be served as is or you can mix in any add-ins that you may like.
- Keep the kefir cheese refrigerated in an air-tight container and use within a week or two. Don't forget to save the whey!
Notes
- There are no hard and fast rules with timing for the different steps involved in making kefir cheese (within reason). You can play around and vary the timing of how long to let the milk kefir culture, how long to let the curds and why separate from the milk kefir, and how long to let the whey strain from the curds.
- The longer you allow the milk kefir to culture and the longer you allow the curds and whey to separate, the more intense and sour the flavor will be.
- The longer you allow the whey to strain from the curds, the more firm the cheese will be. I personally have never strained the whey for more than a day. I like an easy spreadable cheese.
- There any many add-ins that you can use with this recipe. Some tasty add-ins include: chives, olive oil, salt, garlic, fresh basil, fresh dill, honey, and more! Feel free to experiment.
