Traditional fermentation of foods increases enzymes and nutrients and adds beneficial probiotics. When you are ready to take the plunge and try your hand at it, there is no easier food for fermentation newbies to start with than dairy. It is a critical skill to master as most brands of commercial yogurt do not compare to homemade.
They are typically cultured for a very short period of time and may even have milk solids added before the short ferment begins. This defeats the purpose thus keeping carbohydrate content very high even when the fermentation process is complete.
As an encouragement to those who perhaps haven’t tried making yogurt or its cousin kefir yet, I wanted to share with you some pictures of those who have taken the challenge already and are getting awesome results.
Amanda Molnar’s Perfectly Fermented Kefir
Notice the kefir grains are visible in this picture just before Amanda transfers them to a new batch, which will earn her another entry in the challenge!
Lorraine Carlstrom’s Colorful Raw Kefir Smoothie
Lorraine added coconut oil, egg yolks, and fruit to her morning raw kefir smoothie!
Kristin Marlin’s Incubating Raw YogurtÂ
Not one to start slowly, Kristin Marlin entered the challenge with 3 batches of yogurt at once! Â Notice how she has her raw yogurt nestled in with thick towels to keep them warm to allow the culture to firmly establish itself during the fermentation period. Â Love those gorgeous fermentation vessels too!
 
Miranda Meador’s Yogurt Breakfast
Miranda Meador made this lovely bowl of yogurt for breakfast … but it ended up being for lunch instead!
Bailey Keenan’s Supercharged Kefir Smoothie
Bailey’s creation contains kefir, a little water, a banana, an apple, some frozen strawberries and blueberries, a little chlorella powder, some bee pollen and flax seeds, and a couple of big spoonfuls of coconut oil. YUM!
Carey Blinn’s Jars of Fermenting Kefir
For 25 years, Carey battled daily bouts of indigestion, bloating and acid reflux. Â She used to use Tums or Di-Gel constantly to settle her stomach. Â Carey originally started into Traditional Cooking after finding my videos on YouTube and now she is a fermenting queen. Â Raw kefir, in particular, has changed her life and health in amazingly positive ways!
Hopefully, one or more of these pictures from everyday folks just like you will encourage you to take the plunge to try and make either kefir or yogurt yourself for the very first time!
I make cold kefir soup with fermented beets, cucumber, eggs and fresh dill.. With side of fried on COil potatoes.. My American husband loves it.. It is very comforting and yummy!!
Made another batch of kefir! It’s so easy!
I made homemade yogurt! I took a picture of how I store it too…just trying to figure out how to share it:)
Made two batches of milk kefir tonight (one for me and one for my neighbor’s dog!) AND a batch of Kombucha!
I was able to get raw milk at a reduced price since it was about to expire. I made a batch of yogurt in my crockpot with it, making sure to only warm the milk. I then unplugged the crockpot and put it in the oven with the light on overnight. In the morning we had beautiful raw yogurt. It is sooooo good. We added a little raw honey to it to eat.
My family loves yummy smoothies made with kefir.
Two quarts of raw whole milk kefir working as I type – I plan on doublle fermenting one of these with Blackberries and the other will become Cream Cheese for Christmas Bread. Yes thank you for the challenge.
I am just finishing a quart jar of homemake yogurt – make mine in the oven overnight with the oven lights on, and just got my UPS shipment of water keifer and milk keifer starter, and have started both of those this morning. It is exciting to be able to make this at home and have it very fresh and to be able to add flavors that we like.
Had a go at it, first time. Didn’t like it plain but toddler loves it. Good in a smoothie. Thanks for the challenge!
I made a batch of organic, whole milk greek yogurt.