Reviving Water Kefir

[ani'smommy]

Well, I got my water kefir grains this Saturday. They had been in the mail for almost two weeks.

The outer envelope was damanged, but it looked like the bag stayed sealed. So I put them in some water and sugar. After 24 hours, I drained them. They looked okay, but the water just tasted like sugar water, although, it might have been a tiny bit fizzy.

So I gave them new water and sugar. It's been almost 48 hours now. Is there anything else I can do? How can I tell if they're still alive?

[Taedareth]

Grate up some fresh ginger and add that to the water. I think that's about all you can do. If they don't start kefir-ing in a few days, they're probably goners. Sorry

[ani'smommy]

[Jojo F.]

Along with the ginger try adding either a pinch of sea salt, a pinch of baking soda, or a boiled and demembraned eggshell.

[snowcrocus]

i've read around here that they go crazy over molasses, too. (i haven't tried it, though.)

[saratc]

I would get some sucanat or rapadura as they are high in minerals. Molasses in conjunction with some regular sugar work too. For each tbsp of grains, use 4 to 5 tbsp of sucanat or rapadura (or 1 tbsp of molasses with sugar) and a quart of water. Let it sit for up to 5 days, tasting it each day. If on the 5th day, it still doesn't taste sour at all, i would say the grains are dead.

When I switch sugars (like from rapadura to agave or other sweetener) or when I have been keeping them dormant in the fridge, it can take up to several days for them to revive or adjust.