Did I kill my kefir?

[Deir]

Oh I am a dope- I left my fermenting kefir in the oven when I turned it on to pre heat for dinner and didn't realize until I opened the oven to put the dinner in!! Did I kill the kefir grains?

[tboroson]

Hoo... I clicked on your thread planning to say "probably not", because kefir grains are practically indestructible... but then I read what you did. Uh... there's a good chance of it. How large a vessel was it in? How long was it in there? I imagine you couldn't touch the surface of the jar, but would you have been able to put your hand in the liquid comfortably? I'd say anything hotter than like dishwater-hot would have done them in; and when you consider the grains would have been near the perimeter of the bottle, which would have been hotter than the very center...

If you need more grains and have any occasion to be out toward King of Prussia/Phoenixville area, I could hook you up

[quietserena]

It depends how hot they got and it's really hard to tell over the internet hehe.

Try with a fresh batch of milk, can even try half of the regular amount. If it doesn't smell like kefir, then they're probably dead. Sorry I can't be of more help.

[Deir]

Man! I feel like an idiot!! Thanks guys. I did pour some new milk in and I think it may smell kefir-y. I hope!