Below I’ll tell you how to make kefir soda pop, but first: why would you want to make your own pop?
When you make a pizza, or maybe order one in now and then, don’t you still feel like a fizzy pop like you had in the “old days”, before you knew or cared about the evils of high fructose corn syrup? Before you thought about things like “empty calories”? On the day before school starts, it’s our family tradition to have ice cream and order pizza. When the kids asked if they could have a pop with it, I said yes and felt good about it, too. (Be sure to see my important tip at the end of this post, though.) When they drink this fermented beverage, they’re getting beneficial probiotics (healthy bacteria) to promote gut health and a strong immune system!
How does kefir soda pop taste?
When my family tried it (meaning my Mom, step-Dad, siblings), most of them didn’t like the taste. They think it’s not sweet enough, but they’re used to Coke and Mountain Dew. They also don’t like the fermented taste, but I honestly don’t think it’s that strong and my kids don’t seem to notice it at all. Besides, if people can get used to the nasty fake-sweet chemical taste of diet pops, surely they can get used to this. (Have you seen, “Do diet pops cause weight gain?”) In my opinion, Kefir soda pop tastes like a really mild wine cooler, “mild” as in less sweet, and less alcohol taste, too, obviously. It has a nice fizz, and while it’s no where near as sweet as regular pop, it’s sweet enough that my kids and I love it.
I’m a wine wimp
Another way I love to drink our homemade pop is with wine for a spritzer – I’ve never been a wine person, although I wish I was, since it would be better for me than the occasional Amaretto Sour or Mojito I normally drink. But wine mixed with some kefir soda adds just enough sweetness and fizz that I really enjoy it, and it’s better than Sprite, which I used to use for this.
Why another recipe?
While there are other recipes for kefir soda pop out there, I thought you might appreciate another tried and true kefir soda recipe that kids love. Besides, I had to record mine so I remember exactly how I make it, how the family likes it after playing around with some variations, and so I remember my simple steps – it’s got to be simple so that I can make it often enough to keep on hand.
(Did you see my other post on Kefir Soda? “5 Reasons Why I Love Kefir Soda More than Kombucha Tea.”)
How Much Alcohol is in Kefir Soda?
Soon I’ll be posting the results of my kitchen chemistry experiment, where I find the answer to that age-old question that has undoubtedly been driving you crazy (yeah right): “How much alcohol is really in kefir soda pop?” Many have speculated, but I want to know for sure. In that post I’ll also tell you why this was so important for me to find out. (Hint, it has to do with my family members…on my back…!) By the way, even though I don’t have the exact number yet (you wouldn’t believe what a project this has turned out to be), I’m still confident that it’s very very low, or else I wouldn’t give it to my kids, obviously! (UPDATE – here are the results!)
HOW TO MAKE KEFIR SODA POP
The first thing you’ll need to do is get some kefir grains. You can order them from my resources page, but remember there’s some sort of funky delay there, so you have to wait for it to load all the way before the fermented foods/kefir grains section pops up.- Also at that same link you can find some flip-top/Grolsch-style bottles – perfect for bottling water kefir (soda) and kombucha. I got my bottles from a local beer making store, but the flip tops would be nice so you could skip the capping step, done with the tool you see here (also purchased from the beer making store):
To make kefir water: Dissolve 1/2 c. sugar in a little bit of very hot filtered water. (I’ve used organic sugar and organic palm sugar, but will stick with palm sugar from now on because I read that the less refined the sugar, the better the carbonation.) Add cool filtered water up to 2 quarts (1/2 of a 1 gallon jar). This will cool down your water to room temp – hot water will kill the grains. Add kefir grains, stir, and rubber band a cheesecloth over the top. Let sit on the counter for 24 hours to ferment (48 hours will result in less sugar). Make sure it’s away from any other ferments/cultures you may have going so they don’t mess each other up.- kefir water (after fermenting on the counter for 24-48 hours)
- funnel
- 1 quart of any 100% juice you prefer – I’ve been using a pomegranate juice to make a red pop – adds antioxidants! The kids want to try orange pop next.
- Bottles, caps, and capping tool (unless you use the flip top bottles mentioned above).
- Big bowl & spoon
- Measuring cup or something similar to scoop and pour with.
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{ 38 comments… read them below or add one }
Betsy 09.11.09 at 5:35 am
I don’t know why, but I’ve never done the second fermentation or bottled my water kefir. I’ll have to try that, along with some of the flavorings. I did try the vanilla the first or second time, but it didn’t taste that much different from plain IMO, so I never bothered again.
I’m thinking ginger.
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Donielle @ Naturally Knocked Up 09.11.09 at 7:39 am
So what’s your favorite juice to use? I’ve just been doing my second ferment with fruit. Blueberries sure make it pretty!
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NancyO 09.11.09 at 7:47 am
I made gingerale this week and it turned out great…esp if you like Vernor’s ginger ale. The last times I have tried it, there was no carbonation, so this time I put in several chopped up pieces of crystallized ginger for a one quart mineral water bottle and screwed the top on tight. When I opened it, the fizz shot up so fast the pieces of ginger blew out! What was left of it was delicious, but next time I will know to open it slowly and let the fizz dissipate a bit.
I will be anxious to hear your alcohol results. I have read that the alcohol content is about the same as a ripe banana, whatever that means.
And for what it’s worth, Kelly, you might want to only try one bottle with orange juice and let your kids do a taste test. I made some and it had a taste that one of my sons likened to…ummm…throw up. (And that’s putting it more delicately than he did! lol) Maybe you’ll have a better experience and come up with a good way to make this one. Let us know…
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Jody 09.11.09 at 9:06 am
Kelly,
I know less refined sugar would be better in so many ways, but will plain white sugar work for the purpose of reducing cost???
Thanks,
Jody
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Judy 09.11.09 at 9:18 am
Hi Kelly,
I was wondering if I can use my kefir grains that I have used already with raw milk, or if I would need to buy additional ones for this. I also have Body Ecology Kefir Starter which is a little different than the regular Kefir grains. Do you know if that would work as well?
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Debbie 09.11.09 at 9:47 am
Mmmmmmmojito!
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Christine Kennedy 09.11.09 at 10:02 am
Kelly, my new favorite way to make water kefir: add crushed frozen fruit to the 2nd ferment. I just use plain white org. sugar, a pinch of baking soda, pinch of sea salt, and a piece of clean egg shell in the first ferment (those add minerals). I have tried frozen strawberries and frozen raspberries. Those have been our favorites so far. They taste just like strawberry/raspberry pop! I have also tried frozen black cherries, but the flavour was less pronounced. I just tried frozen pineapple, and I let it ferment a little too long, so now it tastes like pineapple beer, but I still like it! Next, I am going to try frozen blackberries. It is best to crush the fruit a little, as it helps to release their juices and flavour. Vanilla and orange slices are also really good.
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Debbie 09.11.09 at 10:05 am
LOL! Sorry you got me thinking about mojitos and went off on a tangent. Tour pictures definitely make this seem more approachable. Although I love the idea of drinking kombucha, I’m frustrated with the variations in taste. My dh has started drinking pop again (much to my dismay) so maybe this will help. Thank you!
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Betsy 09.11.09 at 10:50 am
Christine, I do the frozen fruit thing with kombucha. Raspberries are wonderful! I need to find a way to do the 2nd ferment before bottling. One of those days I’m not going to be able to get the raspberries out at the end, and the bottle necks are too small for strawberries, lol.
Kelly is that the yellow Tupperware strainer in the grains picture? I have that one, too. Handy little gizmo.
Lots of good ideas here!
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Jeanmarie 09.11.09 at 12:20 pm
Kelly, thanks for the post, I’ll dive into it in detail later. Meanwhile, this jumped out at me:
“(Make sure they’re in a safe place away from kids…trust me.)”
There must be a funny story behind this… not funny at the time, probably!
Jeanmarie
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Wardeh @ GNOWFGLINS 09.11.09 at 1:27 pm
Thanks for this! I’ve got my grains and now I’m ready to give this a first go!
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Julie L. 09.11.09 at 1:58 pm
Thanks for posting this, Kelly! I have yet to venture into the world of kefir soda pop, but am definitely interested in trying, especially because my husband complains that “there’s not really much to drink around here.” Kombucha, water, and raw milk only go so far for him.
I share the aforementioned question about being able to use milk kefir grains. I’ve heard that you can use them but that they should be separated from the grains that you plan to use to ferment milk. I’m just not sure of the logistics and how long they can successfully be used. Am interested in hearing others’ responses. Would like to *not* have to order the water kefir grains if possible.
Also, is there a reason I shouldn’t use old bottles around the house? i.e. I have saved a bunch of smaller bottles which were formerly Lakewood Lemon Juice and would like to simply use these. I also bought some 1/2 gallon old beer bottles at a garage sale, which I’ve been using for kombucha. Do you think these could be used, too? Do you know if there’s a reason that the soda pop seems to be bottled in smaller bottles? Am I annoying you yet with all of these incessant questions?
That’s all for now…hope all is well with you, ma’ friend!
~Julie L.
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KitchenKop 09.11.09 at 2:08 pm
Donielle, I can’t remember what kind of juice it was, just some whatever brand of 100% pomegranate juice.
Nancy O, thanks for the scoop on your OJ…I’m thinking we’ll stick with red pop…
Jody & Judy, for your questions, I’m going to see if I can get Julie to answer you because I don’t know!
Betsy, yes, that’s the one.
Kelly
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KitchenKop 09.11.09 at 2:10 pm
Julie L.!!! How fun to hear from you!
Yes, you can use any old bottles! The other Julie will know more about the kefir grains question, I’m emailing her now…
Take care!!!
Kel
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Julie 09.11.09 at 2:59 pm
Jodi–White sugar does work (preferably organic to reduce the amount of chemicals coming into contact with the kefir grains). White sugar produces a different taste (one I prefer actually) but it is less fizzy.
Judy–Milk kefir grains can be converted to juice but if you want to make sugar water kefir, it really would be best (and easier) to get a set of water kefir grains (see below). I believe the BE kefir culture will work but I haven’t tried it myself.
Julie L–You can put milk kefir grains in straight fruit juice (but you won’t be able to return them to milk afterward). I’ve never tried converting them to sugar water. If you have milk kefir grains to spare, you could certainly try it.
Hopefully that helps!
Julie (Cultures for Health)
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Jenny @ Nourished Kitchen 09.11.09 at 3:38 pm
We love water kefir in our home – I LOVE the flavor. It’s such a mild and pleasant taste. I use organic white sugar in my water kefir and other probiotic beverages – most of it is metabolized by the wee beasties anyway.
You can convert milk kefir to water kefir – but it’s not always successful. It’s much better to simply shell out for the water kefir grains (incidentally, if you’re looking for a true ginger beer plant, water kefir grains work well as both water kefir grains and ginger beer plant are comprised of primarily the same bacteria). I don’t think the BE starter really provides long-lasting re-culturable (is that a word?) results.
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Local Nourishment 09.12.09 at 10:48 am
One more tip: Avoid metal! Can you tell I learned this one the hard way? Metal “burns” the grains and kills them. For bottling, I use old GT Dave’s Kombucha bottles or one-cup “jelly” canning jars.
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Jessie 09.12.09 at 5:21 pm
how sweet is it? I’m trying to cut out unnecessary calories & sweet things. So is water kefir the same sweetness as actual soda pop? I wouldn’t think so since people say most of the sugar is metabolized. I guess maybe the only way to know is to try it. If it is kind of like seltzer water with some flavor – that would be great tasting to me.
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Cellulite Analyst 09.12.09 at 5:25 pm
I’ve been wondering about how to make healthy soda. It’s crazy what soda has turned into, considering it started out being served in pharmacies as a medicinal beverage. Can’t wait to share this post with the readers of my Cellulite Investigation blog. But we’re just starting to learn about real food (we’ve got ketchup down, everything else to go…), so this one might have to wait for a more advanced stage!
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Kelly the Kitchen Kop 09.12.09 at 9:22 pm
Jessie, it’s no where near as sweet as regular pop, but sweet enough that we still love it. You could always use less juice, and also if you ferment it 48 hours it will be less sweet, too.
Cellulite Analyst, if you can make lacto-fermented ketchup, you can do this, it’s very easy!
Kelly
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Beth 09.14.09 at 7:50 pm
Kelly,
The most recent juice I used for second ferment was papaya juice. The dc love it. I bought the jar to make a jello treat but it never made it to the recipe because they liked the papaya water kefir so much. I don’t put that much juice…maybe 1/6?
Usually we just put dried fruit in the first ferment and call it good. My ‘experiment’ jar usually has ginger with fresh lemon slices (BTW, you can freeze peeled/sliced lemon, yeah!). Oftentimes I make plain and the dc flavor it as they pour it (a drop of vanilla or a squirt of organic lemon juice straight into their glass).
Jessie, regarding the sweetness, it’s a matter of taste. I like it when there is no sweetness left but no alcohol/vinegar either. It’s tricky to catch it at the right moment but 3 days actually works for me. Right now I need to take out some grains for backup, the jars are 1/2 grains, so I should probably check it at 48 hours. I had to dump the last batch.
Kelly, I thought you weren’t suppose to put the WKGrains in the fridge. When you don’t have time you put it in the fridge grains and all? Wow, that would’ve saved the last batch I couldn’t get to in time.
Thanks,
Beth
(who still occasionally has an evil Coke but water kefir grains broke the ‘habit’ to the point where Coke tastes yucky now)
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KitchenKop 09.14.09 at 7:57 pm
Oh no! I’m not supposed to put the kefir grains in the fridge?! What am I supposed to do with them when I’m not using them then?
LOVE the idea of freezing lemon!
Kelly
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Jeanmarie 09.14.09 at 10:51 pm
I put my grains in the fridge when I’m not ready to start a new batch. It just slows their metabolism down. Hasn’t harmed mine. Just finished a kiwi batch yesterday (got the idea from somebody here) and melon is now culturing!
I culture my kefir sodas for at least 48 hours as I am candida-sensitive and I don’t want any sugar left to feed the bad guys.
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NancyO 09.15.09 at 7:37 am
I have covered my kefire crystals with a light sugar solution and put them in the frig for a few days with no problem. The water is always a bit bubbly when it comes out of the frig, so I know they are still doing their thing. I’ve never had any trouble getting them going happily again. The longest I have done this is 5 days. I also have dried them on the lowest setting on a dehydrator. I have shared them with friends this way and they have done great.
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Cellulite Analyst 09.15.09 at 3:06 pm
You’re right, Kelly. I guess I assumed it was an advanced recipe because of those mysterious “water grains.” But once you have the grains, it doesn’t seem like it would be too difficult. I think you’ve inspired me to give it a shot. Thanks!
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Jody 09.16.09 at 1:00 pm
Got my kefir grains today! I can’t wait!
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Alison 09.17.09 at 7:22 pm
I got my grains in the mail a couple of weeks ago, but they didn’t come with any re-hydration instructions. I just stuck them in the glass jar with the sugar and expected them to do their thing. So far, the sugar water is still sugar water- without any fizz or tang, and it has been two weeks!
I think I killed them… Any help?
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Jeanmarie 09.17.09 at 7:29 pm
If you got them from Cultures for Health, the instructions are on the website. You basically let them sit in a smaller amount of sugar solution for a couple of days then strain them and start fresh with the full recipe. The fizz and tang comes mainly from keeping a lid on them during or after the basic fermentation (such as when you strain the soda off the grains and put it in the fridge). You put them in sugar water right, not straight sugar? They’re probably fine. Try straining them out of that solution (do make sure not to use metal implements with them) and start a fresh batch, cap the bottle, loosening now and then to let gases escape if you like. They might be fine. I hope you don’t have to send away for a new batch.
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KitchenKop 09.17.09 at 8:49 pm
Alison, if you let them set outside the fridge for 2 weeks you may want to contact Julie at Cultures for Health and ask for her advice. My instructions say not to let them set out longer than 72 hours…I’m not sure if that *kills* them, though…Julie would know.
Kelly
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Melanie 11.04.09 at 10:31 am
I know this is an old post, but in case someone sees this comment, I”m having trouble with my soda pop. I’ve made it twice. The first time, I made the water with grains and organic evap cane crystals, let it sit for 24 hours, strained the grains, put lime juice and white sugar, sitrred, and put it into grolsch bottles. I left it sit on the counter for 18 hours. THe taste was fine, but no bubbles.
The second time, I made the water with grains and OECC for a little more than 24 hours, strained it, put in lime juice and more OECC, let it sit on the counter in a mason jar with cheesecloth for about 2 more days, then bottled it and let is sit on the counter almost 18 hours. No bubbles.
Any pointers?
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KitchenKop 11.04.09 at 10:36 am
Hmmmm, that’s no good, ya gotta have bubbles…
I’ll email Julie from Cultures for Health and see if she knows. Did you order from her?
Thanks,
Kelly
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Beth 11.04.09 at 10:45 am
Melanie,
Mine hardly ever gets fizzy, but then I don’t bottle it either. We enjoy it regardless
. When you taste it after the first ferment how does it taste? If it’s still really, really sweet then maybe the grains aren’t kefiring or maybe you need more time. How do the grains look? Are they still healthy and bobbing?
Just some thoughts,
Beth
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Betsy 11.04.09 at 10:58 am
Bobbing?? The grains are supposed to be bobbing? Mine just sit on the bottom of the jar.
I get bubbles during the ferment, but the finished product is not fizzy bubbly. Tastes fine, though.
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Julie @ CulturesforHealth.com 11.04.09 at 12:43 pm
Hi everyone!
There is a range of normal for behavior of water kefir grains that depends on a number of factors including the type of sugar used, length of the fermentation period and what you do with the finished kefir after removing the grains.
Melanie–Did you just get your kefir grains or have you had them awhile? If you just got your grains, did they come to you hydrated or dehydrated? If they were dehydrated, it could just be that they are still waking up. It can take up to a few weeks for them to get to be their happy bubbly selves. A few things can help. First I would use a full 48 hour fermentation period (but no longer) with the kefir grains unless your house happens to be very warm (over 75 degrees). Second, run a batch or two through with some sort of whole sugar (rapadura or sucanat are options) or add about 1-2 t. of molasses to the 1/2 cup OECC. The minerals are really useful for the grains and can help perk them up a bit. You don’t have to do this every time (I’m a fan of OECC water kefir myself) but during this initial stage it’s helpful and then every once in awhile will keep your grains happy (this is particularly important if the water you are using doesn’t have good mineral content). Ultimately it could just take some time but as long as the kefir tastes and smells okay, it’s fine to drink it just might not be at its full potential yet.
In terms of the second fermentation, be sure to add the juice and then immediately bottle it up in a truly air tight container. The grolsch bottles you have are perfect. Let it sit 24-72+ hours but how fast it ferments is going to depend on room temperature so this may take some trial and error to figure out what is the right time frame for your particular home and situation.
Beth & Betsy: Once you’ve had your grains for awhile (and particularly if you are using a very mineral rich sugar such as something containing molasses) it is normal for the kefir grains to move up and down with the bubbles. Whether you actually see this occur though could depend on how much you are able to watch the jar.
For example, we grow kefir grains for sale in rapadura sugar. The mixture gets extremely bubbly and the grains are pretty much constantly moving. But I don’t personally like the taste of kefir made with whole sugar, I prefer white sugar (Organic Evaporated Cane Crystals). So my own personal grains don’t move nearly as much and the mixture doesn’t get nearly as bubbly if I don’t do a second fermentation later with juice.
Hopefully that helps but please let me know if there are any further questions. We are always happy to help troubleshoot your cultures and ferments (even those you didn’t get from us!).
Julie
http://www.culturesforhealth.com
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Melanie 11.04.09 at 3:17 pm
It does taste less sweet than when I start after the first ferment. The grains look plump, but they don’t bob around. They sit on the bottom. Are they supposed to move?
Julie- Thanks for the info! I’m going to print and digest it (so to speak). I got my grains from CFH
dehydrated. I’ll try a longer fermentation, and different sugars for a bit, etc.
Thanks everyone!!
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Laurie N 12.05.09 at 12:01 pm
I finally have my first batch of soda in the works – 2nd brew w/ root beer and vanilla extracts in a rapadura base – should be done tonight.
I’m still confused as to the best way to store your kefir grains when not in use. I’m not going to want to brew every single day.
That’s what I like about kombucha – fix one big batch and forget it for 1 1/2 to two weeks. Unfortunately, I’m the only one in the family who likes the taste. I’m hoping the kefir soda will go over better.
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KitchenKop 12.05.09 at 5:17 pm
I keep them in sugar water in the fridge…hope that’s what I’m supposed to do. I think I read it somewhere.
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Melanie 12.07.09 at 11:26 am
Ok – I tried OECC and molasses and hated the flavor. I tried succanat, but couldn’t make my fave – lime soda. But it tasted great with pomegranate blueberry juice, and fizzed, so yay.
The lime only tastes good to me when made with the OECC, but there are still no bubbles, so I’m experimenting with keeping the grains in the fridge with succanat water, and making the soda with OECC water.
Oh, and my stepdaughter (who makes her own baby food) taunts me endlessly, “You can *buy* soda, you know…” lol
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