Kefir

Kefir?

I first heard of kefir in a nutrition class promoted by the military.  Neither the instructor nor any of the students had ever even seen kefir.  All that was known about it was it a dairy product with vaguely middle eastern origins.  Living in the remote prairies at the time, kefir was scarce.  I finally found kefir in New Brunswick.  It was in the "exotic/foreign" food section of the grocery store, near the goats milk and yak butter.  The first product I found came in a container that was sealed with a foil lid (like the one pictured below).  The foil lid was bulged out under pressure.  I thought that it had gone bad but all of them were like that.  Closer inspection of the label revealed that this phenomenon is called "Champansky Effect" and is normal.  It is caused by fermentation gases.

The Taste

Kefir has a very unique taste.  I describe it as "yogurt-flavoured beer".  The plain version tastes the strongest but you can get raspberry and other flavoured kefir also.

Value

Its sold in smaller containers than cow's milk and is more expensive.  Its no good for adding to coffee or tea or cereal.  I use it as a beverage.  Some of my kids like it and some don't.  It seems to last in the fridge for a long time.

Nutrition

Kefir is high in protein and calcium.  Its loaded with healthy probiotic bacteria which is good for your gastrointestinal tract. 

Use

I keep kefir in the fridge and drink a small glass of it once or twice a day.  Its good mixed into a smoothy or protein shake.  Even a tablespoon of kefir taken occassionally can give you much of the probiotic benefits.  I've never tried taking kefir in my lunch and I doubt that it would be very portable.  Cooking with it will kill the healthy bacteria.

Recommendation

Get some kefir.  Start with nice flavoured stuff.  Try it.  You'll either like it or hate it.  At least when someone mentions kefir; you'll know what they're talking about.

Tom

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