4 Water Kefir Making Rules You Can Break

I've been making water kefir for months and my grains have "graduated" to a tall Kilner jar. The grains have been through cycles of experimentation with sugars, feedings and fermentation times. Along the way I've discovered that you can break the so-called rules when making water kefir.

So despite what some people have said not-to-do, my grains have lived happily ever after, producing delicious fizzy drink. So here's what I've done and my grains have lived to tell the story.

1) Use tap water.  

I live in north London where the water is hard and routinely chlorinated. I ferment in water from my Brita filter. If I've accidentally overfermented/underfed, the grains smell a little like puke. Yes it's gross but fixable. After a long rinse in water from the tap in a sieve and a detox (I'll get to that part next), they are back to normal.

2) Starve them for a while. 

In fact when I went away for three days, my grains were sitting in filtered water and nothing else. I was giving them a detox after I over fermented and the water kefir was smelly and foamy on top. They survived and after the first sugar water ferment, they went back to normal.

3) Use metal utensils.

The warnings about metal and water kefir are overhyped. I use a metal spoon and sieve and my kefir grains are fine.

4) Use white granulated sugar. 

I've seen blogs calling for unrefined sugars like rapadura, turbinado and sucanat. It costs of bomb if you're constantly fermenting. Some insist on organic sugar which is just as refined as non-organic sugar. But white sugar is still food for the grains and sometimes you have to switch to it if mineral content is too high. Basically refined sugar is ok in the short-medium term. Now I use cheap and cheerful golden granulated sugar and jaggery (evaporated cane juice).