Today I want show you how to use up kefir in recipes. As wonderful as milk kefir is, sometimes you just have too much. This post is packed with ways to make good use of your kefir so nothing goes to waste, while keeping things interesting- no smoothies allowed!
We’ve been doing a whole series on kefir for the last few weeks here on the Mother Cultured blog.
In the first of these posts, I went over just about EVERYTHING you could want to know about making milk kefir. Catch that post here to dive in.
Now let’s get right into it!
1. Use Kefir In Place Of Buttermilk
Kefir is very similar to cultured buttermilk (which is what you get at the store).
You can use it for pancakes, biscuits, fried chicken, dressings and more.
Wondering if it’s ok to heat? You can read about that in my Kefir Scones recipe post!
Anytime you’re overrun with milk kefir, meal prep a big batch of pancakes or waffles and use it instead of buttermilk!
2. Use It As A Face Mask!
Yep, you can just put it straight on your face to reduce redness, give skin a beautiful texture and glow, and even treat acne.
Kefir is full of lactic acid, probiotics and amino acids. You can experiment with adding other ingredients like egg white, honey, cucumber, essential oils and more. But you can also just keep it simple with plain old kefir.
Bougie skin care brands sell probiotic face products for anywhere from $36 up to $70!
Why not just use what you have in abundance, keep something from going to waste and save a ton of money in the process?
Here are a few recipes with additional ingredients to try.
3. Use Kefir For Soaking and Fermenting
Almost any recipe that uses flour can benefit from soaking.
Muffins, pancakes, bread and other baked goods are perfect for this. You simply mix up the flour with your kefir (like 2 cups flour to 2 1/3 cups kefir for pancakes as an example) and leave for about 8 hours. This helps to break down the phytic acid and gluten in the grains, and make it much more bioavailable and easier to digest.
It’s similar to sourdough, but if you haven’t journeyed down that path, soaking with kefir is a great option!
I usually like to make the whole recipe minus the leavening agents, but some people aren’t comfortable leaving eggs in a recipe overnight. I actually dive into that a little bit in this post:
Related: Best Sourdough Tuxedo Muffins
4. So Many Recipes
I’ve made a list to get you started but once you get into it, you’ll start thinking of all sorts of ways to incorporate kefir into your cooking and baking.
How To Use Up Milk Kefir- Recipes
This kefir-soaked oatmeal bread from Bread Experience sounds amazing, not to mention super simple! This would go great alongside over-easy eggs or with a hearty soup.
My own peanut butter kefir pops. These popsicles taste like peanut butter pie and they are perfect for a hot day. Make a double batch to use up almost two cups of kefir.
This one uses a full two cups of kefir if you double the batch like I like to do. Amazing cherry flavor, hydrating and full of calcium, protein and probiotics. Not your average sugary, chemical-laden popsicle.
Ok so you get two-for-one with this one because the pancakes are one thing, but scroll down to the part where Sally suggests using the batter for crispy fried fish. I've done this and we love it! I used tilapia and I have it on the menu again this week because it's such a special, delicious yet super-nourishing meal. This one uses an ENTIRE QUART of milk kefir.
I'm so happy with how these whole grain, kefir-soaked scones came out! They're so quick and easy to put together too. I love using fresh-milled grains anywhere I can to up the nutrition, and the flavor worked PERFECTLY in this recipe. You can totally use a combo of all-purpose and store bought whole wheat! You've got to give this one a try.
Wow. Yum. This looks delicious any time of year but how perfect for a fall get-together or Christmas? Again, I'd be doubling this one because one loaf would just not cut it for our family! That means you'd be using 1 1/2 cups of kefir!
You could make these sweet or savory. I love a healthy breakfast recipe and these would be perfect with seasonal fruit and fresh whipped cream!
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What did I miss? Which idea are you excited to try? Let’s talk about it in the comments!
Thanks so much for reading. I’d love it if you let me know what you think about my recipes.
Talk again soon,
-Tara
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