The answer is sort of. Your milk kefir grains eat lactose, which isn’t present in coconut water, so they won’t be happy there for long. I wrote a bit about this in my kefir guide, and I think there’s a bit of debate in the comments, too.
I personally wouldn’t do it again and I don’t think it’s in the best interest of the culture, but there are people who do it and are confident that their grains have remained healthy. Which could totally be the case, btw. There is microbial diversity in different kefir grains and some might be more adaptable to non-lactose food sources than others. Your best bet is to try with spare grains. They may do well at first, but if you’re notice that they’re not reproducing as rapidly as they used to or that they seem to be shrinking or changing shape, get them back into dairy milk, stat.
Hyo Kim says
can i use milk keifer grain to make coconut water keifer?
Amanda says
The answer is sort of. Your milk kefir grains eat lactose, which isn’t present in coconut water, so they won’t be happy there for long. I wrote a bit about this in my kefir guide, and I think there’s a bit of debate in the comments, too.
I personally wouldn’t do it again and I don’t think it’s in the best interest of the culture, but there are people who do it and are confident that their grains have remained healthy. Which could totally be the case, btw. There is microbial diversity in different kefir grains and some might be more adaptable to non-lactose food sources than others. Your best bet is to try with spare grains. They may do well at first, but if you’re notice that they’re not reproducing as rapidly as they used to or that they seem to be shrinking or changing shape, get them back into dairy milk, stat.
I hope that helps!