I’m headed off to Alaska for what I’m predicting will be a wonderful vacation. My beloved parents will be married 45 years this week (Happy Anniversary, Mom and Dad!) and so we’re spending 2 WEEKS with them to celebrate. My last no-work vacation was in 2012, so needless to say, I am extraordinarily excited to be leaving my kitchen, my lovely, new office and my laptop behind.
You know who’s not that excited? My microbes. They’re a little irritated, I’m sensing, that they’re going to be thoroughly neglected, but they’ll survive and be ready and waiting for a hearty meal when I return. There’s more than one way to do this, but elaborate freezing and drying schemes aren’t for me, especially when I’m prepping to be away from my business for two weeks (I’ve got enough to do!). I’ve had other cultures to worry about in the past, but the busy-ness of book-writing shaved my collection down to the stuff my husband and I eat very regularly.
Kombucha SCOBYs: I feed before leaving and do not give a second thought. SCOBYs tolerate the high acid medium they create very well. I’ve left mine for months at room temperature, and ABSOLUTELY NOTHING HAPPENED, and that was an inferior SCOBY to the great one I have now. If you’re going for months, make sure to leave your SCOBY in a large container with a lot of brew. The only reason for that is that they’ll eat all the liquid and become enormous and can, theoretically, dry out. I’ve heard stories of this drying out, but I’ve never witnessed it or seen photos, so I take it all with a grain of salt.
Basically what I’m saying is kombucha SCOBYs are extremely resilient and don’t need any fussing. Just let it sit there while you enjoy your sand and sun.
Matsoni Heirloom, Mesophilic Yogurt Culture: This cultured overnight last night and then was moved to the fridge. I know from experience that this very excellent culture will survive just fine for two weeks, but I’ve had other yogurt cultures lose their ability to reculture during the same time period. If you haven’t tested the strength of your culture, it’s best to have someone feed it at 10 days, but most heirloom cultures can survive, in my experience, so don’t stress too much about it.
Bulgarian Thermophilic Heirloom Yogurt Culture (from Cultures for Health): I cultured this today (leaving tomorrow) and I’m crossing my fingers. I haven’t tested this one, but I’m already asking my house-sitters to water my roof garden, I’m not asking them to make yogurt, too. I have high hopes! Dehydrating is an option for all the yogurt cultures I’ve kept, but that’s not something I have time to do before this particular trip.
Milk Kefir Grains: Most milk kefir instructions say to store in the fridge and feed at least once a week. I cultured these today, and I’ll be storing them in the fridge for 2 weeks. They’ll be just fine. In fact, they’ll be better than fine; in my experience, milk kefir grains enjoy a little bit of a resting period in the fridge. They tend to multiply more readily after a rest.
I’m also taking a small amount of grains in my 3 oz “liquid” bag, and an empty pint jar, chopstick and fine mesh strainer in my luggage. I have the embarrassing distinction of being unable to swallow pills without a thick liquid (I always use kefir), so I need a bit with me to help me get my supplements down. Yes, yes, judge all you will. It’s completely mental, but whatevs, kefir does the trick for me.
Water Kefir Grains: This is where I’m glad I spent a bit more to get a bit more. I’ve had previous water kefir cultures die with just 10 days in the fridge without a feeding. My Yemoos grains (not sponsored in any way) are approximately 1,000,000 times more resilient to neglect than grains I had previously. While writing my book, I forgot about them/could literally not find 3 minutes to feed them for 2 months and, to my great surprise, they bounced back beautifully after just two feedings. They did smell a bit like beer when I first pulled them out, but honestly, the brew tastes just the same now, with lovely fizz, and healthy, plump grains.
To store these grains for 2 weeks, I feed them normally two days before leaving and let them culture. Once they’re fermented to my liking, I drain the finished water kefir and rinse my grains in filtered, room temperature water. I then put them in a clean jar, and fill it with filtered water. I secure the lid and store them in the fridge during my absence.
Sourdough starter: My sourdough starter got a final feeding and then moved to the fridge. It will undoubtedly accrue an unsightly blackish liquid in my absence, but once I pour that off and feed it, it will be as good as new when I return. Ready to pump out some truly excellent breads.
Ginger bug: I don’t use my bug that often, so it normally stays in the fridge for 2 weeks at a time between feedings. If you’re doing this length of fridge storage, make sure you have an active bug before you put it in the cool zone. I have had ginger bugs get a little vinegar-y in the fridge. If that happens, unfortunately it’s time to make a new ginger bug, which is pretty easy to do.
My vegetable ferments, booze and and other longer-term ferments are fine, continuing to culture while I’m away. I actually like to start a few batches of pickles or kraut right before I leave town, so that I have a tasty, healthful surprise waiting when I return. How do you care for your culture creatures while you’re out of town?
*PS – If you are a weird robber who somehow knows where I live, please note that there are two very protective dogs, one a pit bull, staying at my house with a couple (probably) tough humans. Robbery attempts may be met with chewed off limbs. 🙂
PPS-As you probably figured out, I’m not here! I have posts scheduled for the next two weeks, so definitely stop by for your dose of ferments. I’ll approve and reply to any comments when I’m back from Alaska!
Rebecca says
What a timely article. I am about to go on vacation myself, and have been wondering what I should do about my ferments. Hope you have (or had, by the time you read this) a wonderful vacation!
DANA says
When traveling, I’m wondering how to feed my mesophilic yogurt culture before I leave town. How long do you think it will last without my feeding the culture. Thanks for any advice.
Becky says
I’m pretty negligent with my sourdough starter and my SCOBY’s. I leave them unattended for weeks (sometimes months) at a time. Last time I went out of town, I left a batch of kim chee sitting on the counter during a heat wave, without the AC running. Thankfully, my house stays pretty cool when shut tight and while the kim chee was done, my house did not reek of it. I was a wee bit worried, considering we’ve come home and discovered the milk went bad in the fridge and now the entire house smells because of it.
Happy Vacation!
Lisa R. says
Perfect timing! We’ve been sharing some of our milk kefir grains and the most frequent concern is “What if I can’t get to them right away?” followed by “What if I need more time between batches?” Great Tips and this will the the link I provide with and other shared ferments! Thank you! And have a fabulous vacation! 🙂
Emily says
I’ve been drinking lactose free kefir drinks from whole foods, but have heard that the process to make them lactose free is really bad for you. I feel really good, and have no side effects, but am worried I’m doing something bad to my body. Do you have any knowledge about this subject?
Amanda says
Hi Emily,
I don’t have any specific knowledge of that, but I can tell you that no commercially produced kefir should be legally allowed to be called kefir. They don’t use kefir grains to make it, they use a specific set of bacteria and yeast (which then becomes yogurt, or something else, since kefir is actually a diverse organism, made with dozens of microbes that can vary from one person’s grains to the next). This might be why they’re able to produce a fully lactose-free “kefir,” or they might use another process entirely. I’m not sure.
My rule of thumb is always to keep eating it if it makes you feel good and to stop eating it if it doesn’t, but that doesn’t work super well for things that have a long-term effect on health. I would dig into it and maybe contact the manufacturer about what their process is. If they’re somehow chemically removing lactose, that probably isn’t the best. If they’re using fermentation to “eat” the lactose, I would guess that it’s fine. That’s just taking what naturally happens during dairy fermentation a little further than it would normally go.
Sorry I can’t give you a good answer! I hope you find one!
Amanda
Lauren says
When storing water kefir grains, do I use a closed lid or cotton (breathable) cover in the refrigerator?
Amanda says
Closed lid to avoid spills, evaporation and fridge flavors.
Thanks for reading!
Steven says
I was wondering what you were using before you switched to the Yemoos water kefir grains. I have some water kefir grains from a different source and they seem very difficult in relation to my milk kefir grains. So I was wondering if switching to the ones you found helpful would be better but was curious as to where you got them?
Amanda says
Hi Steven,
Water kefir grains are needier than milk kefir grains. They really don’t tolerate neglect anywhere near as well, and keeping the overall acidity low is important for their longterm health. Having said that, I have tried grains from a variety of sources in the past. All of the mainstream culture sites, dehydrated and fresh, and some from other fermenters. All of those were roughly equivalent and far worse than the yemoos grains.
Although not totally impervious, the Yemoos grains withstood a lot worse treatment and a lot more experimentation than grains from any of the other sources I’ve tried. I would be surprised if there weren’t other great grains out there, but I can tell you that I haven’t found any that I liked better than those from Yemoos. I consider them my only WKG supplier until I find an equivalent. So yes, if you’re having trouble with your grains, I would recommend a switch.
If finances are an issue, you may want to go to a forum like Fermenter’s Kitchen where there is an active culture exchange. Others have great, healthy grains. I would also ask the person sharing his/her culture if there were any special measures taken for their care. For instance, I use coconut sugar and dates now and I change my ratio when the weather changes. Cultures are bound to have some differences, so if you have info on how your particular culture thrived in its previous home, that’s a great place to start.
Happy Fermenting!
Sandra says
Do you know why my grains are getting smaller? What can I do to get them to start looking healthier?
Amanda says
Hi Sandra,
If your grains are getting smaller, there could be a few things. First, are you talking about milk kefir grains or water kefir grains?
If milk:
It’s totally possible it’s just little buds breaking off from a larger piece. That’s normal and fine, and doesn’t seem to have an effect, negative or positive on the ferment.
If they are definitely shrinking, my experience would indicate that they’re not being fed the right food. Either you’re not feeding them frequently enough or they’re somehow not getting their preferred conditions. If you’re not using dairy milk, they do need that, so make the switch back until they’re healthy again, then maybe continue your non-dairy kefir with spare grains to keep a main set healthy. If you’re using a low fat or skim milk, give them a few feedings with a higher fat milk. Those are my baseline suggestions without any further info.
If water kefir grains, most likely one or more of these is the issue (again, without any further info, I’m kinda guessing):
1) Not fed frequently enough
2) Not enough sugar
3) Being kept in finished kefir liquid for too long
4) Too much sugar
5) Not enough nutrients (add a date, a lemon peel, some coconut sugar or all three)
6) Too many nutrients (many people add minerals or a special nutrient blend) in colder temps this can sometimes overwhelm your little grain friends. Cut back or leave the nutrients out altogether for a week or more if you’ve been using them consistently.
I hope that helps! If it doesn’t and you have more info, I’d be happy to take another stab at it!