How to Make Water Kefir & Benefits

Learn how to make water kefir with this simple tutorial. Water kefir is a probiotic rich superfood that may sound intimidating to make, but it is actually a very simple process. The reward is growing healthy bacteria right in your own kitchen.

I am sitting here drinking a bubbly bottle of fermented probiotic goodness as I type this blog post.

In another post, I shared how to make milk kefir, but some people have dairy issues and can’t tolerate it. 

The version I’m going to share with you is a great non-dairy kefir. You still get the health benefits of probiotics, but without dairy.

The process is actually quite similar. 

In this case, the bacteria is feeding on the sugar water rather than the natural sugar found in milk.

To make kefir into a delicious and bubbly probiotic beverage, follow the steps for a second fermentation. 

It is a super light and refreshing drink that is perfect for the summer time. It makes it easy to stay hydrated. Do you ever have to tell kids to drink more sparkling anything? No way! They love it. And it is something you can feel good about giving to your family.

Plus, it is super fun to make and you can make it in a million different flavors. Maybe a little bit of an exaggeration, but not really.

What Is Water Kefir?

Water kefir is a probiotic drink made from the fermentation of sugar water with a starter culture, aka kefir “grains,” which contain Kefir beneficial bacteria and yeast.

Probiotics have been all the buzz for several years now.

Ten years ago, you may have only heard the term “gut health” thrown around by in-the-know, west coast Yoga types, but nowadays you’re likely to hear it coming out of your grandma’s mouth.

These things may just seem like a trendy fad, but there is actually some serious science backing up the hype.

Water Kefir Benefits

There are so many benefits of water kefir. It is a rich probiotic beverage that is great for your gut health, and is a delicious way to hydrate. Let’s take a deeper look into the benefits.

Gut Health

Water kefir is rich in beneficial bacteria called probiotics. Probiotics have been linked to increased immunity, decreased risk of certain cancers, and better gut health.

There are ‘good guys’ in your gut and there are ‘bad guys’. 

God put the ‘bad guys’ in there, so they could break down your body at death (not the happiest topic, but it’s true). They were meant to be there in small quantities, and the ‘good guys’ were supposed to proliferate and make a healthy body.

Well, in our modern world of stress, sugar, and processed foods, those ‘bad guys’ get out of balance and all kinds of bad things begin to happen.

“Leaky Gut Syndrome” happens when there are literally holes in the gut lining.

Food leaks into the bloodstream, where it does not belong, and you experience minor symptoms like bloating and gas, or major symptoms like food allergies, depression, possibly even cancer, and everything in between.

Probiotic supplements are excellent and everyone should be on a good one (not just any old probiotic you find at Walmart), BUT it isn’t the entire answer to the problem.

To create a diverse inner ecosystem, you’ll want to introduce many different strains of good bacteria; water kefir can contain up to 56 different strains of probiotics. 

That’s pretty good diversity if you ask me.

Boosts Immune Health

A good portion of your immune system is located in the gut, and by increasing probiotics, you are benefiting your gut flora. 

Some studies have shown that probiotics can reduce the risk of intestinal infection and help prevent reoccurring urinary tract infection (source).

It can also reduce inflammation. Lower inflammation can improve immune response making your immune system work better and more efficiently.

Hydration

It is the perfect refreshing, low calorie drink. Drinking enough fluids everyday is important for many bodily functions and can help improve sleep, concentration, prevent infections, lubricate joints, and much more (source). 

I mean, you are made up of about 60% water.

Now while it is best to get most of your intake from water and non-sugary beverages, water kefir can help make water intake just a bit easier. 

Plus, the kefir grains digest a lot of the sugar anyway, leaving you with a glass full of tasty probiotic goodness.

Dairy Free

Many times when people think of fermented foods or drinks, they think dairy- like yogurt and milk kefir. For those who are sensitive or allergic to dairy, or vegan, getting probiotics may be more challenging.

Thankfully, there is a good variety of other dairy-free fermented foods, like kombucha, fermented vegetables, and even fruit.

This refreshing drink is not only dairy-free, but it is also vegan since you only need sugar and water to make it.

Inexpensive:

Once you have the things you need to make authentic kefir, it is really cheap to make. Much less expensive than the $3 a bottle it costs at the grocery store. All you need is a little water and sugar. Inexpensive household items.

Benefits Of Fermented Foods And Drinks

Sauerkraut.  Milk Kefir. Homemade Yogurt. Sourdough. Kombucha.

So, why take the extra effort to make your own fermented foods at home?

Yogurt and kefir from the store just don’t cut it. They are fermented for a very short amount of time, and by the time you get it from the store, it was probably made weeks ago.

The good bacteria are most certainly dying off by this point. Plus, they are usually filled with sugar and made with non-organic milk.

When you make fermented foods at home, they are teeming with good bacteria and can help repopulate your gut with the ‘good guys’. You have likely fermented them for days, or even weeks for some foods, so they are going to help your body significantly more than that store bought yogurt.

One of my favorite fermented beverages is water kefir.

I love to do a second fermentation with grape juice that makes it bubbly and delicious. Like a healthy grape soda.

Tips:

• Kefir grains multiply rapidly when you make it constantly. The extras can be fed to your chickens, thrown in the compost pile, blended into your smoothies for added probiotics, or sold on the internet.
• Make sure the sugar water is completely cooled before adding in the water kefir grains, because hot temperatures can kill the ‘good guys’. 
• If you like a fizzy sparkling drink, ferment it a second time to create carbonation.
• Add your favorite fruit juice to the second fermentation to create a healthy soda.
• Choose filtered water. Chlorine in city tap water can damage kefir grains.

This post contains affiliate links, which means I make a small commission at no extra cost to you. See my full disclosure here.

Ingredients:

Water kefir grains

Water

Juice, fresh or dried fruit: (optional, but this is added during the second fermentation, feed the good bacteria, to create the carbonation, and create flavored water kefir). Different fruits will create different flavors.

Sugar: Cane sugar or brown sugar are good options. 

Supplies you will need:

Water Kefir Grains – These are dehydrated grains that need to be rehydrated and reactivated.

Fine mesh strainer

Half gallon mason jar

Grolsch flip-top bottles (optional) – for second fermentation that creates a bubbly water kefir soda. Or else glass bottles will work just fine.

Brown sugar: White sugar also works. I like to use organic sugar.

My apron

How To Make Water Kefir:

Step 1:

Acquire water kefir grains. *In case you are brand new to fermenting, the “grains” aren’t actually grains at all. They are actually just little symbiotic colonies of good bacteria that feed on sugar. They are ALIVE. A lot like kombucha scobys.

Step 2:

Bring one cup of water to a boil.

Add 1/2 cup brown sugar and stir until dissolved. Allow to cool completely. 

Step 3:

Add 1/2 cup water kefir grains to a half gallon jar.

Fill the jar almost to the top with filtered water.

Step 4:

After the sugar water has dissolved and COOLED completely, add into the jar with the rest of the water and the water kefir grains. If the sugar water is still hot, it can kill the live cultures ‘good guys’ in the water kefir grains, so make sure it cools off first.

You may be saying at this point, “Hey…I thought sugar was bad!”

Well, you would be right about that, BUT, those little ‘good guys’ in the kefir grains loooove to feed on sugar and when they consume it, they turn the sweet sugar water into something sour and fermented. The resulting liquid will have negligible amounts of sugar left and a whole lot of beneficial probiotics.

Step 5: First Ferment

Place the lid on loosely, cover with a towel or coffee filter. 

Allow to ferment for 24 to 48 hours at room temperature.

If you are a person who gets squeamish with such loose directions, please know that you can’t really mess this up. As much as I would like to tell you to leave it out on your counter for exactly 32 hours, 12 minutes and 54 seconds, there are just too many variables.

Water Kefir Fermentation Considerations:

• If it is hot outside, it will ferment faster; but if the house is cooler than 68 degrees, the process will slow down.
• If you have been making water kefir for several weeks and your jar is almost full of grains, it will ferment a lot faster than if you have only a couple of tablespoons.
• You’ll need to do a taste test and if it still tastes like sweet sugar water, you need to wait a little longer.
• Sometimes I forget about my water kefir (and milk kefir, for that matter) and leave them out on the counter for three days (sometimes more, not that I would recommend that), but I have never had a problem.
• The end product always tastes great.
• So, basically, all you’re doing at this point is putting some water kefir grains into a jar of sugar water and letting it sit out.

Step 6: Strain Kefir Grains

Use a small fine mesh strainer like this one or a thin tea towel to strain the kefir grains from the fermented liquid.

After this first fermentation process you have officially created plain water kefir.

Step 7: Second Fermentation (Optional)

Acquire some Grolsch flip-top bottles.

Add 1/4 cup of grape juice to each bottle. You could also use another type of fruit juice, add fresh fruit or dried fruit. A juice with natural sugars is a great way to add flavor and add sugar to ferment and create carbon dioxide (aka make it bubbly). You can also use just sugar. Add 1/2-1 tsp of sugar per 16 oz of water for the second ferment.

You could also experiment with other juice flavors to change it up a bit. My favorite flavors include grape, mango, pineapple and citrus fruit (like lemon juice and orange). If you use a juice that doesn’t have a lot of natural sugar, you may have to add a little bit of additional sugar to the second ferment.

Fill each bottle the rest of the way with strained water kefir, using a metal or plastic funnel like this one or a thin tea towel.

Close the flip top lid and allow it to sit out for 24-48 hours out of direct sunlight.

When you go to open the bottle, make sure to open it slowly. These things can sometimes be quite explosive. I have lost half my soda by not taking care to open it slowly!

If there is hardly a “pop” sound at all when opening the lid, your soda probably isn’t fermented enough.

When this happens to me, I simply close the cap and set it back out on the counter for another day. I like mine to be really bubbly!

I hope you are not intimidated by this process. It truly is so simple, and once you get it into your daily routine it’s no big deal at all.

Now, go forth and fill your gut with a fermented drink full of good bacteria! 😉

Water Kefir Ideas

• Coconut: Substitute coconut water for regular water for the first fermentation to create coconut water kefir.
• Grape soda: Add grape juice
• Vanilla extract: Like cream soda
• Fresh berries: Blueberries, strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, etc. Juice or whole fruit will work.
• ​Peach
• Pineapple
• Lemon: Make a sparkling probiotic lemonade
• Orange
• Kiwi
• Pomegranate
• Elderberry

Water Kefir FAQ:

How much kefir water should I drink?

That is really up to you. Most people can enjoy one or two cups a day without issue. If you are totally new to drinking kefir, I would recommend starting off slowly and working your way up.

Some people may experience some digestive issues, which is a great reason to start off slow.

Is water kefir better than kombucha?

Water kefir contains more beneficial bacteria than kombucha. Both are rich in probiotics and enzymes, and aid in hydration. Both are great options.

Which is better milk or water kefir?

Milk kefir has more beneficial bacteria compared to water kefir and has more nutrients, so when you compare the two, milk kefir is the better option.

Is water kefir full of sugar?

No. The good bacteria digests the sugar making it have less sugar compared to typical carbonated beverages. Once it has been fermented, it typically contains around 3 grams of sugar.

More Of Our Family Favorite Fermented Recipes:

• Lacto Fermented Salsa Recipe
• Kefir Ranch Dressing Recipe
• How To Make Sour Cream From Raw Milk
• How to Make Milk Kefir – Rather than water kefir grains, milk kefir use milk kefir grains. This is another great healthy beverage full of probiotics.
• Sourdough Recipes

If you try this recipe and love it, I would appreciate if you came back and gave it a 5 star rating!