Water of life
A certain anticipation always accompanied that first, cautious opening of the jar after a month of fermentation. It was the closest she had come, in a long time, to the feeling of butterflies in her stomach. She had come to recognise her attraction to the vitality of fermentation. The thought of creating a form of life that continues beyond her intervention was the closest she could come to procreation; she imagined this must be, in some way, what gods and mothers feel.
She had brought a jar of kefir culture back from Warsaw, where she had not managed to use it. The jar sat in her fridge for seven months, during which time she lived almost entirely between airports. The culture remained there, neglected, along with many other aspects of her life.
When she, like everyone else, was forced to change her plans and remain at home for months, she turned her attention once more to the things she had neglected: her dough, her health, the walls of her home, the comfort of her sofa, the arrangement of her furniture, her strained relationships, her bitterness toward a past shaped by her father, her appreciation of her mother—and the jar in the fridge.
One day, while moving around the house, a thought came to her: what if she fed it, to see if it would show any sign of life? She dismissed the idea at first, assuming there was little chance the bacteria had survived the months of neglect.
But in the end, she took a teaspoon of sugar, as if testing the boundary between life and death. The jar hissed softly when she opened it. The bubbles suggested life, she thought. She smelled it, then took a sip. She had never tasted water kefir before, but it seemed right; it carried a faint sweetness, slightly fermented, the familiar taste of transformation. She added the sugar, closed the jar, and left it on the kitchen counter.
In the days that followed, she looked at it occasionally, hoping the bacteria were feeding on the sugar. Two days later, she opened it again and tasted it. The flavour had changed—more sour, more tart than sweet. The bacteria had survived those seven months; they had sustained themselves despite the lack of nourishment.
She was struck by this persistence. These small bubbles of life spoke of resilience, forgiveness, and hope.
The moment called for continuation. She began a second fermentation, one that allowed for the addition of fruit. She strained the kefir grains, examining their small, gelatinous forms, though their life remained invisible. She poured off the liquid, added apple, peach, and raspberries, and covered the container.
Although the grains were no longer present, the liquid still carried a living culture that would feed on the fruit. Three days later, she drank it—gently effervescent, quietly active—thinking about the smallest movements of difference, about forms of life that exist in the spaces we usually overlook.
Everything is everywhere, she thought; all that is needed is a genuine encounter.
Water Kefir
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Ingredients:
2 tbsp kefir grains (you’ll need a starter culture—get some from someone who has extra or buy them online)
4 cups water
2½ teaspoons sugar (unrefined cane, coconut, palm, or brown)
1 dried fig, plum, or date (optional)
4 tbsp lemon juice (optional)
Method:
- Mix the sugar into the water until fully dissolved.
- Spoon the water kefir grains into the sugar water. Drop in the dried fruit and add lemon juice. Let it culture for at least 24 hours and up to 72 hours (depending on the room temperature), cover loosely with a lid. Note: when your dried fruit floats, your ferment is ready.
- Strain the kefir grains through a nonreactive strainer into a pitcher. Discard the fruit.
- Serve the kefir right away or continue with the secondary fermentation below
- Reserve the water kefir grains, storing them in some sugar water in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. The kefir grains will stay healthy as long as you keep feeding them with healthy sugars, alternating between cane, coconut, and brown sugar; don't feed them only white sugar.
What you need for the second fermentation
After you've made the basic water kefir from the first fermentation, you can experiment with new flavors for a more enjoyable drink.
You can flavor your basic brew with sweetened herbal teas, fruit juices, or fruits like cherries, raspberries, strawberries, mangos, red grapes, pineapple, prunes, peaches, or apples.
Creating a natural fizzy soda from water kefir relies on a second fermentation, i.e., after you brew your initial batch. The natural fizz comes from the release of carbon dioxide during fermentation. When carbon dioxide is bottled up, the lemonade becomes naturally fizzy.
Depending on how long you allow it to ferment, that fizziness can range from an effervescent tickle to a frenzied foaming.
Celebratory Mixed Natural Fruit Soda
This is the recipe the artist followed to create a sweet, slightly bubbly, probiotic, mixed fruit natural soda.
- 1 cup of finely chopped apple, peach and raspberries. You can also experiment by using one cup of fresh fruit juice or herbal tea.
- 4 cups of water kefir
- Optional: 1/4 tsp fine sea salt. It adds minerals and flavor, in addition to supporting the bacteria in the water kefir
Instructions
- Insert the finely chopped fruit or the juice into flip-top bottles, then add the salt and water kefir, filling the bottles but leaving 2-4 centimeters of air space.
- Seal the bottles and set them on your countertop to ferment for 2-3 days, bearing in mind • that warm temperatures will speed up the fermentation pro-cess, while cool temperatures will slow it down. Transfer the bottles of water kefir to the fridge for 3 days to allow the bubbles to set.
- Open carefully over a sink, as the liquid in the bottle is under pressure and may fizz and foam.
- Strain and serve chilled on ice. The soda will keep well in the fridge for 2 weeks.
