What Is the Difference between Yogurt and Kefir?

Many people assume that because yogurt and kefir are cultured milk products, there isn’t much difference between the two. This is not true. There are many differences between yogurt and kefir, including how they are made, the type of bacteria present, and the health benefits of each.

Incubation Type

There are two types of yogurt: mesophilic and thermophilic. Mesophilic means that it is cultured at room temperature. Thermophilic means that the culture requires a specific range of temperatures to incubate.

Kefir is a mesophilic temperature which means it can culture at room temperature. Many yogurt strains, however, are thermophilic and require some sort of warming device to properly culture.

There is also a difference in what is used to propagate the culture in the milk. Yogurt is made by mixing a bit of a previous yogurt batch into fresh milk. Once the new batch is complete you may use that starter again, or in the case of raw milk a separate starter is kept with pasteurized milk. Yogurt can also be made with a dried starter.

Kefir, on the other hand, is made with either a dried starter or a set of kefir “grains.” These gelatinous grains will multiply over time, leaving you with extra grains to use, give away, or compost after every batch. In making kefir, the grains are simply removed from a newly made batch of kefir and added to fresh milk to make the next batch.

Types of Bacteria Present

Yogurt and kefir contain different types of bacteria, each of which perform different tasks.

The beneficial bacteria found in yogurt help keep the digestive tract clean and provide food for the friendly bacteria found in a healthy gut.

The bacteria in kefir, on the other hand, can actually colonize the intestinal tract. Kefir also contains a lot larger range of bacteria. So while yogurt may contain a handful of different strains of bacteria, kefir may contain at least twice that.

This is beneficial both in creating a fully-fermented, low-lactose cultured milk as well as providing the gut with a good range of bacteria.

Kefir Contains Yeasts

Both kefir and yogurt are lactic acid fermentations. On top of that, though, kefir contains beneficial yeasts that can also produce alcohol.

These beneficial yeasts are helpful in controlling and eliminating harmful yeasts that may reside in the body.

Texture & Flavor

Yogurt has a flavor that most of us are familiar with: tart, smooth, and creamy. Kefir is also tart, but it can have a touch of yeast or alcohol flavor to it due to the beneficial yeasts present in the culture.

Most varieties of yogurt are also thicker than kefir, given the same length of fermentation time. While yogurt is almost always eaten with a spoon, kefir can often be eaten with a straw out of a glass.

You might walk away from this article thinking that kefir is superior to yogurt and therefore the only cultured dairy we should be eating. The truth, however, is that both yogurt and kefir are beneficial cultured dairy products that can perform different, helpful tasks in the body.

Related Articles & Recipes:

• VIDEO: Making Kefir
• Learn to Make Yogurt
• Three Ways to Make Cultured Buttermilk
• Orange Smoothie Recipe

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