Reducing the Lactose Content of Kefir

Many people are finding that they are lactose intolerant and need to keep their lactose consumption to a minimum or avoid it all together. Others are simply trying to keep their overall sugar intake in check.

Whatever the case, you may be wondering what the lactose content of kefir is.

What is Lactose?

Lactose is the disaccharide sugar found in milk. It makes up about 2-8% of the volume of milk and is chemically known as C₁₂H₂₂O_11.

Lactose is known to be allergenic in many individuals. Some people are completely dairy intolerant, being unable to consume the milk sugar lactose or the milk protein casein. Others are simply lactose intolerant.

Lactose, like all sugars, is a carbohydrate. Anyone who is interested in lowering their carbohydrate content is therefore concerned with the lactose content of various milk and cultured milk products.

Lactose in Kefir

All cultures (kefir grains, kombucha scobies, etc.) consume sugars in order to produce the favorable microorganisms found in the cultured foods that we love like yogurt and kefir. It follows, therefore, that the lactose found in milk is the primary food supply for dairy cultures.

We can also know that any cultured dairy product is lower in lactose than the milk it started as. The cultures have feasted on a fair amount of the lactose in the milk and converted it into the tangy lactic acid we find in kefir or yogurt.

This is great news for anyone looking to avoid lactose and the reason that so many people seem to digest cultured dairy better than milk itself.

How to Lower the Lactose Content of Kefir

The lactose content of your kefir is determined by three things:

• The lactose content of the milk you started with.
• The amount of time that your kefir is cultured.
• What you do with your kefir after it has cultured.

By manipulating these three factors you can control the lactose content of your kefir to some degree. So let’s explore how to use these factors to get the lowest possible lactose content in your kefir.

Type of Milk. There are many options when choosing the type of milk to make kefir from. The two major variables are the animal from which the milk came from and the fat content of the milk itself.

Cow’s milk is thought to contain a lot of lactose. While this is true, it is not significantly more lactose-containing than the milk of other animals like goats or sheep. Both cow’s milk and goat’s milk contain 4.7% lactose while sheep’s milk contains 4.6% lactose, not a very big variance.

From these numbers, choosing goat’s or sheep’s milk over cow’s milk will not result in a big difference in lactose content.

Kefir Culturing Time

As stated above, when milk is cultured into kefir the kefir culture feasts off of the lactose content of the milk and converts it into all sorts of microorganisms like probiotics and acids. One of the best indications of how much lactose is in your cultured kefir is the amount of acids in the end product. Let’s explore why.

As the kefir culture consumes the lactose, it produces acids that give kefir its signature tang. The more time it is given to culture, the more lactose it consumes and the more acids it produces. More acids present in the kefir equate to a tangier kefir.

You can conclude, therefore, that a tangier kefir will be lower in lactose while a sweeter kefir will be higher in lactose.

For those who wish to make a lower-lactose kefir a culturing time of 24-48 hours in a temperature of 65-80 degrees is recommended.

Maturing Kefir Once it is Cultured

Once you have cultured your kefir for at least 24 hours as recommended above you can take one final step to ensure that the lactose content in kefir is as low as possible. This step is called maturing or ripening.

Remember that kefir was originally made in the Caucuses by those who did not have access to refrigeration. Because of this kefir could not be cultured and then refrigerated. It had to be stored, instead, in as cool of temperatures as could be acquired or consumed immediately.

It is postulated that more often than not kefir was allowed to ripen for some time before being consumed. Here is how to replicate this ripening process in your home kitchen:

1. Take freshly cultured kefir (after the grains are strained out) and pour into a clean, sealable glass container. Fill container only 3/4 of the way full.
2. Place lid on the container, but do not seal it airtight as a fair amount of carbonation can build up when sealed.
3. Once or twice every day seal the lid on the kefir container until airtight and shake vigorously. This prevents yeasts and vinegar bacteria from forming a colony on the surface of the kefir. These colonies may form a fuzzy layer on the top of your kefir if the kefir is not well shaken once or twice per day. Once you have agitated the kefir loosen the lid again so that it is not airtight.
4. Kefir can be kept for up to five days at room temperature in a warm climate and up to fourteen days at room temperature in cooler climates.
5. Tighten lid and refrigerate and consume as needed.

Of course, if you are highly sensitive to lactose then you will want to be very cautious as you determine at what state of “kefiring” you can consume your kefir. Many who struggle with lactose have been able to consume kefir, though, so give it a try.

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