Milk Kefir – A healthy fermented milk product – An important food as medicine

Directions on How to Make Milk Kefir. 

First you must obtain the grains. These can be purchased (one reputable supplier is the Cultures for Health website) or if you ask around in your community you should find someone who would be happy to share their grains with you.

milk kefir grains

I’d recommend finding some milk kefir grains on the Irish Fermentalists Facebook page- there is often someone near you willing to share. They are not actually a grain at all but a yeast/bacterial fermentation starter. They look like small grains of cauliflower.

The next step is to obtain the best quality milk you can find. This can be organic, raw, unpasteurised cow’s or goats milk. Or, any milk that you are used to drinking will do, as long as it isn’t UHT milk. The grains do best on dairy milk but it is possible to culture nut or soya milks- but you’ll have to read up about how best to do this so that the grains don’t starve over time. Bear in mind that even if you normally avoid dairy products like i do, once the milk has been turned into kefir it will contain little to no lactose so everyone should be able to tolerate it unless there’s a milk allergy to casein. From what I’ve read some of the casein also gets broken down during the fermentation process.

The next step is to place approx 1 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon of grains into a glass jar with anywhere from a cup to 500 ml milk, or whatever amount your family will consume in a day or two. Cover the glass jar with a coffee filter and a rubber band or a clean tea towel and leave it somewhere it won’t be disturbed or forgotten for the next 24-48 hours. Look in on your milk kefir every now and then, give it a stir, and do a taste test. It’s ready whenever you like the taste of it. Normally it will thicken to a consistency like cream or a runny yogurt and have a pleasant yeasty aroma. Depending on the warmth of your room and the grains to milk ratio it can take anywhere from 12 – 48 hours to be kefir. If you find the liquid has started to separate into curds and whey- don’t be alarmed- just stir it all in, strain out the grains and refrigerate the kefir. Next time you could leave it a little less time. The taste will become slightly more sour over time, taste it at various stages and see where you like it best. Strain out the grains with a strainer and repeat the whole process. The milk kefir will keep in your fridge for up to 3 weeks. It’s ok to add the next days kefir to the same container if you still have some left from previous days.

A little about milk kefir in my experience:

Milk Kefir is a fermented dairy beverage- full of health promoting properties. I know that doesn’t make it sound hugely appetising. But, bear with me.  This drink has been around for thousands of years. If you imagine yogurt, it’s not much different in appearance and nature. Kefir and yogurt are both good for you in that they contain a healthy dose of probiotics that line your intestines and feed your gut flora and in this way contribute to a stronger immune system. A healthy gut is where it all starts.  Kefir has the advantage over yogurt in that it also contains healthy yeasts along with the bacteria. Both products, especially when made with full fat milk also contribute to your daily calcium, protein and vitamin needs.  Best thing is, it’s so easy to make at home.

I used to spend a small fortune on quality probiotics from the health shops. I no longer buy them as I get a wider range of these same probiotics along with other strains from fermented dairy products along with kombucha and lacto-fermented veggies such as sauerkraut and kimchi. It feels reassuring to know how to provide my body with what it needs from natural foods rather than relying on what I need to otherwise buy in a bottle from a health shop.

Are you one of the many who suffer from dairy intolerance? I also have never tolerated cow’s milk well, although  I was well into my twenties before I realised that this was the problem. It seems to be that my body can’t break down the lactose in cow’s milk well, and drinking cow’s milk, or especially cream makes me feel a strong headache, sore and bloated tummy, along with strong stomach pains, digestive problems and IBS symptoms. For many years I avoided cow’s milk dairy products (I could tolerate goat’s milk no problem- it has a smaller fat globule that makes it easier for humans to digest than cow’s milk does) but in recent years learned that both milk kefir and yogurt- made if possible with organic milk- were no problem to me. In fact there are studies that show that drinking milk kefir can help heal the issues that cause the dairy intolerance. I now find after a year of drinking milk kefir most days I can now tolerate more cow’s milk products such as a small amount of cheese etc than I’ve ever been able to do!

The kefir grains break down the lactose and casein in milk and convert these to glucose and galactatose. They also convert the lactose into B vitamins along with the probiotics.

Some of the other benefits I’ve personally seen from drinking milk kefir are: an improved digestion, less bloating, less prone to cystitis and yeast infections, and surprisingly but nearly best of all is that I found that my hay fever and seasonal allergies were vastly improved this year. I’ve struggled with an almost overwhelming allergy to pollen in the summertime. What’s worse than being allergic to nature! The increased beneficial bacteria in my gut helped ease my allergy symptoms.  These benefits along with the savings on expensive probiotics are what have convinced me that kefir is a product that could benefit many people.

Check out the pdf that is provided for free from the Cultures for Health website. They have a really informative website which highlights many fermented foods and their benefits. They also sell the cultures of kefir grains among many other fermented cultures such as yogurtkombucha, piima, cheese, etc. They have some free e-books that are available for download which I’d highly recommend if you’d like to learn more about how to prepare kefir and all the things that you can do with it in recipes etc.

Enjoy!

milk kefir grains

Kombucha Instructions

Kombucha 

Kombucha is one of my favourite drinks. It’s a fermented sweet tea. The first time I saw Kombucha

I swore then and there that it would never pass my lips! That was about 15 years ago and thankfully I gave it a try in recent years. While the culture that ferments tea into Kombucha can look a little daunting, it’s grown on me to become something I look on with extra delight, it’s an ugly fascinating tasty and healthy science experiment!

The Kombucha culture is called a SCOBY which is an acronym for Symbiotic Culture Of Bacteria and Yeast= S.C.O.B.Y.

The basic premise is simple: obtain a scoby- again ask around in your community there’s bound to be someone who also brews Kombucha and can pass a scoby onto you. If not, you’ll have to buy one or make your own. If you’d like to make your own you can buy a bottle of commercial ‘live’ plain kombucha and grow one from that. It’s not complicated, you can google it to see the process. I’ll make another post about this specifically another day.

Feed the scoby a quantity of sweet tea that’s cooled to room temperature. Let it sit/ ferment for between 5-25 days until its at a perfect balance between sweet and tart. Usually I find approximately 5 days is perfect, but this depends on a few factors such as the warmth of the room and the ratio of scoby and starter to tea. After day 3, taste a little bit of the tea each day until its a taste you find a pleasant balance between sweet and sour. The sugar will be digested by the scoby and converted into probiotics and B vitamins and you’ll find the tea is less and less sweet as each day goes by.

My favourite reference book is a free download from the Cultures for Health website. If you sign up to their newsletter you can download their compilation of e-books one of which is about Kombucha. This has the most concise and useful information that I’ve found- even better than some books I’ve bought- and best of all it’s free!

Since I’ve been drinking Kombucha I’ve found a healthy replacement for fizzy sodas that are laden with sugar and chemicals. If Kombucha goes through a secondary fermentation and you add fruity flavours it can turn out far nicer than any commercial and too sweet drink on the market.

I’ll share my exact kombucha recipe with you next and a few other recipes that I’ve come across.

In the meantime this link from Cultures for Health is the recipe I follow. You can read more exact instructions here.

And this is the most important part, that you follow these ratios. With some other ferments I feel you can be a bit loose with measurements- but with kombucha it’s more important to be exact.

 Container SizeTeaSugarWaterStarter Tea or Vinegar 
One quart1½ teaspoon loose tea or 2 tea bags¼ cup2-3 cups½ cup
½ Gallon1 tablespoon loose tea or 4 tea bags½ cup6-7 cups1 cup
Gallon2 tablespoons loose tea or 8 tea bags1 cup13-14 cups2 cups

Here is a typed instructions from my Herbalism teacher Judith Hoad:

Kombucha brewing instructions

Book Recommendation: The Cultured Club by Dearbhla Reynolds

This is a book that I always recommend on my fermentation workshops. Its written by the Irish author Dearbhla Reynolds and is packed full of easy to follow recipes. And not only how to make the ferments, but what to do with them!

I spent many a fermentation crazed 3 or 4 day and night frenzy whipping up her recipes.

Delighted to be reunited with this wonderful book after having ‘lent’ my copy out and never got it back!

Here is a Rice Miso Breakfast idea that I am going to make in the morning:

Doesn’t it sound good? Are you a savoury breakfast lover also?

Rice Miso Breakfast recipe by the Cultured Club.

In conjunction with the book or instead of, another resource of hers that I cannot recommend highly enough is her online course: Saucy- The Secret of Sauce. I love it because even I am guilty of having soggy kimchi at the back of the fridge or preserved lemons lingering and languishing in my pantry- unsure of how to use them to their potential. This course gives you 26 saucy recipes of how to use ingredients like those to transform them into incredible tasting and probiotic live sauces.

Do yourself a favour and check it out!

Miso magic in Belfast with The Koji Kitchen and The Cultured Club

I spent a couple of wonderful days with my friend Dearbhla (The Cultured Club) in Belfast the other day. She was hosting a workshop by Robin of The Koji Kitchen.

We spent a full day and night soaking and cooking kilos and kilos of beans in preparation for the workshop.

There were lots of lovely folk in attendance: lots of nutritionists, chefs, beginning to advanced fermenters, and all around cool people.

Here are some images of the workshop. I’d highly recommend a workshop with Robin if you are interested in expanding your knowledge of the magic that is koji.

We all went home with our own jars of sweet miso- and it should be ready to taste in 6-8 weeks.

On a totally separate but very important aside- we were lucky enough to eat the best Indian food I’ve ever tasted on this trip. EVER! My tastebuds almost couldn’t cope. And it just looked like a nondescript bog standard take-away. If you are in Belfast you must taste this food! Bites of India at 97 Ravenhill Road. I will be dreaming of that dinner for a long time to come!

Books, books, books! Recommendations

There are soo very many books that inspire me and that I learn from. Here is a small selection of books and authors whom I admire and respect. Among many others! I’ll do more posts with other books to share with you another time as well.

This is one book post of many: as I am a huge book-aholic! It’s an addiction that I am happy to feed. There are more book posts here in my blog and on Instagram.


I get asked so often to recommend books and resources that I like to learn from. The following are some excellent places to start! 

Hedgerow Medicine by Julie Bruton-Seal and Matthew Seal. The book focuses more on medicinal plants, how to identify, harvest, process, recipes. A great place to start from and a beautiful book, full of recipes and methods to use these local wild plants as medicine. (Plus, having met them a couple of times- they are beautiful people!)

River Cottage Mushrooms by John Wright. A great beginners guide to edible fungi and their dangerous lookalikes. I also enjoy listening to his other Foraging books on Audibles. 

Edible Mushrooms by Geoff Dann highly recommended.

Trees in Britain by Roger Phillips (also any or all of his Foraging books, he’s a legend, who sadly just passed recently). If you’re interested in mushrooms, you’ll soon learn that you need to know the trees!

The Forager Handbook by @miles_irving_wild_food High end and Chefy recipes and an excellent resource of edible wild foods found in the UK and Ireland. A fellow Association of Foragers member. Not a beginners book I would say but it’s a great compilation of wild plants and elaborate recipes.

Eat Weeds Cookbook by @eatweedsuk Robin Harford. Another Foraging wild food legend and fellow AoF member. His website is comprehensive and I’d recommend signing up to his mailing list.

Extreme Greens Understanding Seaweeds by Sally McKenna a great book with seaweed ID and delicious easy to use recipes to incorporate seaweeds into your every day diet.

New Wildcrafted Cuisine by @pascalbaudar I love all of his books, a pioneer in new wild food processes including Fermentation. Follow him on Instagram and you can also sign up for his online classes.


@alysf Alys Fowler The Thrifty Forager
. Beautiful simple to follow book, she has another one about preserving also. Great for urban foraging.


Botany in a Day @thomasjelpel I’m excited to be learning more about identifying plant families with this book. He also sells a card game to help learn these skills.


#foraging #wildfood #fungi #wildmushrooms #fermentation #preservation #selfsufficiency #books #workshops

Vegan Cashew Cheese recipe and book recommendation

I am intolerant to most dairy so Iove to find ways to still be able to eat cheese!

I love this book Artisan Vegan Cheeses by Miyoko Schinner

I’ll share here a photo montage I shared as a story on Instagram of the process:

This last step with blending in the oil is what gives your cheese a cheesy texture when kept cool in the fridge, much like a brie consistency. The nutritional yeast adds a cheesy flavour.

Gift Vouchers for an experience – Offering experiences that grow your curiosity & connection w/ the wild through woodland walks. Come explore the alchemy of wild food, fungi & medicine with Courtney Tyler.

Should you be looking for a perfect gift for someone you love and tired of buying more things?

A gift of an experience is something that will never be forgotten.

I offer experiences, events and workshops in wild food, herbal medicine, fungi, medicinal mushrooms, foraging, and more.

Here is a link to buy a gift voucher which will be sent to you immediately upon payment, to print off and gift! Should you prefer a certain value that isn’t there, just get in touch!

Testimonials and feedback from past participants of Hips and Haws Wildcrafts events

This photo was taken at Dulra at the Permaculture Design Course where I have been a speaker for the past 4 years in Glenealy, Co. Wicklow. This was June 2020.

With so much gratitude to all of my connections and customers who allow me to live out the dream of working with sharing my greatest passions. Thank you!

You can click the link below to read the reviews directly on Facebook or some of them have been added below.

https://www.facebook.com/hipsandhawswildcrafts/reviews

Had a wonderful time at Courtney’s workshop learning about wild food and medicines. Fun, informative and inspiring. Beautiful blend of stories, science, skills and plant magic. Evidently rooted in both experience and study, very grateful for the knowledge and skills she shares, which makes forging seem way more doable than I thought!
-Lauren Owens

I spent several hours today in Kindlestown Woods in the company of Courtney of Hips and Haws Wildcrafts on a wild mushroom ID walk, and came away deeply impressed by her generosity in sharing so much knowledge and lore. Her enthusiasm was infectious, and she brought every species we found to life with anecdotes and back-stories. That dozen or so fellow attendees were friendly and sociable and we were blessed with a delightful bright autumn day. We broke up for foraging for a 10 minute “Forest Bathing” mindfulness exercise which left me feeling very up and relaxed. All in all, a super day and I would gladly recommend any similar activity by Hips and Haws to my friends.
-Norman Darlington

I went to a wild plant foraging outing with Hips and Haws Wildcrafts last Friday and I can safely say I am bewitched! It was so so enjoyable. Courtney’s passion for wild plants is so contagious. She makes the whole experience very accessible and so enriching. I also really appreciate how respectful and considerate she is with the wild. I am hooked and will be back for more! Thank you.
-Sophie Rieu

Brilliant day with Courtney she is an amazing person so knowledgeable and interesting. Gourmet healthy food in the sunshine on the beach, it was a gift to be lucky enough to experience. Thank you Courtney you exceeded expectations keep up the great work.
-Emma Strain

What an amazing day today. This is my second course with Courtney and Hips and Haws Wildcrafts and I could not recommend them highly enough, her knowledge and passion is infectious. An amazing amount of information, how to use and fantastic recipes to use at home. Thank you also for the beautiful food prepared, delicious. Love spending time with the wonderful like-minded people on the walk today also. Looking forward to attending more.
-Fiona Byrne

Cannot recommend one of these events enough! Courtney is so knowledgeable and easy-going. I could walk and listen to her talk about plants and mushrooms all day. Even if you think this isn’t your cup of tea- give it a try- I am certain she will change your mind! This is my second event with Hips and Haws Wildcrafts and I can’t wait for the next.
-Julie Taylor

I cannot recommend Courtney’s walk in the woods “Wicklow Spring Greens and Wild Garlic Forage” workshop enough. It was a wonderful experience and what really shown out was Courtney’s passion for passing on her knowledge of the woods. Being a country boy myself I thought I knew a lot about the plants and what they can be used for but I soon learned how little I really knew. How to tap the birches for sap and what was not safe to eat. Of course nettles now take on a whole new life far from being something that stings you but a venerable whole food source in it self. The main purpose of course what the wild garlic growing in abundance. The flowers soaked in vinegar became a dressing and the leaves are added to all sorts. Who would ever think that combining honey with garlic would produce such a wonderful accompaniment for a fresh green salads or pasta. So as you can tell I’ve got the bug from Courtney for all things foraging. I must admit the following day we went back again to collect some more wild garlic. Thank you Courtney for igniting my new found interest in eating what is available in the woods. In the words of Nike “just do it’- foraging with Courtney.
-Brendan Looney

Wow wow wow! Hips and Haws Wildcraft events are a special opportunity to connect with beautiful people in an amazing space. I was fortunate enough to have the privilege to attend a Fly Agaric event hosted by Courtney and Fergus the Forager. From the moment I arrived I felt an instant inspiration and warm welcome. We foraged in the nearby woods in fun filled explorations, while learning and connecting with the many species of fungi available. The preparations and dishes we were treated to after our journey in the woods was a unique blend of heartwarming tastes and enjoyable community spirit set outdoors. For a revitalising experience amongst a vibrant loving group a Hips and Haws event is the place to be.
-Riain O’Táth

I love passionate people. I believe that if you want to try something in your life, it’s best to learn from people who are passionate about it. Last year I started reading a lot about plants herbs and how what we eat has a huge impact on our body spirit and well-being. I remember that as a child, my grandfather often took me on trips to find herbs, nettles, mushrooms, wild fruit and buds and everything that nature gave. Unfortunately, as a child, I wasn’t interested in what was edible or not was not, because that’s what my grandfather was for. Courtney reminded me a lot of the facts and stimulated my desire to learn more about using what is seasonal and at our fingertips, for which I thank you very much and recommend it to anyone who wants to learn more. This woman can infect positive energy. With a person like her you can easily develop your interests. I made wild garlic in olive oil in yoghurt topped salty and sweet pesto and thanks to this activity and knowledge I discovered a new favourite delicacy for my children. I never would’ve thought that nettles crisps could be so crunchy and the vinegar oxymel is perfect for salads and as a side dish. I am glad that I could take part in the classes and it will certainly not be the last time. I love learning new things through interesting classes and these were such. Courtney I know that your classes will be the perfect gift for my friend from me for her next birthday. Learning, practising and relaxing in nature in good company.
-Roksana Grubba

Such a great experience. Courtney has lots of knowledge and is a wonderful guide. The location is immersive and the mushrooms we collected and ate were absolutely delicious! A feast for the senses!
-George Edgeworth

If you have any interest in foraging and mushrooms this is the place for you. Groups are small which helps as you don’t get lost in the crowd. Everyone has the opportunity to explain they’re interested in what they’re looking for on the day. Courtney is such a lovely person with a wealth of knowledge and is not afraid to share it. Happy to help ID and discuss. It was probably the guts of three months ago and I still bang on about this day and how much fun it was. If you’re not it’s like I am it’s perfect for you. If you’re an expert it’s perfect for you too. Thanks Courtney
-Houdini Galahad

Had a great day wondering around Avondale Forest Park, I learnt loads about the types of mushrooms I have no experience with and it’s given me the confidence to go and identify the species with a little more ease.
Courtney is very knowledgeable and an excellent guide and speaker and I would recommend it to anyone who has no experience and would like to start and likewise I would recommend it to anyone who has knowledge and would like to refresh. I will definitely be back.
-Kastro Freeman

What a fantastic day in the woods hunting for mushrooms. Learnt so much in the five hours. And at the end Courtney cooked for us a gorgeous meal and shared with us for home-made brews and food. Thank you so much.
-Nadine Fitzgerald Selby

I went on a very fun and informative mushroom foraging trip with Hips and Haws Wildcrafts in August this year I definitely recommend their foraging trips anyone with an interest in this area. I had a splendid day looking for and learning about mushrooms, both edible another wise.
-Farah Imran Shams

I have had the pleasure of being on a both a mushroom foraging and a fermenting workshop with Hips and Haws Wildcrafts and both have been delightfully informative. Courtney’s passion for what she does fills you with enthusiasm to get pickling and fermenting- highly recommended.
-Clare Griffin

Just after my first class with Courtney and what a day she orchestrated for us, a lovely lunch included. I can’t imagine the work that went on behind the scenes. So happy to share her methods and resources and all things fermented not to mention her fantastic kefir starter. Very excited to continue the strains on at home. This fermentation masterclass was hands-on and Courtney really lives up to her wonderful reputation, so passionate about passing on this knowledge and practice. I can’t wait for my next day out with her.
-Sarah-Lou Malone

Excellent knowledge, clear passion for the subject and warm welcoming approach to passing that knowledge on. And a huge amount of work done behind the scenes to make the day such a wonderful experience. Many thanks Courtney
-Mike Hibbett

Fermentation day with friends

I often feel so lucky and grateful to be surrounded by such loving and incredible people in my life.

I’ve gone to visit my friend Annie over the last few summers for a polytunnel clear out fermentation session. We were joined by Kittie, Tina, Annie, myself and Petra (who was behind the camera).

Here are a few pics from the day. Annie Holland Photography took many of these photos and many more (I have yet to add- I cannot locate them now, and will add soon).

Foraging and Wildcrafting Series: Wild Garlic and Edible Spring Greens 26/27 March 2022 with Courtney and Michael White of Rural Courses

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If you’re interested in sustainability, foraging, local wild food, herbal medicine, fermentation and food preservation processes- we will offer you a full day educational experience in a beautiful outdoor rural location. 

The group will split into two and half will go with Michael from Rural Courses for an in-depth exploration of wild greens, safe foraging practices, and a dive into the wealth of edible tasty wild greens, salad greens, shoots and sap options in March.

We will forage for an array of fantastic seasonal greens, salad leaves and edible shoots. The local wild superfoods: NettlesCleavers, Dandelion, Garlic Mustard, Alexanders, Wild Garlic, Common Hogweed among many others. We will also learn about any dangerous look-alikes and things to avoid.  

Of course we never stop looking for edible or medicinal fungi and we might come across these if we are lucky: Turkey Tail, Birch Polypore, Oyster, Velvet Shank, Artist Conk, Jelly ear.   

You’ll swap over and have a wildcrafting and preservation demo with Courtney of food preservation methods including fermentation, vinegars, oxymels, dehydration, salts, honey and alcohol etc. We will learn and sample methods to help preserve the harvest in ways to enjoy throughout the year. 

There will be plenty of wild food tasters, a light lunch and drinks to sample and share together on the day.

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What: the Foraging and Wildcrafting Series: Wild Garlic and Edible Spring Greens

Where: Co Wicklow- the location will be disclosed closer to the date. You may need a car to travel, but we can arrange collection from a nearby train or bus if needed. 

When: 2 dates are available: 

Saturday 26 March. Time: 1030-1630 

-OR-

Sunday 27 March Time: 930-1530

*PLEASE NOTE THE TIME CHANGE ON SUNDAY STARTS EARLIER

How Much: €110 Early Bird/ €135 Full Price

Early bird tickets are available until the 9th February and are full price of €135 after that date. 

To book your place- click here: https://hipsandhawswildcrafts.clr.events/event/131817:foraging-and-wildcrafting-series-wild-garlic-and-edible-spring-greens-26-27-march-2022

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You must dress appropriately for a day spent outdoors, hiking boots are helpful. Sorry for this event no young children or dogs. You must be physically fit for a day spent wandering the wilderness with hills and uneven ground.  Bookings for all of my events will close 2 weeks before the event takes place. In this case, the event will close to all new bookings on 12 March 2022. We will be in touch with you before the event takes place to share the location with those that have booked their place

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FAQ’s /Terms and Conditions:

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All ticket sales are final, we do not offer refunds or rescheduling. 

This is in order to care for our energy in organising and running events as well as due to the fact that otherwise this place could have been offered to someone else.
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**COVID precautions in relation to ticket sales: all ticket sales are final according to the policy above. However if you are exposed to Covid or in quarantine, you may choose to gift your ticket to someone else in your place. 
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If we have to change the date of an event due to severe weather warnings or government guidelines, or for any other reason- we will issue you with a voucher which can be used on a future workshop.

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You can book your place for this event here: https://hipsandhawswildcrafts.clr.events/event/131817:foraging-and-wildcrafting-series-wild-garlic-spring-greens-and-fungi-26-27-march-2022

or should you prefer to gift this experience to a loved one, you can buy a voucher here: https://www.hipsandhaws.com/shop/