Water kefir is a fantastic, effervescent probiotic beverage. Unlike its dairy cousin, water kefir grains look like semi-transparent crystals and ferment sugar water into a gut-healthy soda alternative.
While you can buy fresh grains, dehydrated water kefir grains are a popular choice for shipping and storage. However, they arrive in a dormant, dried state and need to be woken up gently before they can brew effectively.
If your grains look like dark, hard, yellowish-brown pebbles right now, don’t worry! Below is the step-by-step guide to bringing them back to life. This rehydration process typically takes 4 to 7 days.
Step 1: Preparation & Ingredients
To rehydrate the grains, you need to create a comfortable, sugary environment for them to wake up in. You will need:
- Dehydrated Water Kefir Grains
- Water (4 Cups / 1 Liter): Crucial: Use non-chlorinated water (mineral, spring, or filtered water). Chlorine can damage the grains.
- Sugar (4-6 Tablespoons): Organic cane sugar or plain white sugar works best for rehydration. Ensure it is completely dissolved.
- A Glass Jar: Large enough to hold the liquid with some empty space at the top.
- A Breathable Cover: A coffee filter or cloth secured with a rubber band.
This is what dormant, dehydrated grains look like before activation.
Step 2: The Rehydration Process
- Prepare the Sugar Water: In your glass jar, dissolve 4-6 tablespoons of sugar into 4 cups of room-temperature water. Stir vigorously until completely dissolved.
- Add Grains: Drop your dried grains into the sugar water solution.
- Cover: Cover the jar with your breathable cloth and secure it with a rubber band. This keeps fruit flies out but allows fermentation gases to escape.
- Wait and Watch (4-7 Days): Place the jar in a warm spot (20°C-25°C) out of direct sunlight. Leave them undisturbed to soak up the liquid.
- Note: If the water smells very yeasty or sour after 3 days but the grains aren’t plump yet, strain them out and put them into a fresh batch of sugar water to continue rehydrating.
Step 3: Success!
After about 4 to 7 days, your grains should look completely different. They will have absorbed the water and expanded significantly—sometimes up to three times their original dried size!
They should now look plump, translucent, and gelatinous, like the image below.
Success! These plump, translucent grains are now ready for brewing.
What’s Next?
Once they look like the image above, strain out the rehydration liquid (discard it, as it may be quite yeasty or sugary) and you are ready to start your first regular brew!
👉 Ready to brew? Click here for our guide on How to Make Authentic Water Kefir.
