Is the kefir suitable for vegetarian? And does it have alcohol?

Yes, kefir does contain alcohol. Kefir ferments in two different ways: bacteria thicken it up (compare with yogurt), and the yeast produces a tiny amount of alcohol (compare with bread - but bread is baked, which boils the alcohol off). Kefir grains are a "SCOBY" - a "Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast". By tiny I mean very tiny indeed. Most Muslim scholars hold for example that kefir does not break the "no alcohol" rule because however much you consume would not intoxicate you. Why not? Because you would have to drink a roomfui, which is physically impossible. Therefore it is not possible to get drunk on kefir. However, they would ban even the tiniest sip of say beer or wine, because if you drink enough glasses you would get tipsy and then drunk. I am not Muslim or otherwise religious, but I do abstain from alcohol. I make an exception for kefir because it is such a great food and the alcohol content is so small. But the strict answer to the question "does it contain alcohol" is "yes".

How many strains of bacteria and yeast are inside the grains? Can we have a list of them?

Kefir has anywhere from 30 to 50 strains of bacteria the best research on what to expect with Kefir grains is by Dominic Anfiteatro . LACTOBACILLI Lactobacillus acidophilus Lb. brevis [Possibly now Lb. kefiri] Lb. casei subsp. casei Lb. casei subsp. rhamnosus Lb. paracasei subsp. paracasei Lb. fermentum Lb. cellobiosus Lb. delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus Lb. delbrueckii subsp. lactis Lb. fructivorans Lb. helveticus subsp. lactis Lb. hilgardii Lb. helveticus Lb. kefiri Lb. kefiranofaciens subsp. kefirgranum Lb. kefiranofaciens subsp. kefiranofaciens Lb. parakefiri Lb. plantarum STREPTOCOCCI/LACTOCOCCI Streptococcus thermophilus St. paracitrovorus ^ Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis Lc. lactis subsp. lactis biovar. diacetylactis Lc. lactis subsp. cremoris Enterococcus durans Leuconostoc mesenteroides subsp. cremoris Leuc. mesenteroides subsp. mesenteroides Leuc. dextranicum ^ YEASTS Dekkera anomala t/ Brettanomyces anomalus a Kluyveromyces marxianus t/ Candida kefyr a# Pichia fermentans t/ C. firmetaria a Yarrowia lipolytica t/ C. lipolytica a Debaryomyces hansenii t/ C. famata a# Deb. [Schwanniomyces] occidentalis Issatchenkia orientalis t/ C. krusei a Galactomyces geotrichum t/ Geotrichum candidum a C. friedrichii C. rancens C. tenuis C. humilis C. inconspicua C. maris Cryptococcus humicolus Kluyveromyces lactis var. lactis # Kluyv. bulgaricus Kluyv. lodderae Saccharomyces cerevisiae # Sacc. subsp. torulopsis holmii Sacc. pastorianus Sacc. humaticus Sacc. unisporus Sacc. exiguus Sacc. turicensis sp. nov Torulaspora delbrueckii t * Zygosaccharomyces rouxii From Yemoos recipe blog

Can these be used immediately? Or do they need preparation before I can make kefir?

Put the grains in a jar with a cupful of organic or ordinary full cream milk and leave for 24-48 hours,when it should have thickened. Sieve (using plastic sieve and spoon)put the grains in a clean jar to start again.I use pickle jars which are slightly bigger than a jam jar.The taste might not be to your liking so just add a little fresh milk or juice.

Item Weight	10 g
Additives	Fresh milk kefir grains
Allergen Information	Contains: Lactose
Units	10.0 Grams
Storage Instructions	A cool place, approx. 15-20 degrees Celsius
Serving Recommendation	1/4 to 1/2 cup
Brand	Kombuchaorganic
Format	Grains
Speciality	organic
Caffeine content	No caffeine
Package Information	Jar
Manufacturer	Kombuchaorganic

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