Kefir is popularly believed to have originated centuries ago from the herdsmen of the mountainous region of the Caucasus. The people of this area, the Caucasians, were known to make kefir by adding kefir grains to goat’s or cow’s milk and letting them ferment for days inside a goatskin leather bag. The result, a refreshing cultured milk drink with a slightly creamy texture and a refreshingly tart flavor known as kefir.

These people, who were said to consume large amounts of kefir, were known to have very long healthy lives. Lives of more than a hundred years were nothing out of the ordinary.

Fast forward to the last century, kefir becomes increasingly popular in Russia and the former Soviet states. And its popularity continues to grow today, as countries other than the former USSR, such as Czechoslovakia, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland, and Denmark, are making kefir on a commercial scale.

But the real question we should be asking is not where did kefir, the fermented milk drink, originate from, but where did the kefir grains originate? Because without the kefir grains in the first place, there would be no kefir.

Unfortunately, the origin of kefir grains has long been shrouded in mystery. No one knows for sure where it came from and how it came to be. The most popular interpretation of the origin of kefir grains is a legend of the Prophet Muhammad who gave the Caucasian mountain Orthodox the first kefir grains and taught them how to make kefir or “the drink of the Prophet Muhammad” from from them.

Kefir grains or “prophet grains” and the kefir-making process were closely guarded and considered the wealth of the family or tribe. And since the kefir grains could be recovered and reused indefinitely after each batch of milk culture, they were passed down from generation to generation.

Another version of the origin of kefir grains is that it is actually manna in milk. The same manna, God miraculously supplied during the 40 years the Israelites wandered in the desert as mentioned in the Jewish Torah and Christian Bible.

In the end, we may never know if the first kefir grains were a gift from the Prophet Muhammad or a food provided by God himself. For all we know, it very well could have been there all along.

But we are sure of one thing, that kefir grains and kefir will continue to mystify generations to come with their “miraculous” health benefits and healing qualities. There is literally nothing in this world like kefir.