Homemade malt

What is malt?

Real malt is sprouted and roasted grain which is then milled into a flour-like powder. You can do this with almost any type of grain, just take note that they flavors naturally present in the grain will likely be emphasized a bit in the process of making malt, so sometimes going with a more neutral flavored grain can be a good idea, especially if you’re not sure exactly what you’re going to use it in, or if you know you’d like to use it in a variety of things. For example, rye or einkorn are both delicious, but can have very unique, intense flavors that you may not enjoy (or may LOVE) across the board in various drinks or baked goods. Any type of wheat, barley, kamut, etc. are great options.

What to use malt in and how:

I’m sure the first thing that comes to mind is malted milkshakes, and yes, make all the milkshakes! Malt is actually a very diverse kitchen ingredient and can be used in a variety of foods and bevs.

Here’s a few fun facts about malt:
Malt is basically what makes all purpose flour into bread flour—it substantially increases the enzymes present during the fermentation process in sourdough, aiding in nutritional value and the ability to digest the grain

Since malt is made from sprouted grain, it’s vastly different than just roasting un-sprouted grain—sprouting grains completely changes the nutrient availability and digestibility of the grain, breaking down proteins into simpler amino acids

Malt, obviously, is what makes a delicious malted milk powder..well, delicious. Toasty, nutty malt (typically barely) is mixed with powdered milk, sugar and sometimes cocoa powder. I will include some recipes at the bottom of this post, but I do not personally use milk powder as it is a highly processed product. I recommend just adding malt into real milk products or other creamy things you want to make. Milk powder is unnecessary.

You can use malt in place of flour in some things like thickening a gravy—it will add a lovely, rich, toasty depth of flavor to many dishes

How to make it:

Rest assured, malt is VERY easy to make.

You need one, single ingredient: grain (the whole, unmilled grain/berry)

I recommend sourcing an organic, non-gmo grain/berries. You don’t need much, as a little malt added to anything goes a very long way. One 16oz jar of malt would probably last the average person about a year, unless you’re downing chocolate milk and milkshakes like it’s your job, which is NOT frowned upon in this house.
Here are a few sources online for grain, but it’s not hard to find:
Azure
Sourdough School UK
1,000 Springs Mill

If you know someone local to you who grinds their own grain, they likely have bulk grain on hand and would potentially be open to selling you a pound!

M E T H O D

Step 1.
Rinse the desired amount of grain you plan to make into malt

Step 2.
Soak the grains in filtered water for approximately 8 hours, or overnight, covered on the counter. The level of the water should be double the height of the grain in your vessel—the grain will soak up a significant amount of water.

Step 3.
Rinse and drain your grain, being careful not to touch it with your fingers as unneeded bacteria can impede a healthy sprouting process. Place grain in a clean glass jar (it’s helpful to see what’s going on, so glass is best) and cover with a thin towel or paper towel, and secure with twine or a rubber band. Give the jar a little shimmy/shake to fluff the grains up a bit and make sure they’re not too settled or smashed in—they need oxygen while sprouting. Leave at room temp for two days, checking now and then for tiny sprouts—they till just be small, pale buds. It can be helpful to rinse them and aerate them again once or twice per day.

Step 4.
Keep an eye out for the sprouts to be almost the length of the grain, but not longer. If the grains develop a somewhat funky smell at all, give them another good rinse. Spread them out evenly and in a thin layer on a baking sheet.

Bake in the oven at 250 degrees F for 1-1.5 hours, or until evenly toasted. Check often to make sure they don’t get too dark, and you may need to move them around a bit if they’re browning unevenly. They should be a rich, light-medium brown.

Step 5.
Allow the grain to cool to room temp, then grind or mill. For this, you can use a grain mill, a spice grinder, a mortar and pestle, a blender, or food processor. The texture should be very similar to flour—you do not want any chunks or big pieces.

Malt is best aged a bit, a few months or so is best, but its okay to use right away if you don’t want to wait..just know the flavor will improve as time goes on. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator .

Using Malt in Sourdough

As previously stated, malt is what transforms all purpose flour into bread flour, and what makes bread flour so much better to make bread with. Bread flour is not necessary for bread, but if using only all purpose, it is best to also use some whole wheat, which will have many similar nutrient and enzyme benefits as malt. Using malt in sourdough not only aids in the fermentation process and rise, but also adds nuance of flavor.

A very important note with malt in sourdough is that more is not better. It only takes a very small amount, as malt is very potent. When you add too much to sourdough, the result is often undesirable texture since the enzymes in the malt actually aid break down too much, resulting in a gummy dough usually lacking rise.
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Rule of thumb for using malt in sourdough:

When making a loaf using bread flour, only add 5-10 grams of malt

When making a loaf using all purpose flour, add 10-20 grams of malt

Keep in mind, everyone’s malt will be a bit different, so play around with these measurements and find an amount you like the flavor and texture of.

Additional Malt “Recipes”

Malt in milkshakes
Add approximately 1 teaspoon per 16oz milkshake
One of my favorite milkshake recipes:
12oz raw milk
1 tbsp raw cacao powder
splash of vanilla
pinch of salt
1 teaspoon malt
1 raw egg yolk (make sure you trust the source)
Sweeten with maple syrup, organic cane sugar, dates, or organic sweetened condensed milk to taste
Blend with a handful of ice cubes—enjoy!

Malted milk
Same as above, just omit ice.
It’s also delicious as just malted vanilla milk


Experiment using malt in different ways! Whether using for added texture, flavor, or both, malt can be a tasty addition in so many dishes and beverages.