Malt: Elixir of the Ages

By Joe W. Hickenbottom, Contributing Editor

Malt was discovered centuries ago when someone noticed that barley germinates after becoming wet. Further discoveries followed when the germinated barley, called malt," was liquefied. The resulting activated enzymes were found to help modify the gluten of ground wheat, which led to making early forms of bread. This liquid was the original malt extract.

As maltsters made refinements to the malt-production process over the centuries--often by trial and error--many variations of malt were developed for specific applications in the brewing and food industries. Some of these processes are still in use today.

Processing steps

Food malts made from barley are produced by first steeping the barley in water to allow the grain to germinate, which activates the natural enzymes in barley (mainly alpha and beta amylases). The sprouts from the germination are then discarded, and the activated grain is carefully dried to maintain the enzyme activity. At this point, groundwater is added to allow hydrolysis of the starch, and the liquid phase is drawn off, filtered and evaporated to the desired solids level. This results in basic malt extract. Malt variations are produced by deactivating the enzymes of the diastatic malt with heat to produce nondiastatic malt. Some of the basic types are formed by heating the malt to different color levels, allowing it to be used in dark products. Drying it, on the other hand, creates powders that are ideal for dry applications. By co-extracting the barley with other cereal adjuncts, it can be used in most of the same products as the extracts.

Brewers further process the activated grain by grinding, adding water to produce a mash," then fermenting this liquid into beer. Needless to say, this is a much abbreviated version of producing alcoholic beverages. However, interest in using liquid, nondiastatic malt extracts in non-fermented beverages seems to be increasing.

Uses and types

While the feed and brewing industries use most of the barley crop, food-industry usage in breakfast cereals, dark breads, hard rolls, bagels, crackers, pretzels, hamburger buns and artisan breads consumes the balance of the barley crop yield--along with seed requirements. Some other uses of food malts include mixes, tablets, imitation coffee and cocoa, pet foods, pizza, ice creams, yogurts, confections, soymilk, vinegar, granola, nutritional bars, and puddings. Malts are added in these various applications for their flavor, color, sweetness and fermentable carbohydrates, as well as their enzymatic and humectant properties. Liquid- or dry-malt extracts are used to mask unpleasant-tasting medicinal flavors and, at the same time, contribute all the digestible components of barley in soluble form, including protein, B vitamins, niacin, riboflavin, thiamin and minerals. One of the largest use areas for food malts is fermented bakery foods, which benefit from malts sweetness, mineral salts, soluble proteins, dough-conditioning enzymes, flavor, color and nutritive content. Food malts promote vigorous yeast activity, accelerate dough conditioning, and add flavor and aroma to finished products.

Specific types of malts, such as nondiastatic malt extracts and syrups, enhance the flavor and color of breakfast cereal when used at levels ranging from 0.5% to 15.0%, based on total formula weight of wet mash. Pizza doughs, pretzels, English muffins, Kaiser rolls and breadsticks all benefit from use of either diastatic or nondiastatic malts, liquid or dry, at 0.5% to 5.0% levels, based on flour.

Crackers that are tough, flinty or cupped due to use of overly strong flour can be corrected by adding 20° Lintner liquid diastatic malt at about 0.5%, based on flour.(Linter is a measure of the diastatic power, which indicates the strength of starch-reducing enzymes in the malt.)

Whereas dark breads require using the dark nondiastatic liquid malts at 2.0% to 3.5% levels, based on flour weight (bakers percent), buns and soft rolls show improved pan flow and gas retention, as well as better volume, when either liquid or dry nondiastatic malts are used. The type of malt used should be the one that optimizes the contribution of the other ingredients, reduces processing requirements, balances the flavor level and results in a richer, more-saleable finished product.

Dry diastatic, or enzymatic, malts are blends of malted barley flour and standardizing ingredients, usually wheat flour and dextrose. Malted barley flour itself can be used, but its high level of enzyme activity (approximately 200° Lintner) makes it imperative that the correct levels are used so doughs do not become too slack and sticky. The standardized malt versions with the flour and dextrose are offered at both 20° and 60° Lintner levels. Most bakers use the 20° version to achieve the best results for the mixing and gluten development of fermented baked goods.

Dry nondiastatic malts are spray-dried from the liquid and offer convenience of use, as well as added flavor, color and sweetness, in various mixes. Being hygroscopic, these dry malts should be kept in closed containers to preclude moisture absorption and possible clumping. When substituting for liquid malts, use 0.2 lbs. of water and 0.8 lbs. of dry nondiastatic malt to 1.0 lb. of liquid malt.

The future of malt

Todays whole-grain baked-goods market is growing rapidly. Many producers of whole-grain breads and rolls have discovered that malt mellows the bitterness of whole grains. Manufacturers of whole-grain granola and nutritional bars benefit from liquid malts binding and humectant properties, as well as its flavor-masking and sweetness properties (malt extracts are about 55% to 60% as sweet as sucrose). Depending on the product, either liquid or dry nondiastatic malts, or liquid diastatic malts, extracts or syrups, are added at the same usage levels as in non-whole-grain items. Food products containing malt offer consumers a source of enzymes, carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins, low fat, flavor, color and sweetness.

Joe W. Hickenbottom holds a degree in chemistry from South Dakota State University, Brookings, and is author of many AIB International bulletins and food-related articles. An active member of several industry associations, he is currently the sales and marketing vice president at Malt Products Corporation, Saddle Brook, NJ.