Mashing

[Guest guest]

Hello all,

I've been studying brewing and I'm starting to learn to brew from

whole malted grain. When brewing whole grain, you put the malt

through a " mash " to activate the natural enzymes in the grain to

convert starches to dextrins and sugars. This is done by steeping the

grain in water at certain temperatures. The higher the temperatures,

the higher the dextrins (more body), while the lower the temperatures

the higher the fermentable sugars (more alcohol or lactobacillae).

infusion mash/one-step mash occurs between 150 and 158 F for 30-60 minutes.

temperature-controlled (step) mash consists of stages :

122 F (or 130-135 F for higher dextrins) for 30 mins stirring every 5 min

150-158 F for 20-30 mins

temperature rest at 150 F for 10 mins

158 F for 10-15 mins

Starch conversion is testable using iodine. When conversion is

complete: Grains are then rinsed at 170 F and voila - you have grain

broth ready for your yeast.

Relating back to food and ferments:

This whole thing reminds me of someone soaking roots out in the sun

prior to making broth. I have to wonder: Would this be a desireable

process to put my starchy root vegetables through?

From a nutritional standpoint, which is preferred?: high temp (high

dextrin) or low temp (high sugar)

Would root veggies alone have enough enzymes to complete this starch

conversion on their own, I would I need to add a small amount of

malted grain to start the process?

Thanks!

-Lana