Malt flours – an ingredient on the rise
For some time now, malted products have been increasingly popular in the bakery and breakfast cereal industry. From a freshly baked artisan loaf to the malted biscuits enjoyed with your mid-morning cup of tea, you may be surprised to learn that the world of malts is rather complex, and not all are made equally.
Silvery Tweed Cereals processes, manufactures and supplies premium cereal and seed ingredients to many of the leading names in the baking and cereal industry throughout the UK. As part of its business, the company grows crops it sells to customers at its farm, The Mead.
What is malted flour and where is it used?
Made from grains such as barley, rye and wheat that have been malted in various ways, malt flour is essentially flour with a twist.
Predominantly used in the brewing industry, to make malted grain, the grains are first steeped under controlled conditions to enable them to germinate. This process takes four to five days, during which the endosperm of the grain is modified by enzymes produced by the embryo, breaking down the cell walls, protein matric and starch granules.
This makes the starch granules accessible, which is ideal for brewers and distillers. The germinated grains can be kilned at this stage to gently dry them. These are known as base malts and still contain enzymes.
At Silvery Tweed we use either crystal malts or roasted malts. To make crystal malts, the grains aren’t dried at the end of the germination, instead, they are roasted wet, so the enzymes convert the starchy interior of the grain into sugars. The grains are then dried and roasted to develop colour and flavour before being allowed to cool. The sugars in the grain crystallise to give sweet caramel-flavoured malts.
Alternatively, the base malts that have been kiln-dried can be roasted at high temperatures to develop darker malts with flavours ranging from coffee to chocolate.
Diastatic and non-diastatic malts
Very simply, diastatic malts still contain functional enzymes, whereas in non-diastatic malts, the functionality of the enzymes has been lost due to the heat treatments applied to them.
Adding diastatic malts to any baked good will enable the dough to rise more quickly. However, many bakers prefer non-diastatic malt as they then don’t have to worry about the consistency of the dough.
The case for malt flour
Arguably, the most compelling reason to use malt flour is the flavour it brings to the finished product.
Non-diastatic malt flours are a great way to add more depth and complexity of flavour. Many describe the result as a slight sweetness, with nuances ranging from lighter sweet caramel to burnt toffee when using crystal malts, and chocolate to dark roasted coffee when using roasted malts. These malt flours are also a great way to add colour to a product.
As I mentioned above, diastatic malt flour used in small quantities in bread gives an improved rise and more crust colour development without the need for additional sugar. High diastatic malt flour helps to give malt loaves their characteristic flavour and gooey texture, as the enzymes present break down the starch.
As malt flour is plant-based, it has the additional benefit of giving nutritional and clean labelling benefits, with the grains that are malted and milled being wholegrains, so a good source of fibre. The germination/sprouting process increases the bioavailability of nutrients, making them easier for our bodies to absorb.
Where to use malt flour
Malt is an incredibly versatile ingredient. It is most commonly used in bread form; however, it can be used in almost any product that requires flour, including pizza bases, biscuits, cookies and even sauces. Malted products are even used in the confectionery sector, most notably to create the bubbly centre in Maltesers.
In recent years, we have seen the breakfast cereal sector being pushed to reduce artificial sweeteners and colours. This has led many to use malt flour, which gives much of the same flavour with the added benefit of a cleaner label. This isn’t restricted to breakfast cereals though, it also applies to many food manufacturing sectors.
Different colours and flavours are achieved by using the different grades of malt flours. For example, malt flour 140 could be used in chocolate-coated malted confectionery as it gives a light colour and a subtle flavour, while malt flour 430 could go into a product such as a malt-style loaf.
With many of us striving to be more sustainable, malt flours present many manufacturers with an opportunity. Many artificial sweeteners and flavourings are manufactured abroad, but the malt flours we produce at Silvery Tweed are all derived from barley that is grown and malted in the UK.
So, whether you are looking to reformulate an existing product or develop a new one, malt flours offer an unrivalled range of flavours, colours and health benefits, which makes them difficult to ignore.
