What is malt and what are its benefits

Malt is one of the main ingredients of beer and ovomaltine, being produced mainly from barley grains, which are moistened and placed to germinate. After the sprouts are born, the grain is dried and roasted to make the starch more available to produce the beer.

Common malt is produced from barley, but it can also be made from grains of wheat, rye, rice or corn, and is then called according to the plant that gave rise to the product, such as wheat malt, for example.

How it is used in beer production

In beer production, malt is the source of starch, a type of sugar that will be fermented by yeasts to produce alcohol and other important components of this drink.

Thus, the type of malt and the way it is produced determine how the beer will taste, color and aroma.

How it is used in whiskey production

While some types of beer also use wheat, corn and rice grains for their production, whiskey is made only from barley malt, which goes through the same process to produce the alcohol in the drink.

Health Benefits

Malt is very rich in vitamins and minerals, bringing health benefits such as:

• Regulate blood pressure, because it is rich in potassium, important for relaxing blood vessels; Maintain healthy muscles, due to the presence of magnesium; Prevent anemia, because it is rich in folic acid and iron; Improve the functioning of the nervous system, for contain B vitamins and selenium, an important mineral for good brain function; prevent osteoporosis and strengthen bone and teeth, as it is rich in calcium, magnesium and phosphorus.

magnesium to obtain these benefits, one should consume 2 to 6 tablespoons of barley or 250 ml of beer per day.

Malt Bread Recipe

This recipe yields approximately 10 servings of bread.

Ingredients:

• 300 g of ground barley malt800 g of wheat flour10 tablespoons of honey or 3 tablespoons of sugar1 shallow tablespoon of yeast1 tablespoon of salt350 ml of milk1 tablespoon of margarine

Method of preparation:

1. Mix all the ingredients with your hands in a bowl until it forms a homogeneous dough, which must be kneaded for 10 minutes; Let the dough rest for 1 hour; Knead again and place the dough in a greased bread pan; Cover with a cloth and wait to grow until it doubles in size; bake in a preheated oven at 250ºC for 45 minutes.

After finishing baking in the oven, you must unmold the bread and keep it in an airy place to maintain its shape and texture. However, it is important to remember that people with gluten intolerance cannot consume barley, and to prevent intestinal problems in these cases, see what gluten is and where it is.