Oatmeal or oat malt

okoncentrerad

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I were reading howtobrew and got into a section about how to increase the body with oatmeal, amongst other ways. But what's the difference in using oatmeal and oat malt? I guess when it says oatmeal it literaly means the stuff you might eat for breakfast? Or do they mean some sort of oat malt? Or is both used but for different purposes?
 
I were reading howtobrew and got into a section about how to increase the body with oatmeal, amongst other ways. But what's the difference in using oatmeal and oat malt? I guess when it says oatmeal it literaly means the stuff you might eat for breakfast? Or do they mean some sort of oat malt? Or is both used but for different purposes?
Ive used oats once rolled oats im thinking thats.the same as oat meal oat malt im thinking would be malted like ya barley malt. You can use unmalted barley for extra body or wheat too;).
 
Steel cut quick oats are apparently the same as what you buy in the homebrew store. I've used the quaker ones with success.
 
Be sure to check if there are any preservatives in the "commercial" oats. Preservatives don't play nice with yeasties. Not sure if the boil will stop the preservatives from effecting the yeast or not.
 
Oatmeal. Oatmeal has glucans - gums - that provide the mouthfeel. These have been degraded in oat malt. And as mentioned above, don't pay a lot for oats, either quick oats or "old fashioned" oats work fine for brewing purposes. Steel cut oats are not pre-gelatinized like the others and will need to be cooked before they're mashed.
 
Oat malt is oats that have been malted - malting works with just about every cereal grain! You could hypothetically brew a beer of 100% malted oats. Oatmeal is unmalted, pre-gelatinized oats - flakes of grain that require the enzymes in another malted grain for conversion to sugars. Steel cut oats are chopped grain and need to be cooked before they're malted. The link ACBev provided talks about usage of oat malts in English brewing but I don't think that was your question.
 
I just skimmed an article on oat malts - I've never used them but may have to. They mash and lauter just like barley but provide a berry-like flavor, at least in 100% oat malt grists. I can't figure out why the Barclay Perkins recipe used oat malt and why so little unless it was just a way to get grain during WWII.
 
I just skimmed an article on oat malts - I've never used them but may have to. They mash and lauter just like barley but provide a berry-like flavor, at least in 100% oat malt grists. I can't figure out why the Barclay Perkins recipe used oat malt and why so little unless it was just a way to get grain during WWII.
You are almost right.The war years saw brewers forced to use various adjuncts supposedly to cut back on the amount of grain used as it could most probably be used elswhere.
 
Thanks guys, really helpful comments. I'm a bit wiser now :) I just read that toasting the oats for a bit might add a bit more flavour to it as well.
 
Steel cut quick oats are apparently the same as what you buy in the homebrew store. I've used the quaker ones with success.
Steel cut oats is different from rolled oats or oatmeal from the store. Steel cut is just lightly crushed and must be cooked to gelatinze the starches. Rolled oats - the same as you buy at the homebrew store - is what we think of as oatmeal or "old fashioned" oats (not the same as "instant") have been steamed or otherwise softened and crushed flat and can be thrown directly in the mash.
Rule of thumb is if you have to cook it a long time to eat it, it needs a cereal mash. Steel cut oats (sometimes called Scotch or Irish oats), cornmeal (polenta), rice needs to simmer or steam to break down the starches. Flaked oats (Oatmeal), flaked corn, flaked rice (similar to Minute Rice), flaked wheat and flaked barley would all cook in just a few minutes if you wanted to eat them for breakfast or dinner and can be doughed in with the rest of the mashing grains.

I know...more info than was specifically asked for. :rolleyes:
 
Yeah I got that backwards, quick oats are what they're usually called.
 

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