Homemade Malted Brown Rice Syrup

Introduction

Being able to make my own nutritious sweetener at home has been on my culinary bucket list for a while now.

In the past I have seen videos of people making rice syrup in combination with barley malt or even chopped wheat grass!

Typically, white sticky short rice is used and I want to see if using brown sticky short grain rice would work as well.

The Science Behind Malted Rice Syrup

Rice syrup is typically made with sweet sticky rice which is nearly 100% amylopectin – a type of starch that breaks down easily into the simpler sugars maltose and glucose when hydrolyzed with the enzyme beta-amylase.

Beta-amylase is activated by water during the grain germination process and some grains, including barley, are more abundant in this enzyme then others.

The Trials

I tried making brown rice syrup 5 different ways: with sprouted barley, sprouted wheat, sprouted quinoa, sprouted rice and sprouted teff.

The easiest and most consistent method I found was using sprouted wheat.

The unhulled barley I had did not sprout at all – perhaps it was too old.

My store bought organic quinoa also barely sprouted and the test syrup I ended up with had an off soapy flavor.

I also tried sprouting my sweet brown rice but did not have much success.

It could be that the sprouting process needed more time.

In contrast, teff sprouted really quickly.

I was very hopeful for that option because teff is gluten-free and I wanted to provide a gluten-free option.

However, the sprouted teff did not seem to break down the starch into maltose as effectively as sprouted wheat.

Since I was aiming for simple and easy to reproduce, wheat malt is the option that won out.

While this recipe is not gluten-free, it is helpful to keep in mind that the process of sprouting wheat helps to make the gluten in wheat more digestible.

Equipment

Malted brown rice syrup can be made without any high end equipment – just a pot, a strainer and some cheese cloth on the low tech side.

If you are making your own malt, you will also need a glass jar and a lid cover.

However, if you already have some of the appliances mentioned below, they can be used to make your syrup making process more hands free.

Heat Control

The most important part about making brown rice syrup is being able to keep the cooked sweet brown rice combined with the sprouted wheat (aka diastatic malt) in the temperature range of 140°F to less than 150°F for about 6 hours.

That is because the beta-amylase enzyme performs best in that temperature range.

At higher temperatures, the enzyme is denatured.

There are different ways to keep the temperature within that range.

Some options I have seen include people heating up the mixture right up to 150 °F on the stovetop once every hour for six hours – in that case having a heavy bottomed pot is ideal to retain the heat.

Some recipes call for using the warm setting in rice cookers but it is not always easy to determine the exact temperature range from one model to the next and the temperature could be too high.

My understanding is that there are Instant Pots including this one with the sousvide function which allow you to set the temperature to the optimal range.

Here, I used a sousvide appliance similar to this one which was gifted to me by a friend.

Therefore, whether you just use your stovetop or some more fancy equipment, with time, you can still make the brown rice syrup.

Dehydrator

I like to dehydrate my wheat malt prior to using it as I have found it easier to manage the timings that way and I can make enough malt for more than one batch of syrup.

If you have a dehydrator, you will want to dehydrate below 114°F.

if you don’t have a dehydrator, you can also air dry your wheat malt for at least 24 hours.

Ingredients Used

Rice

I used Lundgren California grown organic sweet brown rice (aka sticky rice) for this recipe purchased in bulk from Azure Standard – a sponsor – ( their price point is the most cost effective option I have found because they have a delivery point near me.)

Wheat

I used Marquis heirloom hard wheat from Barton Spring Mills for making my wheat malt.

As mentioned in the very first post on this blog site Marquis wheat is my all time favorite wheat..

Currently, I don’t have in stock any other hard wheat and I did hesitate using it for making malt as I like to use this precious wheat specifically for bread making.

All this to say, any non irradiated hard wheat can be used for sprouting and making your malt.

To find online sources of whole grains, including wheat, please refer to this post.

The Process

Below is an overview of the process and some tips that you may find useful.

Malt

“Homemade” to me means starting from just dry wheat and dry brown rice and ending up with delicious malted brown rice syrup.

Since wheat sprouts fairly quickly and consistently in just a few days, I like to make my own wheat malt.

While theoretically, you could use freshly sprouted wheat, I have found that is it more convenient to dehydrate the sprouted wheat before using in making syrup.

This way, I can make enough malt for multiple batches of syrup at a time and simply store the extra malt in an airtight container for a few months.

Cooked Brown Rice

I like to soak my brown rice for 24 hours, rinsing it two or three times within that time frame.

When it is soaked for that long, the brown rice will cook as fast as white rice.

You want it really soft.

Note, I have also tried blending the cooked brown rice when making syrup but didn’t find the results to be any improvement.

Once cooked and cooled, you will combine the rice with the malt and allow it to ferment at the optimal temperature for beta-amylase to break down the rice starch into maltose.

Then, the rice/malt mixture is strained.

Finally, the liquid is heated up and reduced to half its original quantity.

Note that when using brown rice, some fiber will pass through the strainer – making the syrup on the thicker side.

Uses for the Spent Rice/Malt Mixture

After you have strained the rice/malt mixture, you could potentially use it to bulk up smoothies or to add some extra flavor to baked goods.

It also is a great addition to compost.

Small Batch

The recipe used here starts with 1 cup of dry sweet rice and 1/4 cup of malted wheat.

The final yield is about 3/4 cup of malted brown rice syrup.

While this is not a very large quantity, it is definitely concentrated deliciousness.

Typically malted rice syrup is said to keep for several weeks in the refrigerator.

Appearance and Flavor

Malted brown rice syrup has a beautiful brown golden hue and a terrific complex caramel flavor that reminds me of butterscotch.

In fact, some Asian recipes further concentrate the brown rice syrup and turn it into candy.

While the syrup is not nearly as sweet as sugar, I find that my body tolerates it much better.

I don’t typically feel a spike when I consume it whereas I usually do when I have something with plain sugar.

Malted Brown Rice Syrup Uses

Apparently, brown rice syrup is used in many sweet and savory Asian recipes.

I like to use it to make a healthier fruit jam combined with chia seeds and cooked down strawberries for example.

It would make a wonderful sweetener in baking as it has a milder flavor profile than molasses for example.

Conclusion

I find it so gratifying to be able to make a wholesome sweetener from scratch.

While it is definitely a labor of love, the final result is very much worth it.

Wishing you an equally grainlicious experience!

Disclaimer:  I am not a medical professional or a nutritionist.  This post is provided for general educational purposes. For a full disclaimer, please see here.  As a reminder, when embarking on any type of significant diet/lifestyle change, it is wise to consult with a medical professional and continue to be monitored routinely as warranted by your particular health condition.

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