Background
This experiment utilizes stale sourdough bread to create a caramel by employing malt enzymes to break down starches into sugar. It presents an interesting opportunity to create delicious alternatives out of products that might otherwise go to waste. Furthermore, it explores alternate streams by which those products can be turned into edible goods filling different niches. For instance, in an industrial application, one might use industrial amylases instead of malt to achieve cost parity with traditional caramel while creating a unique product. This process is roughly based on the recipe for Korean brown rice syrup.
Recipe
Ingredients
Stale Bread
[Diastatic Malt](Diastatic Malt)
Water
Equipment
Pot
Thermometer
Nut Milk Bag
Blender (Optional)
Instructions
-
Mashing
Break the stale bread apart and mash it into water. Use approximately one-fifth of the bread’s weight in water initially. You may blend the mixture at this stage to maximize surface area. -
Enzymatic Addition
Add another fifth of the bread’s weight in water to assist with enzymatic activity. Add an amount of diastatic malt equal to the weight of the bread. -
Incubation
Allow the mixture to sit, maintaining a temperature hovering around 140°F (60°C), for about an hour. Do not let the temperature rise much higher, or the enzymes will denature. A dehydrator or sous vide can be used here to avoid manual stirring. -
Straining
Strain the mash through a nut milk bag to separate the liquid from the solids. -
Reduction
Cook the strained liquid down until it reaches a caramel or syrup consistency. Sugar or caramel can be added to taste at this stage, though it is not required.
Notes and Observations
- The malt used for this batch was sourced from Ground Up Grains.
- It is crucial to use diastatic malt, which contains the active enzymes required for catalysis, rather than sweet, non-diastatic malt. Brewers malt is a cost-effective alternative to bakers malt.
- Precise measurements are not abundantly useful here, as they depend heavily on the type of bread used and how much it has staled or dried. Use your best discretion.
- The presence of fats, salt, and proteins in the bread helps the mixture emulsify into a consistency resembling caramel sauce. This results in a completely dairy-free product.
- This experiment can be extended to other leftover or retrograded starches.