oatmeal question

should i cook my 1/2lbs of instant quaker oatmeal before i add it to the mash. it just seems to suck up so much water. so i figured i could cook them then batch sparge them with my other grains that way i can stay relatively around the same level of fluid ??? thanks !!!!

Instant Oatmeal doesn't need to be cooked, you can just throw it right into the mash.

yeah just throw them in the mash with the other grains. i brewed an oatmeal stout at the weekend. my god the wort tasted good. i also used about 1/2lb

I pan roasted mine before I added them in.

If you use instant flaked oats you can toss them right in the mash. Cut oats or raw oats have to be cereal mashed first to gelatinize them and then can be added to the mash.

Toasting your instant oats can add an biscuit or toasted bread flavor that could be welcome.

To answer your original question, yes, oats do appear to absorb more liquor than other mash grains. You can overcome this by adding slightly more mash liquor.

I suspect you, like many brewers, pay too close attention to recipe numbers and forget to experience brewing using your senses. If you want 1.25 quarts of liquor per pound of grain, learn what that ratio looks like. That way, you can add whatever ingredient you please; you can mash in and not worry about how many quarts of water you added. Moreover, if you find a recipe that calls for 1.4 quarts per pound, you can just tell yourself to make the mash more soupy; if it calls for 1 quart per pound, you can make it more stiff.

I don't even measure my mash liquor. I add my liquor and grain a bit at a time and stir until the consistency looks "right". Of course, I have the entire amount of liquor needed in one place, so if I use X amount in the mash, I know I simply use "the rest" to sparge.

Cheers,

Bob

thank u much for that info everyone!