Missing Ingredient..need advice

Ok...my first 4 batches of BB kits went without a hitch...Red Ale x2..Irish stout,..and Rye Pale Ale...anyway I brewed Milk Stout ,also a BB kit...I should of caught this right away...butttt noooo...I looks like my Kit was short a pkg 1/2 lbs Maltodextrin...I couldent figgure why my fermentation was at a bare minn...I dident take a gravity reading @ pitching time...but it is now 3 1/2 days later and it looks like beer..smells like beer....but my bubbler has been anything but bubbling (just barely) nothing like my first batches....I was given the kit be a friend, who dident have time to brew it and we agreed to split the booty....anyway my question is what can I do to salvadge the hootch...add honey and some more yeast?...any thoughts??....Tom

Malto dextrinis a non fermentable that helps add body and mouthfeel to a beer. For example if you add honey to a recipe, which is 100% fermentable you reduce the base malt but then add malto dextrine to add back the missing body

I would not do anything and air lock activity really doesn't mean anything as after 3 days active fermentation has slowed, let it sit for a couple weeks and then check gravity and again after 2 days. If no change, bottle it up. Without the malto dextrine it may seem a little thinner but it should still be a good beer!

As a side note, if you were to add honey the lack of malto dextrine would be even more apparent.

Thank you for the advice....great site, I learn something every time i stop by here.....Tom

on my last batch (brooklyn pennant clone) i realized i forgot to ad maltodextrin to it after it had already been put in fermenter.
so i boiled 1 cup on water and added the MD to it. let it cool down to ~80 and poured it in. i was also told you could add it to your bottling bucket after fermentation.


but like duboman said, it's not a fermentable, so it won't affect fermentation, gravity or abv... might just feel a bit "thinner" when you drink it.