Newbie question on mashing

So I'm doing a brew that will require mashing flaked barley into it for head retention and such. This step is new to me. I've of course looked on posts and such and found

" All-grain brewers can simply add flaked grains to their mash. Although flaked grains have no amylase enzymes, excess enzymes from the barley can degrade the starch. When using over 20 percent flaked corn or rice, it is preferable to use six-row malt for the remainder of the grain bill. Six-row malt has more enzymes than two-row and is better able to convert the extra starch load. And the low protein of the adjunct helps dilute the extra protein from the 6-row malt.

As with malted grains, extract brewers must perform a partial mash if they wish to use flaked grains. When mashing these flaked grains, the brewer must also add barley malt to supply enzymes. A 1:1 mixture of flaked grains and six-row barley malt is usually sufficient. Crush the barley malt and place it in a grain bag with the flaked grain. The flaked grain does not need to be crushed but it helps to break it up. Once the grains are mixed, steep the grain in 150° to 158° F water for 30 minutes, rinse the grains and proceed. "

My question is can someone explain this process to me a bit more. So take my recipe for example.

Pilsner DME 4.25 – pounds
Crystal Malt 40L - .75 pound
Crystal Malt 120L - .30 pound
Brown Malt - 1/2 pound
Roasted Barley 120 lavibond or higher - 1/2 pound
Chocolate Malt Pale – ½ pound
Flaked Barley – 1 pound

Sovereign Hops - .90 oz for 60 mins
Kent Goldings Hops .26 oz for 10 mins

So can someone explain this process a bit more to me and what it entails and what I will also need for it or if I need to make adjustments in my recipe.

You are not mashing you are steeping whole different process.
Just put all of the crushed grains and flaked barley in the bag for the 30 minutes then rinse the grains and remove the bag. Add your water to the desired amount bring to boil remove the heat then add the DME. Stir like crazy then bring it back up to boil.

Thanks for clarifying. I had just got thrown off from a post on another thread of mine that brought up needing to mash it. Much appreciated!

jamaral141989 said:

Thanks for clarifying. I had just got thrown off from a post on another thread of mine that brought up needing to mash it. Much appreciated!

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Yes, absolutely flaked grains must be mashed.

The problem is you don't have a "mashing" recipe. There needs to be some base malt in the grain bill so that you can mash the grains. Base grain (like US two-row) has enzymes in it, to convert the starches to sugars. Without any base malt with that diastatic power, you're just getting grains wet. Your own paragraph had the right answer, add six-row barley to the grainbill or don't use the flaked grains. The reason for the six row vs two-row is just that six row has more enzymes in it to convert more grains that don't, but two-row should have enough as well.

I'd either leave out the grains that must be mashed, like flaked barley, and sub carapils (which can be steeped with other grains), or make a recipe for a mini-mash so that the starches can convert to sugars.

Yooper said:

Yes, absolutely flaked grains must be mashed.

The problem is you don't have a "mashing" recipe. There needs to be some base malt in the grain bill so that you can mash the grains. Base grain (like US two-row) has enzymes in it, to convert the starches to sugars. Without any base malt with that diastatic power, you're just getting grains wet. Your own paragraph had the right answer, add six-row barley to the grainbill or don't use the flaked grains. The reason for the six row vs two-row is just that six row has more enzymes in it to convert more grains that don't, but two-row should have enough as well.

I'd either leave out the grains that must be mashed, like flaked barley, and sub carapils (which can be steeped with other grains), or make a recipe for a mini-mash so that the starches can convert to sugars.

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Ok, makes sense. So I think I'll just carapils as that was also mentioned on a previous thread of mine instead of flaked barley. Would I use the same ratio as flaked barley?

jamaral141989 said:

Ok, makes sense. So I think I'll just carapils as that was also mentioned on a previous thread of mine instead of flaked barley. Would I use the same ratio as flaked barley?

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With the other crystal malts in there, you probably don't need a whole pound of CaraPils.
8 or 10 oz always works well in my Pale Ale and IPA recipes.