Uses For Spent Grains

[The_Canmancan]

You can use spent grains to make delicious granola (add honey), or as my girlfriend likes to do with my grains, make muffins. They have plenty of fiber in them and would even make the most constipated person regular again.

 

[sput]

I wouldn't bother with the extra step of drying it as an additive to wood pellets and spent grain but knowing what percentage of the yeast cake is water for calculations is handy. Weigh a sample, dehydrate and weigh again. I'd be interested in that number since I never reuse cakes and have been composting them. Could be a useful adjunct.

I've got some grain drying to try a few foods. Granola is at the top of the list but seeing the state of these cookie sheets my hopes for delicious snack treats isn't very high. Anyone make flour?

 

[Walshy87]

I dump them under a tree in my front yard so the squirrels stop digging up my yard but mostly cause I hope they ferment and I can watch the squirrels get around drunk.

 

[mcbaumannerb]

Found her at a farm down the street and she is definitely loving it! (And yes, I got permission first.)

 

[phoenixs4r]

http://brooklynbrewshop.com/themash/category/spentgrainchef/

My girlfriend has made a few of these recipes, they've been great! They do t use Mich grain though, so we freeze a few pounds in zip locks and use when we want. You can also advertise on craigslist free section. There's a guy near me who picked up 25lbs and left his number for when I have more. I always forget tho.

 

[KeyWestBrewing]

hop candles sound good....or hop soap!

Hops are actually used in some soaps. They are also in deodorant and a lot of stuff like that. It's usually written on the back as humulus lupus.

 

[phoenixs4r]

hop candles sound good.

I got my gf a candle making kit for Xmas. She ground up some hop pellets and put them in the wax. The issue she faced was the hop pellet gunk fell to the bottom, so it smelled really good till the wic got to the bottom and set the hop gunk on fire.

 

[fatal_degree]

Lemme take a look to see which sulphureus we have. Any interest in a list of strains I have? Happy to send wedges (or whatever you prefer) out on request.

The pleurotus seems to fruit despite us here, on cakes and logs. Have you ever taste them before?

I have eaten the pleurotus....they're pretty average. But then so are most of the supermarket mushrooms. They work well cooked into our daily meals. I would love to give the leotiprus a crack again, but I think I better see if I can get the hang of the oyster mushroom first. The only place I have had success getting them to fruit, is on the logs that I innoculated with plug spawn. This is their second year outside, and they must've had a rough summer because they are coming on late and sparse. It was super dry here...I think the ground and logs are just starting to get wet and cold enough to initiate fruit.

 

[fatal_degree]

Just tried drying a whole batch of grains. It was going well for the first 6 pounds and then I must have stopped paying as close attention. I got them all dry, but the last few batches got a little crispy/burnt. The dog will probably still eat them though....I still have some pumpkin leftover from pumpkin beer and seed roasting, I will make up some dog treats with the slightly burnt stuff.

I love the sound of the muffin idea! I will have to give that a try.

phoenixs4r : Nice tip on the candles....maybe there is a way of infusing the wax and filtering out the hop gunk before she molds them?? I bet whole hops would be easier to filter out.

There is a woman at one of the farmers markets that my mom and I sell at, she keeps asking for fresh hops. Apparently she wants to use them in baking bread.....sounds kinda interesting.

 

[wells11]

What is the recipe for making dog treats out of the spent grain?

 

[KeyWestBrewing]

What is the recipe for making dog treats out of the spent grain?

I might be a little off because SWMBO is the one that made em but I think she just got a bowl full and added a bunch of peanut butter them baked the hell out of em for like 12 hrs until they were dry all the way through. If you search spent grain dog biscuits you can probably find something more specific.

 

[bulldogbrewhaus]

The tour guide at Anchor told me they have a local farmer that comes and picks up all their spent grain as a treat for his horses.

 

[bpgreen]

What is the recipe for making dog treats out of the spent grain?

I use the recipe in this thread:
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/spent-grain-make-your-best-friend-cookies-87097/

 

[rgospo]

add spent grain to sourdough multigrain bread

 

[dallasdb]

Subscribed!

 

[geekstur]

I ran an ad on craigslist and now give my grains to a chicken farmer in exchange for an occasional dozen eggs. He even brought me some squash from his garden. As a city dweller, farm-goods are a serious treat.

 

[hennesse]

What if anything do you do to the grain before giving it to your chickens? My neighbor has them and I've been wanting to offer up my grain but I thought it would need to be dried or something.

On brewday, my free-range chickens hang out near the garage (brewery) just squawking something like "we want grain". When I start scooping it out of the MT and into a bucket, they're sticking their heads into the bucket eating it while it's hot!

I just toss it onto the compost heap where they then spend the afternoon gorging themselves. I plan to make a 2x4 frame with some window screen (and heavier hardware cloth underneath) so I can leave it outside to dry in the sun - then I could store it and dole it out in more modest quantities.
Dave

 

[jmg727]

I put them out in the yard and the birds love them. Lots of sparrows rooting around in them for a week or so. It will be even more interesting when Winter sets in.

 

[daveaohio]

What if anything do you do to the grain before giving it to your chickens? My neighbor has them and I've been wanting to offer up my grain but I thought it would need to be dried or something.

My chickens loved it and it is a great way to reuse grain since I do all grain. All I did was let it cool and then dump it for them. Unfortunately raccoons ate all of my chickens so now I just compost it.

 

[maltoftheearth]

I put them out in the yard and the birds love them. Lots of sparrows rooting around in them for a week or so. It will be even more interesting when Winter sets in.

That's funny, the birds in our yard want nothing to do with my spent grain. I dumped my spent grains in the garden (we grow every other year, I dump organics in it on off years.) They decompose quickly and don't see to attract much attention from any particular creature. Sometimes see some fire ants over there but there is no place immune from fire ants around here.

 

[brew2enjoy]

I've made the dog biscuits before but lately I've just started letting a small portion cool after the mash and letting my lab eat what she wants. Now when I brew she sits and waits for it! Man she loves that stuff!

 

[sudbuster]

After my recent brew session, I got to pondering on how malt extract is made and what it is used for. After spending more time than I should've Googling the subject, I discovered that malt is used with more frequency in foods than it is in beer. So, there sat a hot pile of freshly sparged grain with plenty of moisture remaining in it, destined for my chickens and the compost heap.

Instead of just lugging it out and dumping it, I squeezed as much moisture as I could possible get out of it and drained that into a soup pan. Then I left it on low heat to evaporate the water, until it became a thick molasses-like syrup...or malt syrup to be exact I suppose.

It is AMAZING!!! Roasted chicken never tasted so good! And I can make an excellent malted milkshake or cold malt and coffee drink. It adds depth and flavor to food, without adding a sugary sweetness. And on chicken and turkey, it gives the skin that rich, chestnut brown glow, while permeating the meat and keeping it juicy. From here on out, I will use every last drop from my grain!

Does anyone else have suggestions for frugal use of spent grain or yeast? Ways to get more bang for the buck, homesteading style.

Cattle feed!! They love 'em.

 

[sloose]

I get third runnings and make wort for starters. the spent grains go in the composter to make yummy 'maters for next year.

 

[fatal_degree]

add spent grain to sourdough multigrain bread

OOooo mmm Aahhh.... that sounds simply scrumtious! I have been toying with the idea of getting a sourdough culture started. My better half does the bread baking, and he is a bit nervous about how to use a starter as opposed to dry packets from the store. I will have to get one going, now I'm motivated.

 

[fatal_degree]

Cattle feed!! They love 'em.

And me without my cattle....humbug. I would totally keep a little brown cow for milk and such, but my property in the city is only 47' X 142'...as nice as my neighbors are....

Great idea for those who have large animals. Or at least access to them.

Has anyone thought about fermenting the grains so that they aren't as prone to spoilage while wet? Ya know, instead of going to the trouble of drying them all the way out. I'm wondering if anyone has done this. How it's done, and for what end product?

 

[fatal_degree]

I've made the dog biscuits before but lately I've just started letting a small portion cool after the mash and letting my lab eat what she wants. Now when I brew she sits and waits for it! Man she loves that stuff!

I discovered my corgi LOVES pumpkin, when I did my last brew. What is your recipe for dog treats? Have you ever thought of making your dog's food from scratch? I bet the grains would work well for that also.

 

[HoodedCrow]

I am an all-grain brewer, and end up with a lot of spent grains. We have a dozen chickens who love the spent grains. While my Wort is boiling, I pack the spent grains into gallon size ziploc bags and put them in my beer fridge. The can keep for weeks there. I have a set of about 5 bags that I have washed out and re-used many times.

 

[fatal_degree]

HoodedCrow,

I had wondered how long they would keep while refridgerated. Thanks for posting!

 

[wagz]

I found the following recipe. I emailed it to myself, so I cant give credit to the correct source. I plan on making some this weekend.

Easy Granola
9 cup barley grains
1 cup spelt or whole wheat flour
1 cup wheat germ
1 cup coconut
1 cup raisins
1 cup honey or maple syrup
1/2 cup oil
1 cup boiling water
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla
1 cup of flax seeds (optional)
Blend together all liquid ingredients and add to dry ingredients,
until well distributed. Crumble the mixture and spread on to cookie
sheet. Start baking at 350F for 15 min., then lower heat to 200F and
bake (stirring occasionally) until dry. Store in covered jars. This
recipe can be made in smaller quantities.

 

[timewasted]

I usually give my chickens some and compost the rest. I never thought about making syrup but I will the next time!

 

[mtnagel]

I just made some rolls with the spent grain from my White House honey ale and porter. I thought they came out very good for my first attempt. They were a bit dense, but I like the texture and taste. They almost were more pretzel like in flavor than bread like, but that's a good thing to me.

This is roughly the recipe I used.. My grains were pretty wet so I think next time I will try to drain them better and I'd probably add less liquid to the recipe because I had to add a lot of extra flour, which is think is why they were so dense.

I also made spend grain burgers and I thought they were very good. I ended up using black beans and I blended it in a food processor. But they came out kind of runny. I think next time I'd just mix by hand to keep the grain texture.

And of course I had it with a home brew.

Here's some pictures:

 

[fatal_degree]

mtnangel:

You're makin my mouth water! Those are some GREAT lookin buns!! And the "bagel" desciption sounds awesome, I love bagels. Thank You for posting you picture and recipe.

 

[509inc]

Unfortunately raccoons ate all of my chickens so now I just compost it.

Hold up. Raccoons ate your chickens?

You must be egging us on.

 

[mtnagel]

mtnangel:

You're makin my mouth water! Those are some GREAT lookin buns!! And the "bagel" desciption sounds awesome, I love bagels. Thank You for posting you picture and recipe.

Thanks. I just brewed a milk stout today, so I have a few cups of chocolate malt and black patent malt. Not sure what I'll do with that, but it sounds good.

 

[fatal_degree]

daveaohio:

Sorry to hear about your chickens. I had a few out at my mother's place for a short time...but she like to let them out so they can garden with her...then she forgets to put them away. Needless to say they met their end at the rotten little paws of the coon out there. Rotten devils! And it seems like you can shoot them for weeks on end and not deplete the population!!

 

[mtnagel]

I've been experimenting with spent grain cooking. I decided to dry some in the oven for ease of storing and incorporating into recipes. So now I have a few cups dried and a few cups wet in the freezer.

Yesterday I made some spent grain pretzels. They came out very good.

Then this morning I made spent grain banana nut waffles. They came out good but I used the dried spent grain and there were some hard pieces in there. I guess they rehydrated in the pretzels because that wasn't an issue so now I know to avoid that. Still looked pretty I thought.

 

[BobbiLynn]

Beautiful photos! All my leftover stuff goes into the compost pile. It'll be turned into good soil by Spring and my garden will be flourishing.

 

[nbrack]

Wow! Thanks! You just opened up a whole new world to me!

 

[BobbiLynn]

Hold up. Raccoons ate your chickens?

Raccoons attract coyotes and probably that is what ate your chickens. I've never heard of a raccoon killing a chicken. For one thing they don't move fast enough. Have you ever watched a raccoon waddle around? No way they caught and killed your chickens.

 

[BobbiLynn]

Hold up. Raccoons ate your chickens?

Oh, okay, I think I get it... another joke that went over my head....