Malt Extract

i was just wondering are we allowed to have malt extract in our food?

malt extract is sprouted dried barley. the barley is boiled and the liquid that's extracted is called malt extract. some people may find this too refined, but the process isn't much different from the way sugar is made. personally, i can't think of a reason that would be a problem.

i was just wondering becuase when i google "malt extract" it said that it was used for making beer

Malt extract is a product most commonly known for its use in the brewing of beer. It is available in both a liquid form for the purist, and a dry form for the practical. Both types are produced by first simulating the germination of the barley grain with a process called malting.

This procedure entails immersing barley in water to encourage the grain to sprout, then quickly drying the barley to halt the progress when the sprouting begins. Enzymes then begin to break down the starches in the barley and turn them to sugar. This sugar is called malt, or maltose. The quick drying step stops the sprouting, but the enzymes remain active.

source...[www.wisegeek.com]

so just want clarify again, is it okay to eat it?

Water is also used to make beer, and we drink that... as long as it has not fermented and turned to alcohol, it should be fine.

think of it this way... we eat grapes, which are the primary ingredient in wine. malt extract is no different.

"Bhai" - No. Malt vinegar is not okay. It has infact been fermented into alcohol prior to the vinegar stage. Bebeki's do not use malt vinegar.

Malt vinegar, or alegar, is a type of vinegar which is made by malting barley, turning the barley into a beer, and then allowing the beer to turn into vinegar.

When barley is malted, it is soaked in water and allowed to germinate before being roasted to dry it out. The partial germination and roasting converts the natural starch in the barley into a sugar which is known as maltose. When the malted barley is fermented, the maltose will convert to alcohol. The malting process is used to make beers and an assortment of liquors such as whiskey. When the malted mixture is fermented in a special way, the alcohol turns to vinegar, which has a high concentration of acetic acid, giving it a distinctive tangy taste..

Since the process turns the malt into beer first before vinegar, we can not use it.

He didn't ask about vinegar... he asked about extract, which happens BEFORE the fermentation. No alcohol is involved.

Sure. I got it mixed up. Atleast now we know Malt vinegar can not be used

that's still debatable. there's no measurable alcohol content in malt vinegar. the prohibition is against intoxicants, and malt vinegar is not an intoxicant, nor can it be used as one.

i think the fact that it's a processed liquid is more of an issue than the beer thing.