Procedure for Mashing Rice

[Sir Humpsalot]

I want to create a very light wort for an upcoming Mango Beer and also a lighter Pale Ale. So after having had some good success with 2lbs of rice solids, I've decided it's time to get back to AG and use the actual rice. The problem is that I have a cooler for an MLT so I have to do something like a decoction. And before anybody suggests it, no I do not want to use Minute Rice.

My plan at the moment is:

1. Cook rice on the stove with excess water to an "overdone for eating" stage (gelatinzed), say 3 quarts water per quart of rice, gently boiling it for roughly 40-60 minutes. I am figuring that the extra water will help prevent scorching the rice. (Question: how do I account for the leftover water when calculating my 1.25qts/lb for the mash? I am guessing that I should ignore the water soaked up by the rice. Is that right? Just drain off the excess water and measure that? Also, I've never deliberately overcooked rice before. Will the extra water prevent the risk of scorching? Or should I still stir it occasionally?)

2. Add strike water to my MLT and do a normal infusion mash with about 5lbs of malt and do a normal single infusion, without the rice... just 2-row malt.

3. Do a mini-mash on my stove with a protein rest, something like 4 lbs of 6-row with 3 lbs of rice at 122F for 30 minutes, and then heat this to 152F and add it directly into my MLT with the rest of the 2-row mash for lautering.

4. Batch Sparge and collect runnings.

Does this seem like a sound procedure? I don't want to do the entire mash on the stove because I can't lauter on it, so I'm thinking I may as well start the 2-row going in the MLT (a procedure I am quite good at) as I fiddle with the mini-mash with the rice and hitting temps and such.

 

[OCBrewin]

why not just go to the store and get a big box of 'Minute Rice' (I just use the generic store brand) instant rice and skip all of that? In fact, I just bought a 3# box for $3 for my next cream ale. The minute rice is just pre-gelatinized rice - you can just add it straight to the mash with the rest of your grist. It's worked for me several times and I always hit my numbers. Really easy!! Save yourself some time!!

 

[pelipen]

I did a rice wine from 90% rice, 10% wheat. I used amylase enzyme and held at around mid 150's.

It went from rice mush to sugar water, but took a couple hours. I put the rice in a bag and squeezed it dry. I was left with basically cellulose fiber which I put into the compost pile.

I cooked the rice in a rice cooker but with a but extra water. Then I added more until it was soupy. Adding water to hot rice makes glue, but cooling it first helps stay liquid. I was using sticky rice, you won't have that problem with normal rice.

 

[Sir Humpsalot]

I did a rice wine from 90% rice, 10% wheat. I used amylase enzyme and held at around mid 150's.

It went from rice mush to sugar water, but took a couple hours. I put the rice in a bag and squeezed it dry. I was left with basically cellulose fiber which I put into the compost pile.

I cooked the rice in a rice cooker but with a but extra water. Then I added more until it was soupy. Adding water to hot rice makes glue, but cooling it first helps stay liquid. I was using sticky rice, you won't have that problem with normal rice.

You didn't use a protein rest? Was there some reasoning behind that?

 

[amandabab]

when I mash rice, I just boil the crap out of it. add water as it absorbs it.

dump it into the mash tun to preheat it, add my strike water after a few minutes and don't worry about the water in the rice for my strike volume calculations.

 

[BigEd]

You didn't use a protein rest? Was there some reasoning behind that?

Why do you think you should? Rice is not high in protein.

 

[Yooper]

No protein rest, but you should do a cereal mash and cook the rice before mashing. Rice must be cooked before mashing.

 

[Sir Humpsalot]

Thank you for the thoughts and input. This will be even easier than I thought. Cook rice, add to mash.

Now I am off to review diastatic power and figure out how many pounds of 6row I need. But I should be able to take it from here. Thanks.

 

[OCBrewin]

Just for my own personal knowledge... is there any reason that my suggestion of just using a pre-gelatinized rice like Minute Rice is a bad one? This is what I have been doing and it seems like a much easier solution. As long as the rice is less than like 20% of the grist, I can't see there being any flavor or potential extraction difference....

 

[amandabab]

Just for my own personal knowledge... is there any reason that my suggestion of just using a pre-gelatinized rice like Minute Rice is a bad one?

minute rice is fine, but its a lot more expencive.

 

[Sir Humpsalot]

Just for my own personal knowledge... is there any reason that my suggestion of just using a pre-gelatinized rice like Minute Rice is a bad one? This is what I have been doing and it seems like a much easier solution. As long as the rice is less than like 20% of the grist, I can't see there being any flavor or potential extraction difference....

It's a common approach and I think it's a good one even. The reasons I'm avoiding it is that I am trying to get my batch costs Loooowww, for both food and beer and part of that is buying in bulk. 20lbs of dual-purpose rice (eating and brewing) makes sense. I'm even trying to reduce my use of specialty grains, starting to toast my own malt and such so that my bag of 2-row becomes more versatile. While this is driving me away from minute rice, the same idea is what drives me towards using quick oats... I keep them around for eating and brewing.

Otherwise though, I agree, Minute Rice seems fine to use and is a little less hassle.

 

[OCBrewin]

minute rice is fine, but its a lot more expencive.

Got it!

Just FYI, If you have a Costco nearby you can really reduce the cost. 72oz. box for $5.... Not a bad deal if you ask me...

 

[pelipen]

You didn't use a protein rest? Was there some reasoning behind that?

What Yooper said. Also, I was using pure enzyme, and wheat with virtually no diastatic power, so I held at a few temps the literature said were optimal for amylase, but longest at low 150's reading my notes. Net result was 1.090 sugar water. Enzymes work