May 26, 2021 - 6:06am
Freezing Diastatic Malt
Hello, pizza lovers.
After consulting with the production manager(my wife) It was determined that the dough weight for our standard 18" pie (The only size The Roadside Pie King offers) would be reduced to a thickness factor of .076, which translates to 550g. At the same time, I also reworked the hydration to a slightly lower 65% Attached for your use or misuse is the new reworked formula.
Check out the massive 136 ounce/7 dough ball batch in the Bosch bowl! I am naming this rework of the dough formula...KitchenAid Killer!
I have a question, Does freezing diastatic malt have any ill effects? 
KitchenAid Killer!
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I don't use diastatic malt often so I do keep mine frozen. I recall Tom Lehmann saying that it freezes well but you have to be careful because it's very hydroscopic. In other works, opening it directly from a freezer can cause moisture to collect on it, which will cause it to deteriorate more rapidly.
I have a bulk bag of diastatic malt in my freezer and a small working jar (also kept in the freezer). When I'm going to use the small jar I bring it to room temp before opening it so moisture doesn't condense on it. It has worked well based on the additional browning shown on the baked items I use it in.
Off topic, I'm also a Bosch fan. I got mine used around 2001 and it's still going strong. I use it a couple of times a week at least.
Dave
I also do not use a whole lot of diastatic malt. There is a local place here in Manhattan where I can get a very small quantity without shipping charges. kalustyans, This place is the bee's knees for exotic ingredients! I think the last batch I purchased was only 8oz. Still lasts quite some time. I did notice the outside of the glass sealable, tiny pyrex container condensate really quickly. The powder inside did not seem to get wet. I will for sure watch out for that. I think I have just about enough left for one more mega batch of pizza dough. That will not be for at least two months! Thanks again.
Oh yeah, I love my Bosch! Check out this batch of dough after I freed it from the mixer bowl!
Nicely mixed dough! Would be a good sales tool for Bosch.
I've been mail ordering from Kalustyan's for decades. I can't even imagine what it would be like to go into the store. I'd probably spend the day. Nothing like that where I live.
Dave
It would be worth a trip to NYC just to experience it! What's your name over at the pizza club? I am Gumba Will. Smile...
I am about to head out and get some cold cuts, to reward myself on the mega dough batch! Knocking off the 2 percentage points on the hydration was a great call. It made the dough so much more manageable. At 67% I was adding so much more bench flour. It is way better to have it right from the get-go! Keep an eye out for the cross-section of my baguette bake from yesterday! ( I can't wait to split one open!)
I just saw your post over there in Today's Bread this morning. Good job!
I'm loch over there, with a pretty low post count for all the years I've been there. I read a lot more than I post, no matter what the Forum. I already know what I'm doing, I like to see what other people are doing!
Dave
I have kept my diastatic malt in the freezer for years. No idea how to test it, but far as I know it is fine.
This test is to see if you have diastatic vs non-diastatic but will obviously also tell you if yours is still working. I've never done it but it makes sense.
" The main difference between diastatic and non-diastatic malt is that diastatic malt has active enzymes which help break down starch into sugar.
To test if your malt is diastatic:
Take two bowls.
Add a tbsp of flour and 2 tbsp of water for each bowl and lightly mix it.
Then put a small amount of yeast in each bowl. Make sure they both get the same amount.
Then put a small amount of malt powder in one of the bowls.
If the malt is diastatic, the bowl with the malt will start bubbling much earlier than the bowl without the malt. The malt will break down the starch into simple sugars which the yeast consumes. As the yeast consumes the sugar, it release carbon dioxide which are the bubbles you see."
https://cooking.stackexchange.com/questions/59841/is-there-a-way-to-tell-if-dry-malt-is-diastatic-or-non-diastatic
Dave
Rock, when I wrote testing the freezer stored DM, I meant to determine f the Diastatic Malt was still strong or if it had lose potency.
I figured I should ask in case I was wasting my time adding the malt after freezing it. (You never know)