What barley malt means
Barley malt is barley that has been malted, a process in which the grains are soaked in water so they begin to sprout, then dried with hot air to stop the growth. During sprouting, enzymes in the grain turn its starches into sugars, giving malt its sweet, rich flavour. The malt can be kilned lightly for a pale colour or roasted darker for a deeper, toasty or coffee-like taste. Most malted barley is used for brewing beer and distilling whisky.
In cooking, barley malt is most often used as barley malt extract or barley malt syrup, a thick, dark brown, sticky syrup made by mashing malted barley with water and concentrating the sugary liquid. It is less sweet than sugar or honey and has a distinctive malty, slightly bitter flavour. It is used in British malt loaf, in traditional bagels, where it is added to the dough and to the boiling water for a shiny, chewy crust, and in breads, biscuits, flapjacks and granola. Malted barley is also ground into flour, with diastatic malt flour still containing active enzymes that help yeast dough rise and brown, and non-diastatic malt used only for flavour and colour.
Other products include malted milk powder and malt vinegar. Malt extract can be bought in jars from health food shops and supermarkets. You will see barley malt in baking, brewing and bagel recipes.