Spent Brewers grain in the homestead
Apart from making my own homebrewed beer, I have worked in a few different breweries in my time and one of the benefits (apart from free beer) is the ability to take spent hops and grains that were used in the brewing process. The only issue is that I would have to fight the local farmer for it!
This waste byproduct is a valuable free resource for the homesteader, although I think the spent grains have more uses. Whether you brew your own, or you can get to know your local brewers (we are a friendly bunch!) and get your hands on the spent grain, you will gain a very useful byproduct! |
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Here are my top uses for spent brewers grains:
Compost it!
The spent grain makes an ideal bulking agent to compost as it breaks down quickly and it has good levels of iron, magnesium, manganese, selenium, phosphorus.
Bake it!
Once the beer making process has finished, you can use the spent grains in cooking and baking. From pastry to puddings, soups to flapjacks - spent grains can have a place in your stove! You can also mill down the grains to make a flour to make a delicious loaf of bread.
I will be adding methods and recipes to Happy Homestead in due course, so in the meantime, have a quick google search for many ideas on how you can use the spent grains.
Make dog treats from it!
Again, I will be adding some recipes to our site soon, so have a look around the internet for some ideas. I particularly like this blog article about spent grain dog treats.
Feed it to your animals!
Many animals that you are likely to have on your homestead, from horses through to chickens, they all love spent grains! Cows, sheep and pigs will be able to process the grain better than horses. The grain is a good source of selenium which is beneficial to the production of eggs and meat birds - You can find out more about selenium HERE.
Use it as a mushroom compost!
Spent grains are a fantastic substrate for growing mushrooms. If mixed with 5 parts straw, your mushrooms will benefit from the micro nutrients within the grains. We hope to establish mushrooms on our homestead, so we will be trying this method, and will share the progress with you!
Compost it!
The spent grain makes an ideal bulking agent to compost as it breaks down quickly and it has good levels of iron, magnesium, manganese, selenium, phosphorus.
Bake it!
Once the beer making process has finished, you can use the spent grains in cooking and baking. From pastry to puddings, soups to flapjacks - spent grains can have a place in your stove! You can also mill down the grains to make a flour to make a delicious loaf of bread.
I will be adding methods and recipes to Happy Homestead in due course, so in the meantime, have a quick google search for many ideas on how you can use the spent grains.
Make dog treats from it!
Again, I will be adding some recipes to our site soon, so have a look around the internet for some ideas. I particularly like this blog article about spent grain dog treats.
Feed it to your animals!
Many animals that you are likely to have on your homestead, from horses through to chickens, they all love spent grains! Cows, sheep and pigs will be able to process the grain better than horses. The grain is a good source of selenium which is beneficial to the production of eggs and meat birds - You can find out more about selenium HERE.
Use it as a mushroom compost!
Spent grains are a fantastic substrate for growing mushrooms. If mixed with 5 parts straw, your mushrooms will benefit from the micro nutrients within the grains. We hope to establish mushrooms on our homestead, so we will be trying this method, and will share the progress with you!