Grain Soak No Simmer

I will mainly cover pure feed grains and not WBS as pure grains are much easier to dial in than seed blends, they are also typically cheaper than WBS. Another advantage to feed grains is they are usually cleaner than WBS and do not require to be rinsed. Some people soak and simmer some people simmer and no soak. Some people measure water and grains and PC with no soak or simmer. This will cover the soak no simmer method which I have found to use the least labor and is more foolproof. I personally do not like simmering because its energy spent heating up all that grain and water and time spent watching it simmer and stirring. Also it's much easier to handle the cold soaked grains vs boiling hot grains. If you do break some shells open after PC'ing its ok. Use it as you would just next time reduce the soak time/temp.

I like to fill my jars as much as possible, takes a bit longer to shake but gives me a higher spawn rate without doing a second batch. If you want more room to shake reduce the amount per jar by a few grams. For GTG i add slightly less grain than for agar transfers.    

Here is an overview on different grains and preparation

Wheat 

$12 50 lbs

Soak 16-24 hours

300g per quart jar for 80% full 

This stuff shrinks once pressure cooked so fill the jars a little extra. Also this has a thin shell with a split down the center. It will not crack open like millet or milo which are more like solid balls that explode

Brown Rice

$    50 lbs

Soak

g per quart jar for 80% full

Oat 

$10-15 50 lbs

16-24 hr Soak

240g per quart jar for 80% full

Oat swells considerably more than other grains when soaked, leave a lot of extra water above the grain for it to absorb. 

Rye

Soak

G per quart jar for 80% full

Milo (sorghum)

$10-13 50 lbs

8-18 hour soak

G per quart jar for 80% full

This will expand once pressure cooked; look out for exploded seeds to see if you need to adjust soak time

White Millet 

$20-25 50 lbs

Soak 4-8 hours

350g per jar

This is a nice master jar because the seeds are so small therefore increasing inoculation points. This is extremely susceptible to being over soaked and will explode and clump easily. I typically see exploded seeds at the top so I will add a teaspoon of unmixed gypsum on top to absorb some moisture. This will expand once pressure cooked; look out for exploded seeds to see if you need to adjust soak time.

Red millet

$24 50 lbs

Soak

g per quart jar for 80% full???

This is a nice spawn because the seeds are so small therefore increasing inoculation points, red millet is smaller than white millet. This is extremely susceptible to being over soaked and will explode and clump easily. I typically see exploded seeds at the top so I will add a teaspoon of unmixed gypsum on top to absorb some moisture. This will expand once pressure cooked; look out for exploded seeds to see if you need to adjust soak time.

First I line a drilled out pail with a 5 gal paint strainer I purchase at my local home improvement store for $3-4 a 2 pack. This goes inside a pail with no holes. I weigh out my grains before soaking, this eliminates excess or insufficient grain for the run I'm doing. In the event I'm dialing in a new grain and have surplus i'll fill jar(s) and place them into the freezer for future use or run them in my smaller presto PC if there's enough.  Then i'll calculate how much to weigh out next time for a perfect  fill and no waste. I store the funnel and measuring cup which happens to be a magic bullet cup inside the pails when not in use. This helps keep everything together and less likely to disappear on me. 

I then fill the pail with enough water to submerge the grain under 4-6%u201D of water. It will expand so give it some head room. Let it soak for the prescribed time. A lower or higher water or ambient temperature will affect soak time so take this into account. If I'm in a rush I sometimes place the grains outside with a lid on top of my A/C condenser or in the sun for more heat. Placing the lid on top eliminates evaporation and greatly increases temperature.  

 

I toss the tools back in the pail to keep everything together.

 

After the soak i slowly pull the pail. 

 

Place it crooked on top of the pail to drain

 

Now i'll get the jars ready, count out however many jars your filling and get all the lids off. I store all my jars with the lids on and dirty. I never clean my jars or lids unless they had a contam in them. 

 

Take all the lids off and place them into a pile. 

 

Now i'll go back to the grain and swap it to another dry pail and move to my workspace to load. Scoop and level each cup.

Fill each jar and move the funnel from jar to jar. 

 

When i get to the bottom i'll (sometimes) add a cup or two of dry spent coffee grounds to soak up excess moisture at the bottom of the pail and fill the last few jars. If you have a small amount of excess split it up into a few of the less filled jars.  

 

Put the lids on and PC for 60-90 min @15 psi. I don't bother with foil anymore.

 

Dump the waste water down the sink or even better in the garden. It can also be used for LC or Agar water. Put all the pails and tools back into storage, I don't even bother rinsing.