Shailoh of the Week by Rabbi Zvi Nussbaum
Rabbinic Coordinator, Kosher Hotline Administrator for the Orthodox Union
Due to recent changes in the formula for making cornflakes, there has been a question as to what bracha should be made when eating them.
The bracha depends on how the corn was processed into flakes. If the kernels were first ground into flour and then formed into flakes, the bracha would be shehakol. If the grains were flattened into flakes, the correct bracha would be ha’adama. Many brands of cornflakes add malt (a barley derivative) flavoring to sweeten the flakes. Generally speaking, if any of the five grains (including barley) is added to another food for the purpose of adding taste, the grain becomes the dominant ingredient, and the bracha becomes mezonot. Does the addition of malt flavoring to corn flakes change the bracha to mezonot? According to the OU poskim it does not. The amount of malt that is added is minimal (usually about 2%), and it is only added to the surface of the flake. It is not significant enough to influence the bracha.
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