misugaru (roasted grain powder)
A fine powder of roasted grains and legumes, usually barley, rice and soybeans, with a nutty, toasty, faintly sweet taste.
Misugaru is a Korean flour made from several grains and legumes that are roasted first and then finely ground; barley, brown and glutinous rice, soybeans or black beans are typical, often with sesame as well. Because everything is already roasted, it is not cooked but stirred straight into water or milk and sweetened with honey or sugar to make a creamy drink, and it also goes into desserts, ice cream and baking. It tastes nutty, toasty and earthy with a gentle sweetness and feels slightly grainy on the tongue. The powder clumps in liquid, so it is shaken or whisked hard while the liquid is added gradually. It is sold in Asian shops with a Korean range or by mail order, usually in bags that should be kept tightly closed once opened.
Substitute:
The closest match is a mix of kinako, Japanese roasted soybean flour, and roasted barley flour such as tsampa, in roughly equal parts. Kinako alone tastes noticeably beany and less of grain, while barley flour alone lacks the rounded, sweetish depth; neither quite reaches the layered flavour of the original.