Growing Sprouts For Cooking: A Great Source Of Vitamins And Minerals In Your Diet

It’s been a while since I wanted to tell you about sprouts, they have democratized over time and I doubt that you have never heard about. Do you eat germinated seeds? Did you know that these sprouts are little treasures for health and a wealth of vitamins, enzymes and minerals? Did you know that when a seed is germinated it is like an explosion of vitamins? Much more than the same dry seed!

The benefits of germinated seeds

Sprouts are an excellent source of vitamins and minerals. Sprouts exhibit a very good bio-availability: the body will be able to easily absorb the vitamins and minerals contained in sprouts. Sprouts are alive, they are loaded with enzymes. The enzymes in sprouts will help digest the cooked foods that do not have enzymes. So it’s a good idea to invite germinated seeds to your meal, as you will digest better.

During the germination process there is a formidable increases up to 1000 times the vitamins contained in the dry seeds.They therefore have an invigorating antioxidant and remineralizing power on the body.

To keep all the benefits of sprouts they should be eaten raw and avoid cooking after germination. Add them at the last moment in warm dishes.

Just eat two tablespoons per day per person to enjoy the benefits of sprouts. If you have a deficiency of vitamins and minerals you can eat 100g of sprouts per day as a cure.

What kind of seeds you should focus on to make sprouts growing

If you were to start with a single germinated seed specie, start with alfalfa. It is remineralizing and toning. Its taste is quite light, not very pronounced and it integrates well with other foods. Alfalfa sprouts are even great for decoration.

From simple to more difficult to germinate:

• The easiest legumes: clover, lentil, alfalfa seeds, chickpeas, adzuki beans, fenugreek, mung bean.
• Traditional vegetables: radish, broccoli, carrot, garlic, fennel, red cabbage, chinese cabbage, onion, leeks, basil, parsley.
• Cereals: wheat (1% gluten only in sprouted wheat), oat, rye, amaranth, kamut, millet, buckwheat, quinoa, rice, barley, spelt.
• The oil seeds: sunflower, sesame, almonds.
• The most difficult, the mucilaginous: flax, mustard, watercress.

You cannot use any seeds for sprouting

There are sprouts that is important not to eat: seeds of tomato, eggplant and rhubarb. All seeds from plants which leaves are toxic are not consumables sprouts. Yellow soybeans spouts also should not be consumed.

Where to find the seeds to germinate? How to choose them?

You will find a wide selection of seeds for sprouting in health food shops. Seeds to germinate will be found in organic food stores, and I highly recommend this and not use any non-organic seed. For our healthy we don’t want any pesticid! Then avoid classic gardening seeds which are full of chemical products!

Seeds to germinate can be stored one year in a cool and dry place. After that delay you may see the germination rate decrease and to have some seeds wont germinate anymore. Seed quality is important for the germination percentage, not to see half of the seeds that won’t germinate.

You can also find fresh seeds ready for use, if you don’t want to grow them by yourself. However it is much more profitable to grow them by yourself. It doesn’t require specialized material and you don’t need to have green thumbs to get with good results. It works alone so just remember to rinse them twice a day.

How to produce your own sprouts?

It’s very simple, no need to invest in heavy equipment. You probably have empty jars at home? Gauze or thin fabric? Some elastic at the bottom of a drawer? Well now you have the full panoply of the perfect small producer of sprouts.

Consider investing in small items or big hardware when you are used to do this regularly.

Steps to produce your own sprouts

Soak the seeds overnight in a low mineral water. At first put 2 tablespoons of seeds only, you will see the seeds will take more and more space while germinating, so do not fill the jar.

The next morning rinse and drain. Put gauze in the jar with gauze and tie the pot. The idea is to let the air flow, but not insects.

Place the jar on the edge of the sink for example, it should be tilted so that water does not stagnate in it. The seeds may rot if water stagnates. Put the jars to indirect light in a warm place.

To rinse you only have to put water through gauze, gently shake and drain the water. You must rinse the seeds twice a day, morning and night (more if it is hot).

Depending on their variety, you will consume your seeds between 3 and 10 days. When the first small leaves are visible you can eat your sprouts. For vegetables, you can go as soon as a small root gets out. For almonds and hazelnuts you do not have to wait until the seed drills (it’s very long). But pre-germination will make them more digestible and you will be able to make vegetable milks.

Remember to rinse seeds that have “skins” such as soy. To remove a maximum of skins pour sprouts into the tray of your sink, fill with fresh water and you should see the remains of seeds at the bottom of the tray and you can remove them.

In organic food shops you can find handy jars with a plastic cover adapted to tilt the jars. Others with a metal screen integration are very convenient.

People find that staged hotbed are not very satisfying. As the roots get stuck in the hotbed it is difficult to irrigate all the seeds… unless you use dismountable trays –see teh references below–. The jar remains the most convenient option in my opinion.

You can also find auto hotbeds that calculate the ideal humidity. It is good for intensive production but the budget is substantial. By cons you are well equipped since there is a 5 liter tank with automatic misting, you just have to put you toes into fans. You will come to grow very mucilaginous seeds with this method. But once again check your regular consumption before investing in a larger equipment.

How to store sprouts?

If you do not have time to eat it all when your sprouts are ready, it doesn’t matter. Either they are not too green and you can let them go even one day. If they are already perfect then rinse, drain and place them in a tupperware that you put in the vegetable drawer of your refrigerator. The cold will stop the germination process and you can consume within three days, but it’s better to eat the freshest sprouts possible.

How do we taste the sprouts?

Rinse them for the last time and they are ready! They are simply decorative as accompaniment to a meal. Sprouts are delicious in salads as they add their notes and spicy fragrance. Add them as your sandwiches, omelets …

Here are a few inspirational books and products to let you get started with growing your own seeds in your kitchen, all best sellers on Amazon:

The Sprout House Organic Sprouting Seeds Alfalfa
Organic Alfalfa can be sprouted and used as a basis for salads or raw sprouted soups. Use instead of lettuce on your favorite sandwich. They go well with any dressing or you can eat them as they are. We ship all seeds by the pound size. get a price on Amazon.

12 Lbs. Sprouting Seed Assortment – 1 Lb Ea. of Organic Sprout Seeds
12 Pounds of most Popular Sprouts! One pound of the following: Bean Salad Mix-Bean (Adzuki, Lentil, Mung), Radish, Cruncy Lentil Fest (Green, Red & French Lentils), Clover, Green Peas, Green Lentils, 3 Part Salad Mix (Alfalfa, Radish, Broccoli), Protein Powerhouse (Garbonzo,Snow Pea), Cabbage, Radish, 5 Part Salad Mix (Alfalfa, Radish, Brocolli, Mung & Lentil), Alfalfa, Garbonzo, Mung Beans. Sprouts are high in protein, essential amino acids, and eight digestive enzymes; vitamins A, C, B comples (including B-12), D, E and K; minerals iron, phosphorous, calcium, magnesium and potassium; and – when exposed to light – very high in chlorophyll. Buy this seeds kit on Amazon.

Sprouts and Sprouting
“Sprouts & Sprouting” is the complete guide to sprouting seeds and beans, including how to sprout successfully, sprouting equipment, nutritional information and over 70 recipes. It is the ideal handbook, both for the beginner and the seasoned sprouter. Get a price on Amazon.

Sprouts The Miracle Food: The Complete Guide to Sprouting
The Sproutman’s guide to indoor organic gardening shows you step by step, how to grow these delicious baby greens and mini-vegetables in just one week from seed to salad. This guide can make anyone a self sufficient gardener of sprouts that are bursting with concentrated nutrition. Includes comprehensive nutrition charts, Questions and Answers, seed resources, illustrations, photo’s & Charts. Get it now on Amazon.

Victorio VKP1014 4-Tray Kitchen Seed Sprouter
The Victorio VKP1014 four-tray Kitchen Seed Sprouter is an easy way to produce fresh, high-quality organic sprouts in your own kitchen. New and improved design is simple to use and very durable. Unique growing tray design uses water surface tension to keep the correct amount of water in the tray for all stages of the growing process. You can enjoy sprouts in as little as 2 to 5-days. Includes organic alfalfa sprouting seeds, 4 growing trays, 1 water collection tray, 1 storage lid and instruction manual. get a price on Amazon.

Sprout Master Triple Sprouter
Sprout Master has the following advantages: does not sour the sprouts; several sprouters can be stacked with the tray lid in place without losing necessary air circulation; the rectangular shape allows for much better cabinet and refrigerator storage without sacrificing as much as one inch in the volume of harvest; a removable divider in the middle makes it possible to grow a half crop, a full crop or two different crops at the same time. With a lid placed under the bottom as a drip tray and a lid placed over the top, sprouts will stay crisper longer in the refrigerator without losing vitamins or souring. Disassembles quickly for easy cleaning. These trays measure 8 inches x 10 inches. Get a price on Amazon.

Victorio VKP1046 Square Two-Tray Kitchen Garden Sprouter
The easy-to-use Victorio Kitchen Garden Sprouter will have you in sprouts within a few minutes of set-up and three to five days growing time. Cleaning and reseeding is so easy that you’ll want to grow sprouts over and over. Stackable trays are made of food-grade plastic. Comes with organic alfalfa seeds, two stackable growing trays, two drain tray / lid and instructions.Buy it on Amazon.