In an effort to: a) eat more organic produce, b) be thriftier, and c) simplify finding fresh produce during the colder months, I have started growing my own sprouts. Growing sprouts is likely ‘old hat’ to many of the wonderful food-centric folk out there, but it is new to me, and it has been a revelation. It is really very easy and satisfying to grow your own sprouts, and it’s also cost-effective (great for our seemingly-hostile economic climate) and at least a little entertaining. I love peering into a jar of seeds/sprouts to see how much they have grown overnight.

You only need a few supplies to grow sprouts at home: organic seeds of your choice, water, a big glass jar, and some mesh or a tea strainer (which is what I used, secured with an elastic). Put a small quantity of seeds in the jar. I find that about a tablespoon works well–I’ve used two tablespoons, and it does depend on the type of seeds you’re sprouting. With a larger amount it is harder to drain them well, and they seem to be more likely to grow mold, so it’s a good idea to experiment with a smaller amount initially. You then put water into the jar to soak the seeds. Let them soak for 2-6 hours, depending again on the type of seed. Then drain off the water, and fill with fresh water so they can soak again, for another 2-6 hours. Drain the water again, inverting the jar at an angle to allow the water to drain out thoroughly. After this, all you need to do is rinse the seeds in fresh water 2-3 times each day. Swirl the water around in the jar, and pour it out, then invert the jar again. The idea is to keep the seeds a bit wet, without having them sit in tepid water. This will prevent mold while still giving them enough water to grow. After a day or two, little sprouts will be visible. After they have grown to a good size, I like to take them out of the jar and rinse them well, removing any loose seed ‘skins’. By this point, you should be able to see the beginnings of little leaves on the ends of the white stems. I then spread them out on a plate or cutting board which has been lined with two layers of paper/dish towel, and set them by a window to give the chlorophyll in the sprouts a chance to develop, i.e. to let them turn green. A few hours should be sufficient, or an afternoon is perfect, if you have the time.

Then, the sprouts can be put into a container in the fridge, to be used up in a few days on sandwiches, salads, or howsoever you fancy. So far I have sprouted daikon radish and alfalfa, but plan to experiment with other seeds in the coming weeks.

Sprouts are delicious with avocado.

While living in Seoul I noticed that daikon sprouts are used extensively in Korean cooking, adding a nice burst of flavour and freshness to many dishes. Sprouts are available in most grocery stores, but it is much more economical to grow your own, and that way you always know exactly how fresh they are. Sprouting seeds are available in most health-food stores near me. Hopefully they’re available where you are, too. If you can’t find them, they are available at this website.

Happy sprouting!

love,
meg

Tags: sprouting, vegetables

This entry was posted on Thursday, October 15th, 2009 at 2:48 pm and is filed under Books, Plants, Veggies. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.