Sunday, September 14, 2008
Growing Sprouts Easily
Grow Sprouts
How, Where and Why Sprouts?
Why grow sprouts?
Besides being delicious, simple, and inexpensive they are packed with living enzymes and nutrients. Pound for pound sprouts are some of the healthiest food on the planet! They grow quickly and can be tossed into any recipe, raw or not and add a nutritional boost. Learn more about sprouts.
What is sprouting?
Sprouting is an alternative term for germinating, although the sprouting process goes a little beyond basic germination and results in a partially grown plant. In terms of raw food the sprouting of a nut, seed, bean or grains is done in order to make them edible and more easily digestible. Nuts do not need to be sprouted to make them edible, nor do some seeds but both benefit from soaking and sprouting as they become more easily digestible and juicier as a result. Other seeds, i.e. those that are supposed to be sprouted, plus all beans, pulses and legumes (with the exception of peanuts) need to be sprouted if they are to be eaten raw. Kidney beans should never be eaten raw and should be avoided. Grains should also be soaked and sprouted, although dry oats are an exception and can be milled down and used to make cookies successfully without being sprouted first. The sprouting process begins by soaking the seeds in your very own kitchen.
Why sprout?
When a seed, bean, nut or grain is soaked in water for a period of time, the plant’s enzyme inhibitors are removed. These enzyme inhibitors prevent a plant from germinating unless the right conditions for growth are met, and so once the seed comes into contact with water and the enzyme inhibitors are washed away the germination process begins. This process sets into action a whole chain of reactions enabling the plant to grow at a rapid rate. As it does, the vitamin content increases dramatically, to the point where the sprouted seed can contain hundreds or thousands times more vitamins than it did previously, and the protein, carbohydrates and fats begin to break down into a pre-digested form making for easier and better digestion and assimilation overall. The enzyme content of each seed, been, nut or grain also sky rockets making sprouts one of the most enzyme-rich (i.e. live) foods on the planet.
Where can I grow sprouts?
At home in your own kitchen. They don't take much space and you don’t need any fancy equipment to get started sprouting, although there are many pieces of equipment available to help you such as jars, trays, bags and even automatic sprouting kits. To get started you’ll need some organic seeds or beans for sprouting, a container to sprout them in such as a jam jar, and something to drain the water through, like a strainer, cheese cloth or muslin secured around the top of the jar. I prefer the trays, they are easiest for me. But you can buy a lid with a screen on in to drain a mason jar for just a couple of bucks. Check for them at your local health food store.
Best ways to grow sprouts?
Sprouting is actually very easy, but some seeds and beans tend to sprout more easily than others. The easiest ones tend to be alfalfa, mung, lentil, chickpea (garbanzo) and quinoa. These are all quick to grow (quinoa takes just 24 hours, the others take 2-3 days on average) and mastering the sprouting of these will help you get more confident about sprouting other seeds and beans that take longer to grow or are slightly more tricky. Garbanzo mold quickly, so you’ll want to enjoy them as soon as you see a “tail”
Visit our sprouting guidelines for more details to grow sprouts
Source: www.raw-food-for-families.com
