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Kevster
Sep 30th, 2004, 10:28 AM
Any keen sprouters out there? The nutritious little sprouts are to be seen in plenty of health food shops in England these days, how many people have started to sprout some seeds?

Gorilla
Sep 30th, 2004, 10:54 AM
Kev, i have bought a sprouting kit but have yet to try anything yet. so i haven't voted either yes or no at the moment - when i get going with my kit i will get back to you! :)

Artichoke47
Sep 30th, 2004, 11:56 AM
I just started sprouting about two weeks ago, and boy, am I enjoying it! :) The first batch turned out well, and the second batch had to be dumped due to white fuzzy stuff on the seeds, so now I am working on No. 3, which is fine so far.

ConsciousCuisine
Sep 30th, 2004, 02:52 PM
I do not use a sprouting kit or a "sprouter". I use a jar or a bowl.

Artichoke, sorry that happened! What a bummer. :(

Sometimes some sprouts develop white parts that are normal parts of the sprout- mung bean sprouts, for instance often develop a very "fuzzy-frayed" look and when you look very closely, they are just extensions of the root forms branching off.

Sprouts are extremely nutritious, a great source of easily digested and assimilated amino acids and protein, are very inexpensive to "make" at home and childern love being part of the sprouting process.

I eat sprouts daily. Yum! :)

harpy
Sep 30th, 2004, 04:17 PM
I use one of those three-tier tray thingies, which makes rinsing very quick. I like to have some on the go because it means I can have something fresh even if I've forgotten to go shopping.

I had a few problems with mine in the summer when it got very warm - I didn't seem to be able to rinse them often enough to keep them fresh. Fortunately the summer was pretty short here :)

I sprouted some leek seeds last week - they were weird, such a strong taste of leek from such a tiny plant.

foxytina_69
Sep 30th, 2004, 07:12 PM
anyone have any ideas on what to use sprouts in? i like them on my sandwiches but thats all i know of :)

harpy
Sep 30th, 2004, 08:43 PM
I put mine in salads as well, or add them to stir-fries etc just before serving (they don't really need cooking but I usually cook ones like chickpeas a bit as I find them indigestible raw). Or I just grab a handful when I walk past :D

Artichoke47
Oct 1st, 2004, 12:09 AM
Sometimes some sprouts develop white parts that are normal parts of the sprout- mung bean sprouts, for instance often develop a very "fuzzy-frayed" look and when you look very closely, they are just extensions of the root forms branching off.

Thank you, CC, for the further information. My new ones that I started on Tuesday had that tonight before I gave them their shower. It's a fuzzy-looking white substance. I just didn't want to take any chances of eating contaminated, moldy food. I will keep an eye on these and keep sprouting away and see how they turn out. The fuzzies go away when I rinse the seeds/sprouts. Is that normal for a branching off part?

Mystic
Oct 1st, 2004, 03:25 AM
I love Essene bread, which is sprouted grains mushed up into a dough and shaped into a loaf. I think it is baked at low temperature and is considered 'raw' - but I am not certain of this. The varieties available are:
- Wheat
- Wheat with dates and walnuts
- Essene Supreme (rye/wheat mix)
- Essene Supreme with dates and walnuts
- Essene Supreme with sultanas
- Rye
- Kamut
- Spelt

I also buy snowpea sprouts and alfalfa often. I also enjoy broccoli sprouts, bean shoots, lentil sprouts and chickpea sprouts - although I don't have them much.

I don't make them because, to be frank and honest, I am lazy and cannot be bothered when they only cost me $2 per week from the shop (Well the bread is $5+ but that really is a lot of work!)

CC, is essene bread really healthy?

Veganmama
Oct 1st, 2004, 12:47 PM
I'm a keen sprouter. I always have some going, my favourites are
Mung Beans, Lentils, Chickpeas, Rye and sunflower seeds.

They are great by themselves, or you can make Raw Hummous with the CHickpeas i like them in wraps with avocado. Yummmm

uww27225
Oct 1st, 2004, 02:42 PM
Wow! I feel silly. I though sprouts just meant alfalfa. I didn't realize there were other kinds. I grew up kinda sheltered. The only veggies we ever had came from a can b/c my stepdad doesn't like them any other way. :eek:

Aurora
Oct 11th, 2004, 02:30 PM
I've got one of those 3 tiered plastic things too. My seeds went all mouldy in the jar I was using before. But now I get 100% success.

feline01
Oct 20th, 2004, 02:43 PM
I am interested in sprouting but have never done it before and am very intimidated. I saw a plastic easy-sprouter on one of the vegan sites, www.veganessentials, I think that you just add the beans, water and put it in a dark place for a few days. Does anyone know if that sort of thing actually works or is there another way to sprout that doesn't involve buying special apparatus? My husband looooves bean sprouts, the kind you get in Chinese restaurants. What kind of bean is typically used for those? Thanks.

Artichoke47
Oct 20th, 2004, 02:47 PM
I got a sprouting greenhouse from this site: http://www.sprouthouse.com/
and also ordered some seeds. It's really easy. You soak the seeds for 8 to 10 hours in water. Then you put the seeds in the tray and proceed to rinse them twice daily, putting them back in the greenhouse, using natural sunlight (through a window, I suppose), and then they are done after about 6-7 days. You are supposed to rinse them and then place them in a baggie and then they keep for up to 2 weeks, but you are still supposed to rinse them every 3 days or so.

It is better to do your own sprouting at home because of the cleanliness issues and also you can buy organic, which isn't available at most stores.

ConsciousCuisine
Oct 20th, 2004, 02:55 PM
is there another way to sprout that doesn't involve buying special apparatus? What kind of bean is typically used for those? Thanks.


Yes, you can easily sprout in a jar, a bowl or in a "greenhouse" flat. Some people have had issues with mold this way; personally it hasn't been an issue for me.

Mung beans (little green beans) are used to make the bean sprouts found in most Chinese dishes. I n addition to the ways they are more traditionally used, they make great raw salads as well...

boomer
Oct 20th, 2004, 03:35 PM
I use the small plastic one and leave it in a warm cupboard for three days or so just topping up the water and they do great.
I always sprout alfalfa, mung and spicy fenugreek, the 1st and last being for salads and sandwiches.
Most places that sell the trays give comprehensive instructions and if you get it from the same place as the seeds they tend to be the most useful.

feline01
Oct 20th, 2004, 03:48 PM
So if we live in a small apartment with no useable windowsills (the cat has taken over any window sill), I can still sprout? How come some sprouting devices need sunlight and others need a warm cupboard?

boomer
Oct 20th, 2004, 03:53 PM
I have a book at home that goes through all details, If you don't get help via another poster, I will PM you later. All I can remember is that it has somthing to do with the colour and they will grow as long as the temp is right.

Kim[ba]
Aug 11th, 2005, 08:03 PM
I'm attempting to sprout a mix of soy beans, mung beans, and great northern's. There were some stuck at the bottom of the sink that started to sprout last night and it tickled me so I thought I would try to make some instead of eating the ones out of the bottom of the sink. From what I've read though they can get bad contamination so I used distilled water and nuked a glass jar in the microwave to sterilize it. I was just wondering if this is good safety measures or is there anything else I need to worry about?

DianeVegan
Aug 12th, 2005, 02:53 AM
I sprout all the time and have never had any problems with contamination (that I know about). It's the same as eating any other food that may become contaminated (like eggs or chicken or ground beef or salad bars or.......) Don't feed raw sprouts to children, the elderly, or anyone else with a weak immune system.

Now get sprouting!

mssara1214
Aug 12th, 2005, 03:04 AM
That sounds like tons of fun! But where could I get soy bean seeds and things like that?

DianeVegan
Aug 12th, 2005, 03:21 AM
Sara, Wild Oats or Whole Foods have organic seeds to sprout. They even have sprouting kits. Their seeds are not irradiated and are organic so I would suggest using them. You can look up sprouting instructions on the internet or maybe at the library. I will say that sprouting takes about 3-5 days and requires rinsing 2-3 times a day before using them. But if you use them much then it's worth it.

moochbabe
Aug 12th, 2005, 04:31 AM
I have a raw cookbook on sprouting and have been thinking about trying it, but for some reason I've been a little nervous to try, I'm probably afraid I'll mess up. But this thread kind of inspired me to, I think I will soon. It's so cool, I get so much inspiration from this forum, even when I feel inspirational-less.

ConsciousCuisine
Aug 12th, 2005, 06:47 AM
That sounds like tons of fun! But where could I get soy bean seeds and things like that?


Please do not eat soy bean sprouts; they are believed to be toxic :eek:

Carry on! ;)

Gliondrach
Aug 12th, 2005, 12:00 PM
I can't vouch for everything on these sites - actually, I haven't given them a good going over - but they seem vegan friendly.


http://www.living-foods.com/articles/sprouting.html

http://www.primalseeds.org/sprouting.htm

http://www.cityfarmer.org/sprout86.html