Poor vegan, cheap living

[Mystic]

I have made alfalfa before and I am pretty sure that you are supposed to soak the seeds for 8 hours (or so???). Then you drain them and put them in a dark area. You need to spray them with water once or twice a day too I think - but I haven't done it in over 2 years so you better check with someone else :D

[Melanie]

Wow, super speedy reply!
Thankies StickyDate! :)
I'll try that! :)

[Heartsease]

Alfalfa sprouts are the easiest seeds to sprout putting up with all sorts of forgetfulness. I don't spray (but that sounds like a good idea) - I just (aim to) rinse twice a day. No soaking required. Larger seeds ie. lentils and chickpeas DO need to be soaked.

Lentils and alfalfa are my faves but lentils can't cope as well with forgetfulness as the hardy alfalfa sproutlets...broccoli sprouts are good too....but clearly lentils and alfalfa are the most economical.

:D

[foxytina_69]

what do you sprout them in?

i want to do this.

[Heartsease]

Well...when I started I used an old jar with a piece of fine muslin (with an elastic band to hold in place) over the top to drain them. Not very good...but okay for a first attempt. What I have now is a plastic 3-tier tray sprouter (see link for picture of the kind of thing I mean). Sprouting seeds is very cheap and a great way to get fresh salad for mere pennies (and a little bit of effort). You can sprout many seeds that are sold for cooking ie Quinoa, lentils etc. Wholefood stores also sell lentils/beans specifically for sprouting but they are much more expensive and there is no point in paying extra. (Lentils for sprouting must be whole ie. Puy, Continental, Brown etc)

http://www.ukjuicers.com/sprouters/GEOSprouter.htm

(You can get this type of thing at half that price if you look around a bit):)

[twinkle]

Mm, puy lentil sprouts are delicious.

I use a plastic sprouter as well, although mine isn't quite as fancy as that.

[foxytina_69]

could i just use a dish that looked like that? and what do you do? do you have to soak them? and then after soaking you just throw them in and do you have to water them or spray them or do they just grow?

[harpy]

They generally need soaking overnight first (ETA maybe they don't from what heartsease says but I always do anyway!). If you use mung beans you're better off using boiling water to soak them as they have tough shells, but cold water is fine for most things.

You need to be able to give them a thorough rinse a couple of times a day to stop them going manky, which is why you need either a container with holes in it or a jar with muslin etc over the mouth. Maybe you could tip them into a sieve and rinse them in that though - it would just be a bit more trouble.

ETA I agree that home-grown sprouts are an excellent idea when one's strapped for cash because you get a huge amount of sprouts from a small packet of seeds or bag of beans, and it means you can always have something fresh even if you haven't had time to go shopping.

[fatfree]

Hey loves, can anyone gimmie any help on how to go about sprouting stuff?
Pretty please?
I'm rubbish, I tried and it didn't work! :p
(I'm hopelessly addicted to alphafla(sp) sprouts and can't afford to keep buying them at H&B

Thank-you lots and lots :)
Love Melanie
~xx

Hi Melanie,

Hope you have all of the info you need. I sprout all of the time. Here's my favorite:

2 TBS alfalfa seeds
1 TBS radish seeds

I soak them overnite in a quart jar of water. I use water a little warmer than room temp. But the temperature is not important as it will become room temp sitting out and that is perfect so long as it is not too cold.

I now use a plastic sprouter - The easysprout but for many years I just used the jar with a piece of cheeseclothe attached with a rubber band as Heartsease has said.

Just rinse under the tap and drain at least 2 times a day. If I'm home I rinse 3 times. There is nothing critical in the process. The most likely cause of failure is bad seeds but the seeds are hardy and survive most conditions. Frozen seeds will sprout when thawed. I imagine like raw food enzymes they may be killed somewhere between 105 and 118 degress F.

Notes:

I but a tsp of hydrogen peroxide in my soak wate to kill any fungus. It's not essential. I sprouted for years without doing this.

About once a week I dissenfect my sprouting equipement with Chlorox bleach. Not necessary but of course I recommend good hygiene - boiling water or any technique that destroys bacteria such as ecoli or at least thorough washing with hot water and detergent.

I've been adding about 1 tsp. of liquid seaweed fertilizer - Maxicrop here in the US - Also not nececessary but my sprouts seem to get off to a good start with it.

Sprouts have very high enzyme concentration at 4 days old. That's an optimal time to eat them. I eat them plain, put them in salads and sandwiches, and in green smoothies.

There isn't anything critical or difficult in the sprouting process. Sprouts want to grow and tolerate varying conditions. some people say to cover them so that it is dark when they begin sprouting but it is totally unnecessary.

Email or PM if you have any questions.

Best Wishes,

Robert :D

PS Don't be saying your rubbish. That's Bull :D

[cedarblue]

a good tip which i learnt today, for eating cheaply....or cheaper anyway..


keep an eye on your pantry and clear it out occasionally!! :o

i did a few kitchen cupboards today and found a whole bag of white rice, 2 bags of white basmati, 3 half bags of brown basmati, half a large bag jasmine rice, two unopened bags white & two wholewheat spaghetti, 3 half bags of mixed dried pasta, 2 boxes risotto rice, box paella rice, half box puy lentils, bag of red lentils, half bag channa dhal, half bag yellow split lentils ....there was more but i won't embarrass myself any further. :rolleyes:

my point is spend less on unncessary purchasing by keeping an eye on your cupboards and cook from whats in them as opposed to looking for a recipe and buying what you need from that - you may have it in the cupboard already!! ;)

[brendonnn]

Because soy milk is very expensive in Kansas, as it probably is in most places without any demand, I have began researching alternatives to cow milk alternatives. I have discovered that rice and oat milk are very easy to make and very inexpensive.

Begin with either 1-2 cups uncooked rice (brown or white) or 1-2 cups cooked oatmeal. You will also need two cups of water.

Rice: You will need to cook the rice with the water for about 20 minutes and then put it in the blender and blend until smoothed. Let the mixture sit and then strain the rice out, you can do this carefully with two cups if you have no cheese cloth.

Oat: You put the cooked oatmeal with water into a blender and blend until smooth.

Flavoring for both: Take the "milk" and blend again with whatever you want. I suggest almonds, pecans, bananas, strawberries, or blueberries.
*I suggest flavoring it based on what you will use it for.

I think that if you don't like the taste (it might take a while to like) you can use the rice and oat milk in recipes or with cereal at first.


Also here is my delicious smoothie recipe! Use however much you want of anything.
-Orange juice, about 1-2 cups
-Milk substitute, about 1 cup
-Bananas, 3-4
-Spinach, 2 handfuls
-Carrots, 10 of the small (baby) kind
-Grapes, 10
-Peaches or strawberries, 2 handfuls
*I know my recipe is nothing extremely new, I just like to incorporate vegetables and fruit in mine.



brendon

[RubyDuby]

thanx brendon- very useful!

[brendonnn]

Your welcome. It is hard to get used to the "milk", the oatmeal tends to make it sticky.

[Haniska]

a good tip which i learnt today, for eating cheaply....or cheaper anyway..


keep an eye on your pantry and clear it out occasionally!! :o

i did a few kitchen cupboards today and found a whole bag of white rice, 2 bags of white basmati, 3 half bags of brown basmati, half a large bag jasmine rice, two unopened bags white & two wholewheat spaghetti, 3 half bags of mixed dried pasta, 2 boxes risotto rice, box paella rice, half box puy lentils, bag of red lentils, half bag channa dhal, half bag yellow split lentils ....there was more but i won't embarrass myself any further. :rolleyes:

my point is spend less on unncessary purchasing by keeping an eye on your cupboards and cook from whats in them as opposed to looking for a recipe and buying what you need from that - you may have it in the cupboard already!! ;)


Me too cedarblue. I've been trying to eat less processed food/save money and have been clearing out my cupboards. I had several bags of frozen beans in the freezer, thinking they would be quick to add to soups etc. No, should have read the directions. They take 30 minutes to cook! And these are black eyed peas and lima beans.

[Fuhzy]

I don't buy clothes, electronics, furniture, etc.

I pretty much buy gas (petrol) and food, and sometimes I don't have enough for either!


I always buy stuff that is the cheapest per unit (like $1.20 per oz). Sales don't affect me, it's always the per unit price that matters.

Are dried beans really cheaper than canned?

Anyway everything I buy is cheap but for some reason adds up to a lot. I went and spent $33 on two grocery bags tonight, argh...

[brendonnn]

That is what I think I am going to do when I move out of my parent's house. I will be a minimalist. I will just have the essentials by US standards. (Excluding an oven (I would probably set my house on dire) and large refrigerator.) And I sew most of my own clothes, or at least repair them. Lastly, I hate cable tv, so all I will need is a vcr and tv for movies.

Most of my money will go towards soy milk.

[herbwormwood]

Are dried beans really cheaper than canned?

Yes.

[brendonnn]

Not only are dried beans cheaper, you also don't have to deal with all of that salt and preservatives in canned beans. The only drawback is time. But just soak them over night and then boil them the next day for the recommended time.

[Frosty]

Yeah, on the whole I do prefer to use dried beans. But I do have to admit that for convenience reasons I do buy the canned variety sometimes. I don't tend to plan my meals, so soaking over night only happens occasionally.

[missbettie]

That is what I think I am going to do when I move out of my parent's house. I will be a minimalist. I will just have the essentials by US standards. (Excluding an oven (I would probably set my house on dire) and large refrigerator.) And I sew most of my own clothes, or at least repair them. Lastly, I hate cable tv, so all I will need is a vcr and tv for movies.

Most of my money will go towards soy milk.

good luck with that!

[herbwormwood]

Yeah, on the whole I do prefer to use dried beans. But I do have to admit that for convenience reasons I do buy the canned variety sometimes. I don't tend to plan my meals, so soaking over night only happens occasionally.

I do sympathise with your feelings on this. There have been times when I have wanted a bean dish and have forgotten to soak beans, so no bean dish!
I do sometimes soak some chick peas or kidney beans for a day or 2 and then drain them and freeze them. That way they are on hand and actually cook faster after being soaked.
One thing I don't bother using dried beans yet is the "baked beans". However I did buy some dried haricots and I'm going to give it a go. Also, the green beans aka french beans. I buy them freshly frozen.
In general the prices of dried beans varies wildly depending on where you buy and what kind you buy.
I buy either from a wholesaler (Suma) or the oriental food stores. I could pay about £1.40 for a kilo of dried beans from either of these. The health food store or the supermarket would charge more.

[piggy]

i wonder whether dried legumes still end up being cheaper if you add the cost of cooking (water, and gas/electricity mainly), seen as the cooking time is so much longer than for canned beans...some types i need to leave on the stove for more than 2 hrs...that's got to consume quite a lot of gas/electricity. canned beans just need to be warmed up. the smaller the portions you cook at a time, the more this would effect the final cost, obviously.
I suppose there's no way around them being healthier though.


Like someone else mentioned, i also always go for the lowest per-unit-price, and yet my groceries add up to big bills. my flatmates who buy much more expensive products than me (got to be specific brands, processed foods etc) still spend less than me on a monthly basis. i think it must be because they eat tiny portions, and i never stop eating :rolleyes:

edit: may i add that i have no pressure cooker, that would reduce cooking time...hmm..time to go shopping again?:rolleyes:

[RubyDuby]

if u think about it too, the canned beans would only be a handful of the dried bean before theyre cooked.

[brendonnn]

Yeah, it is almost always better to go with dried beans.
cheaper
bigger quantity
no salt
no preservatives
more room for creativeness

Beans are so delightful, you can make so many vegan classics:
hummus
curries and other indian foods
soups.

okay so I don't have that many ideas, but there are a few common uses for beans.

[herbwormwood]

i wonder whether dried legumes still end up being cheaper if you add the cost of cooking (water, and gas/electricity mainly), seen as the cooking time is so much longer than for canned beans...some types i need to leave on the stove for more than 2 hrs...that's got to consume quite a lot of gas/electricity. canned beans just need to be warmed up. the smaller the portions you cook at a time, the more this would effect the final cost, obviously.
I suppose there's no way around them being healthier though.




At the risk of sickening you all of this bean issue, Piggy's point has some logic.
If you are only going to need a very small qantity of beans once in a while you may not want to bother doing the soaking and cooking thing.
To save on cooking costs you can make sure the beans have soaked long enough...they should have no wrinkles on them and they should look smooth and shiny. Larger beans can benefit from a couple of days soak, you need to change the water a few times.
Beans that are too old will take longer to cook because the longer they are stored the more they dry out. So always check the sell by date when buying. It saves on cooking costs to soak and cook more quantity than you need, and put some cooled and cooked beans in the freezer. Make sure to write the date on the packet.
I don't have a pressure cooker but I use a pan with a heavy lid and keep the lid on whilst the beans are cooking. I don't add salt, I think they take longer if you add salt?
One more thing... I make sure the beans are soft enough before I add them to my recipe. This means I don't end up overcooking the whole dish.