Sprouts

In the Fresh Food from Small Spaces book, he suggests that a person can grow 10% of their own food even from small container gardens. That's a lot, and we're still working on that, but one way he recommends to increase that number higher is by sprouting seeds and beans. From the all-knowing internet, sprouting seeds increases the nutrient value, which varies from seed to seed. Sprouting also increases digestibility, making the little tummy happy. So, I decided to try it.

So far, I have tried lentils and mung beans. Both worked well and were tasty, though the aesthetics of mung beans is a little better since these are the bean sprouts most grocery stores sell. I want to try broccoli, alfalfa, and other ones I pick up on the way. Part of the struggle is where to find seeds. Not all garden seeds are equal to sprouting seeds. There are online stores like The Sprout People, but I haven't extended myself quite that far yet.

Most sprouters, okay, the 3ish people I read about, say to wash and check over the seeds or beans to remove any that don't look tasty. Then add enough water to the jar or container to cover all the seeds. (My container currently is a glass pasta sauce jar). Let them soak for about 8 hours and rise. Cover the container with thin cloth, secure with an elastic or something similar. Rise them 2-3 times a day and drain as much water as possible after rinsing. Store them out of light, because they will start turning green and get tough, though some people leave them in light the last few hours before use because green is a pretty color on the plate. Sampling a few each rinse can help to gauge doneness.

The next hurtle is to figure out how to use them. We've tried curried lentils and tried both lentils and bean sprouts with stir fried veggies. They also work in salads, but not all sprouts are good raw. Others don't work for cooking. Still trying to figure that one out.

Do you have any good recipes? The floor is open to any suggestions and ideas.