Sprouts are one of the most practical and easy ways to get power-packed fresh vegetables into your diet. In the cooler weather months when gardens aren’t producing, it’s hard to find quality produce. By growing sprouts in your kitchen, you are feeding your family a nutritionally dense food and saving a lot of money.
Sprouting is Economical
When sprouting seeds, it only takes one teaspoon of seeds to fill a quart jar with sprouts. That’s pennies for a meal. Sprouts contain all of the nutrients of the full-grown plant in a compact source. A package of organic sprouting seeds can be bought for as little as $2.39 for a 4 oz. package which will yield many pounds of sprouts.
Sprouting is Healthy
Because sprouts contain so much nutrition in such a small amount of food, it doesn’t take many to get the needed daily values of many nutrients. They are loaded with anti-oxidants, vitamins, and minerals. Because they are a food that is alive, they contain live enzymes that aid in digestion. The plant sugars are easily digested, making them a quick-energy food.
Sprouting is Easy
Sprouting takes little ability and only a quart, half-gallon, or gallon jar. There are sprouting trays available, but the glass jar is an inexpensive tried and true method. The mouth of the jar needs some type of screen. There are commercial lids for sale, or cheesecloth, muslin, or nylon stocking can be placed over the end of the jar and held in place with a rubber band. To start, place at least 1T. of seeds in a quart jar and cover with water for 12 hours or overnight. Pour off this water, lay the jar on it’s side, allowing the seeds to spread out. Place in a pantry or cupboard, or cover with a towel to keep the seeds in the dark. Rinse and drain the seeds twice each day until they are ready to eat. Once there is a small amount of green showing on the sprouts, place them in the light so they can produce chlorophyll. Rinse any hulls off the sprouts and place in a container or plastic bag in the fridge.
Sprouting Rules
Growing sprouts is easy, but they cannot be neglected.
* Rinse them often, up to three times daily in the hot, summer months.
* Keep them moist, but don’t let water be standing in around them.
* Sprouts need warm, but not too hot temperatures. Ideal temperatures are 65-80 degrees.
* Make sure there is enough room in the jar for air to circulate or mildew may form on the seeds.
* Don’t be tempted to add too many seeds to a jar or they will get crowded and result in poor germination and growth.
* Always keep the seeds in the dark until the last day.
If these few rules are followed, you will soon have meals full of great nutritious sprouts for your family in a matter of days.
