Sprouts - Fresh Greens All Year Long

Sprouts - Fresh Greens All Year Long

For most people garden season is over and the chill of winter winds is threatening. One way to keep that fresh summer taste of greens in your salads is to grow sprouts.

The most common sprouts are made using the seeds from mung beans, alfalfa, wheat and radishes, although almost any legume can be used. Sprouts are so simple to do that they can be a child's first lessons in organic gardening.

Sprouting your own seeds takes very little in the way of supplies, although you can purchase very elaborate (and expensive) systems from health food stores and other places.

The three items you will need to get started are:

A large mouth 1 quart canning jar
A large mouth canning jar ring
A screen to fit over the top of the jar. This can be made with regular window screen, a thin piece of cloth or a section of old panty hose.

or

You can use any wide mouthed jar with a lid. Pierce holes in the lid, from the inside out, using a hammer and nail or a small diameter screw bit. You will still need some type of screening material to keep the seeds from escaping through the holes.

For the Sprouts

We use a combination of mung beans, alfalfa and wheat berries and find it to be what we like best. To make a quart of sprouts, use:

1 tablespoon mung beans
1 teaspoon alfalfa seed
1 1/2 teaspoon wheat berries

Mix all the seeds together in the bottom of your jar. Fill the jar half full with water and cover the jar with the screening and jar ring.

Place the jar in a dark cupboard and allow to soak overnight. The following morning drain the water out and rinse the seed with fresh water, shaking to jar upside down to remove the excess.

Turn the jar on its side and distribute the seed evenly. Place back in the cupboard and repeat the procedure twice daily until the sprouts fill the jar 3/4 full.

When the proper growth is achieved, place the jar in a sunny window for a day.

Remove the sprouts and store in the refrigerator until used.

If you start a new jar every few days, you will have a constant supply of fresh sprouts to use in salads, on sandwiches and in cooking for a fraction of the cost you would pay to purchase them at a grocery store.

Seeds for sprouting can be purchased at your local health food store or at online retailers like Bulk Foods. Experiment with different types of sprouts until you find the right combinations for you and your family.