Many gardeners hate the end of the growing season because it means an end to a fresh supply of home grown vegetables.
To get around this you can setup some very nice indoor gardens if you are willing to set aside a portion of your home and provide extra light and heat for the plants in the very cool months of winter but is there an easier way to get some greens on your plate?
Bean sprouts have been around for as long as people have been planting seeds but it hasn’t been that long that they have been excepted in most homes.
Sprouts of many types can be used in cooking and also in sandwiches or salads.
Growing them is relatively easy all it takes is a hand full of seeds or beans and a glass jar with a cheese cloth or other open lid to provide a growing area.
Set the jar on your kitchen counter and in a few days you will have a jar full of Sprouts ready for eating.
Growing is simple
- It is best to use a variety of beans or other seeds that are known to sprout well. Garbonzo, Green Pea, Adzuki, Mung Bean alfalfa, lentils, buckwheat, Soy beans and many others.
- Along with almost any pea or bean seed you can use broccoli and other plants as sprout starters.
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DO NOT USE GARDEN SEEDS THAT ARE COATED some regular growing seeds will be coated with a special growth agent or other chemicals that are not healthy for you to eat so don’t grab a packet of garden seeds if it has that warning.
- The sprouts will grow rather big so you need a clean large pickle or other type glass jar.
- Place about a half cup of bean seeds in the jar and cover with water overnight.
- The next day you want to remove the old water and wash the beans.
- Over the next 3 days you want to wash the beans to provide water but remove the water from the jar so they won’t soak or go bad.
- Cover the jar with a cloth and a rubber band.
- Depending on the type of bean or seed you will want to grow them in the sun or sometimes in complete darkness.
The longer you allow the seeds to grow the more green you will get.
If you are using the sprouted beans in soups then 3 – 4 days should be long enough but if you are using them in sandwiches you can grow them for about a week.
Your choice will depend on the seeds and how you will use them.
This is a great thing to share with kids of all ages and it will help you supplement your diet with fresh food you grow yourself.