[MelodyL]

Okay, here's what I've been doing. I've been going to the Organic place that is no too far from my home. I've been buying the Broccoli Sprouts (they have 50 times more antioxidants than a mature broccoli plant).
AND I KNOW ALL ABOUT THE WARNINGS AND WHAT HAPPENED IN 1996 with the outbreak of Salmonella. I've read everything there is to read about sprout safety, how to wash them (in filtered water, etc.)

So I love these things. I buy the other sprouts too. The clover sprouts, the Snow pea shoots (or it sounds like this). I just take my poultry shears and snip them into my salads.

I do this for two meals. It helps that I LOVE sprouts and when you mix them in a green salad with tomatoes and splash of lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil, well you can go to heaven with just one salad. Not for everybody, this I know, but I adore this. Lost a lot of weight eating this way.

So here's my question. (and I asked this of the person who runs the organic store and she was no sure).

When you buy a little pint of sprouts (let's say alfafa or broccoli sprouts), DO YOU EAT THE WHOLE THING??

When I asked her she said "well, I don't think so, I think you just snip off the tops". I said "but then you are only eating half of what you just bought". She was not sure.

I tried asking this in google, but all I get is "how to grow your own sprouts, etc.".

Now on to my next question.

Would it be cheaper if I grew my own (using one of those sprout growing gadgets (I've included a link to one). To me, being that I eat sprouts twice a day, wouldn't it make sense to grow my own?

Heres a link to this gadget. (Anyone out there ever used one of these things.) There are tutorials all over youtube on how to grow your own sprouts.

http://www.sproutpeople.com/seed/kit/broccolikit.html

So I just need to know

1. Do you eat the whole sprouts or just snip off the top

2. do you think it's cheaper if I grow my own?)

Thanks much

Melody

[Koala77]

Regarding the sprouts......yes, you eat the whole sprout Mel, and I guess it depends on how many sprouts you would eat in one week whether it would be cheaper to grow your own or not.

If you grow small amounts at a time, and eat all that you grow, it works out heaps cheaper to grow your own.

You also wouldn't have to worry about catching nasty diseases from shop bought ones.

Those sprout growing gadgets are great for growing your own....but.....it's much cheaper to improvise with what you already have around your home. I grew mine in a large screw top jar with cotton wool in the base. I'm sure one of those plastic containers you have in your cupboard would do the same thing.

[Jomar]

Lower down on the site you posted are more clickable info links.
I think trying it your self should be easy enough.

Sprouting: The Basics - http://www.sproutpeople.com/grow/sprouting.html

[MelodyL]

Originally Posted by Jo55

Lower down on the site you posted are more clickable info links.
I think trying it your self should be easy enough.

Sprouting: The Basics - http://www.sproutpeople.com/grow/sprouting.html

OH, I'M SO EXCITED

Guess what I did yesterday morning? I had gone to various stores (supermarkets, the organic place I mentioned), trying to find some organic seeds to grow. No luck.

Then, when I read online that you can grow QUINOA sprouts, I said "why, I have boxes of Quinoa in my cupboard", why can't I grow sprouts from these. These ARE SEEDS AREN'T THEY?" (not to sure if these are seeds, grains or whatever), but I said "what the heck, try a small amount".

so yesterday morning, I put some quinoa grain things (seeds??) in the bottom of the pasta jar that I have.

I filled it with water (like the guy did on youtube). I let it sit for 8 hours. I rinsed and drained and then put it back and let i sit (covered with dish towel, cause the guy said "no light".

Then this morning I'm about to do it again, and I carefully look at the little grain things and there's shoots coming out of them. I got so excited. I said 'oh my god, I'm actually growing something". I rinsed and drained again (they say it takes 48 hours to do this). You can then eat them like that or if you want longer sprouts you do it for one more day.

NOW SOMEONE PLEASE TELL ME THAT I CAN EAT THESE THINGS. THAT THEY ARE INDEED SPROUTS AND NO SOME PARASITE GROWING FROM THE QUINOA.

The box of quinoa said "pre-rinsed", and I've been cooking the quinoa because it's high protein.

So are these actual seeds, am I growing sprouts (I'll make a video when they are finished sprouting).

It says on youtube. "After you sprout, make sure they are nice and dry and put in plastic bag and keep in fridge."

Tell me I'm growing sprouts......puleeeze!!!

lol lol lol

[MelodyL]

Originally Posted by Jo55

Lower down on the site you posted are more clickable info links.
I think trying it your self should be easy enough.

Sprouting: The Basics - http://www.sproutpeople.com/grow/sprouting.html

Hi Jo:

I LOVE this website. Been there MANY times.
Where do you think I got most of my info on sprouts? But I just need to know if I can eat the quinoa that I now have sprouting in the dish. I covered it. Next time I do the soak and rinse, it will be 10 p.m tonight.

I see little things (shoots I believe they are called), sprouting from the quinoa things.

Since I did not buy these quinoa things from a sprouting place, I'm not sure if what I'm growing is a sprout. I mean, I just took the quinoa from the box. The instructions are to cook for 10 minutes and I've been doing this for years.

I just love sprouts and these look like seeds, so I just soaked them and rinsed them

AND SOMETHING IS GROWING OFF OF THESE QUINOA THINGS.

Somebody better tell me I can add these to my salads.

And if these things taste like my other sprouts, I'll be growing these things (among other seeds I shall be buying), for the rest of my natural life.

To actually grow something in my kitchen, that has not had any pesticide on it, well, it just pleases me to no end.

I just took a peek. The little suckers are still sprouting.

CAN I EAT THESE?

lol

Melody

[Riverwild]

Yup, you can eat them. Just remember to rinse them well before sprouting to get the coating off them (saponin, the rinse water can be re-used to wash your dishes!) Rinse until you don't see the foam and bubbles. Make sure to let them have some sunlight after sprouting to get some green in them! Quinoa comes in red, white and black. The colors each have a different flavor if you want variety or try mixing them together.

[MelodyL]

Originally Posted by Riverwild

Yup, you can eat them. Just remember to rinse them well before sprouting to get the coating off them (saponin, the rinse water can be re-used to wash your dishes!) Rinse until you don't see the foam and bubbles. Make sure to let them have some sunlight after sprouting to get some green in them! Quinoa comes in red, white and black. The colors each have a different flavor if you want variety or try mixing them together.

I threw them out. I'll tell you why. I didn't like the way they smelled. I did everything that you are supposed to do when you sprout. I watched the youtube videos. I soaked them first (I used the Quinoa that had already been rinsed and had no pesticides on them). maybe that's why I didn't get the desired results (or I got the results but didn't recognize them). What I saw (I should have made a video so you could have seen what they looked like), well they just had little things shooting off of them. Now when I watched the youtube videos of sprouting, well in 3 days, the jars or trays were FILLED WITH GREEN STUFF. I did not see anything close to that.

And they wet in the jar (I did drain them well), but not having a sprouting kit, and being a first time sprouter, well I don't think I did it all correctly, so in my mind, better safe than sorry.

I wish I lived near a store that sells sprouting kits.

They have CHIA pets in my local CVS and I know that you can grow stuff out of a chia pet, BUT CAN YOU EAT THE STUFF?? I mean, are these sprouts?

I'm going to look up CHIA PETS. I want to see if that's a way to grow sprouts.

I wish I didn't have to throw out what I grew. It was only a quarter of a cup of Quinoa and I have plenty left to cook from the box of Quinoa, but I really expected to see a whole jar filled with sprouts. That didn't happen.

Have to do more research on this. Until I do, I'll just go to the organic store (they probably sell the seeds too), and I'll buy my sprouts already in the little packages.

By the way, do you think alfalfa sprouts are safe to eat? they are very cheap but I've hard mixed things about them.

thanks much

Melody

[MelodyL]

Originally Posted by Riverwild

Yup, you can eat them. Just remember to rinse them well before sprouting to get the coating off them (saponin, the rinse water can be re-used to wash your dishes!) Rinse until you don't see the foam and bubbles. Make sure to let them have some sunlight after sprouting to get some green in them! Quinoa comes in red, white and black. The colors each have a different flavor if you want variety or try mixing them together.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Now I am THOROUGHLY CONFUSED. I just went to youtube and watched a half dozen videos on how to grow sprouts.

All of a sudden I saw videos that put the seeds in trays with organic soil. I thought you put them in a jar and fill with water for 12 hours, then they germinate, then you rinse and do this two times a day for 3 days, THEN YOU HAVE THEM TO EAT.

What's with the putting them in soil? You can do both?

I am so confused I can't tell you. I don't have a back yard with soil so the only thing I can do is either do them in jars (like I saw in most of the videos), or buy one of those spout kits (which don't do soil).

So do they need organic soil, or do they need jars with water, OR.....maybe the thing is that YOU CAN DO IT EITHER WAY.?????

to me the jar thing is the easier.

Oh, I forgot to mention, when I started the Quinoa thing, I didn't soak them for 12 hours. I didn' know I had to do this. I think I used the wrong Quinoa also.

I am now headed out to my local organic food store and see if they sell kits (didn't look when I was there the last time), but now that I've read HOW HEALTHY EATING SPROUTS CAN BE, that they are pre-digested so ANYONE CAN EAT THEM, that they are low in fat, high in protein, cheap to grow and they are a SUPER FOOD, and I love them, so why on earth shouldn't I go all out and try and grow them myself.

To me, it's a win-win situation. I wish I knew this 20 years ago, I would have been sprouting myself to heaven. But then again, 20 years ago, I was self-medicating with ding dongs and chips and dips. I no longer do that.

It's amazing how the mind works when the lightbulb hits.

lol

Melody(the sprouting queen) lol

[MelodyL]

Originally Posted by Koala77

Regarding the sprouts......yes, you eat the whole sprout Mel, and I guess it depends on how many sprouts you would eat in one week whether it would be cheaper to grow your own or not.

If you grow small amounts at a time, and eat all that you grow, it works out heaps cheaper to grow your own.

You also wouldn't have to worry about catching nasty diseases from shop bought ones.

Those sprout growing gadgets are great for growing your own....but.....it's much cheaper to improvise with what you already have around your home. I grew mine in a large screw top jar with cotton wool in the base. I'm sure one of those plastic containers you have in your cupboard would do the same thing.

----------------------------------------------------------

I just took a long walk to Adams Apples (the organic place). I bought some brocolli sprouts, some sweet pea shoot things and a bag of organic green lentils. I went on youtube and saw exactly how they do lentils.

I did the exact same steps. 12 hours from now, I will pour out the water, wash them again and rinse.

In 3 or 4 days I will have Lentil sprouts.

HOPEFULLY!!!

lol

MELODY

[Koala77]

There are different types of seeds that are good for growing into sprouts Mel. Here in Oz, the most common ones are mung beans and alfalfa. There are others like your lentils, but these seem to be the most common ones.

Basically all you need to grow your own is a jar, water, warmth and some of your time.

There are three main ways of growing sprouts. Use one of those bought sprouters, a jar (which is simple), or sow them in a seed tray. I've never used the seed tray option so I can't help you there. That must be the one you mentioned with the organic soil that was on the UTube video.

The general rule is the smaller the seed, the more sprouts you'll have when they germinate. For example one tablespoon of mung bean seeds can sprout to produce one or more cupfuls of sprouts. Alfalfa seeds are smaller, so you'd get more sprouts with those.

Using the jar method :

To begin......cover the beans with warm water and let them soak for six to eight hours. Drain well, and leave the seeds to germinate overnight. Rinse thoroughly .

Put the seeds into a jar, and place a piece of gauze or similar material over the top and hold it in place with a rubber band. Any open weave material that allows the air to move around your bean seeds would do...(like curtain netting).

You might want to put them by the window, but not in the direct sunlight. There needs to be just enough indirect light to get them going – and if you set your jar at a 45 degree angle, upside down.... the water drains out. Some sort of drainage is essential because if the water sits, then bacteria can breed. That might be why your last lot smelled awful. Bacteria tend to make things smell.

Once you get them started, sprouts need little maintenance, but you should rinse them three times each day. Fill the jar up with water, swish it around, then let it all the water drain out. Most sprouts are ready to eat within 3-4 days.

I hope this helps a bit..........good luck!

Here are a few sites I found for you that have info about growing your own Mel :

http://www.helium.com/items/583751-h...w-bean-sprouts

http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/MV024

http://www.cityfarmer.org/sprout86.html

http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=F-1V4vtV8Yo