DIY Guide: Easily Sprout at Home for Nutritious Shoots

Have you dared to try sprouting yet? If not, I have good news for you: it is neither difficult nor particularly time-consuming, as some might think.

Sprouts are delicate little, nutritious energy bombs made from lentils, legumes, and seeds. You can sprout all year round, and it is both easy and relatively quick.

Different seeds need different soaking times and take varying amounts of time to be ready. If you want to check the timing, you can look at the sprouting guide on Morotsliv to get an idea of how long it takes for different sprouts and shoots to be ready.

Sprouts and shoots are delicious to add to salads or as a topping on seed crackers.

Soaking activates enzymes

When you soak, enzymes in the seed are activated, making minerals and proteins easier for the body to absorb compared to cooking or eating them raw.

Tip! Soak legumes overnight before cooking. This shortens cooking time and makes them easier to digest.

Sprouting increases nutritional value

Sprouting increases nutritional value. Carbohydrates are converted into simpler sugars and protein into free amino acids during sprouting. Minerals are also released and become more accessible.

B vitamins such as B2 and folate, as well as vitamins C and E, can increase significantly during sprouting. Antioxidants also increase, whose role is to help protect cells from free radicals and prevent fat rancidity.

An increased content of phenols affects taste, aroma, and color and serves various protective functions in the plant. Similarly, plant phenols can have protective and health-promoting properties for us humans.

Sprouting reduces antinutrients

During the sprouting process, substances that cause gas are reduced. One group of these substances is called α-galactosides.

Legumes also contain phytic acid (phytate), which binds minerals and makes it difficult for the body to absorb them. The longer a legume is sprouted, the more phytate is broken down.

What should you sprout?

Peas and beans are easy to sprout. Try azuki beans, mung beans, chickpeas, and soybeans. Peas usually taste good as shoots. Keep in mind that chickpea and soybean sprouts should be blanched before serving.

Green and black lentils also produce good sprouts. And don’t miss all kinds of seeds such as alfalfa, amaranth, fenugreek, buckwheat, broccoli, oats, millet, barley, clover, cress, corn, pumpkin, quinoa, rye, brown rice, radish, sesame, sunflower, spelt, and wheat.

You can find sprouting seeds here.

Hygiene

Always clean your seeds before sprouting them. Thorough cleaning will make your sprouts and shoots nicer and give them a longer shelf life.

After soaking, it can be good to rinse the seeds with cold water a couple of extra times.

Store the sprouts in a glass jar in the refrigerator. They last about 5 days.

Grow shoots on paper

Shoots are seeds that have sprouted and then grow into small stems with small green, chlorophyll-rich leaves at the top. Unlike sprouting, which only needs water, the seeds must be planted in paper or soil to grow into shoots.

Growing on paper on a plate is very simple and also works with a few layers of paper towels if you don’t have growing paper at home.

Alfalfa, mustard seeds, amaranth, millet, clover, cress, sesame, and similar seeds are good to grow on paper, while lentils and peas usually do well in soil.

Instructions:

1. Place a sheet of growing paper or several layers of paper towels on a plate.
2. Sprinkle a layer of seeds on the paper.
3. Moisten the seeds so everything is damp.
4. Cover with plastic wrap.
5. Moisten at least two to three times a day.
6. After a few days, you can remove the plastic and place the shoots in light so they develop leaves.
7. When the shoots have reached the desired length, you can cut them off and eat.

Here you will find growing paper.

Sprout in a jar

It works perfectly well to sprout in large glass jars. Remove the lid and secure a loose mesh fabric with a rubber band over the opening to keep pests away.

Or use ready-made sprouting jars that are easy to clean between uses.

Instructions:

1. Rinse 1 dl of beans/lentils/seeds and soak in room temperature water in a glass jar overnight.
2. Pour out the water the next morning and rinse them again.
3. Keep the jar in the dark and preferably upside down so the water can drain properly.
4. Rinse the sprouts 2-3 times a day.
5. After a few days, the sprouts are ready to eat.

Tip! Place them in a bright window for a day to make them beautifully green and full of chlorophyll.

Here you will find a growing jar.

Sprouting in a sprouting jar

If you want to grow many different sprouts or a large quantity, sprouting towers are fantastic! They save a lot of space by allowing you to sprout vertically instead.

Instructions:

1. Rinse 1 dl of beans/lentils/seeds and soak in room temperature spring water overnight.
2. Pour out the water the next morning and rinse them again.
3. Keep the tower in the dark and rinse the sprouts 2-3 times a day.
4. After a few days, the sprouts are ready.
5. Place them in a bright window to get beautifully green leaves.

Here you will find sprouting towers.

Grow wheatgrass in a sprouter

Freshlife is an automatic sprouter that you fill with water and seeds, plug into the wall, and the watering happens automatically. You need to change the water every day, but otherwise, it takes care of the rest of the work.

The sprouts stay moist all the time, and after a week you have organic fresh sprouts and shoots or wheatgrass at home. This machine is perfect for wheatgrass because wheatgrass is very sensitive to drying out or molding.

7 tablespoons of wheat provide a good amount for this machine.

If you want to grow wheatgrass, you need wheatgrass pads.

Instructions:

1. Clean your wheat seeds thoroughly.
2. Place wheatgrass pads on the growing plates with the smooth side up.
3. Spread a layer of wheat seeds on the wheatgrass pads.
4. Assemble the growing tray with growing plates, tubes, and sprinkler.
5. Assemble the pump and fill the bottom part with water.
6. Place it on the growing tray.
7. Plug it in and check that the sprinkler is spinning.
8. Change the water every day.

If the pressure is too low or it spins too fast, adjust the pressure by turning the tube closest to the pump.

After 7-9 days, the wheatgrass is ready. Press wheatgrass juice and drink it as a shot with a sweet licorice-like flavor.

You can also blend and strain out the fibers if you don’t have a press at home.

Here you will find the sprouter from Tribest.

Problems?

• Sometimes the sprouts start to smell and can feel warm. The cause is often that there is too thick a layer of seeds, preventing air circulation.
• The seeds may also be old and have poor germination.
• If you forget to rinse your seeds, they can also go bad.
• Throw away bad sprouts, wash, and start a new sprouting.