When you hear the words “bean sprouts”, what picture comes to mind? If it is the white bean sprout you buy at the store to use in Chinese or Japanese cooking, that is normal, as it is all that most of us have seen. These white sprouts are made from the Mung bean and are grown in darkness. But all bean sprouts are not created equal. You can have yellow or green sprouts depending on the bean or pea that you use and how much sunlight you expose the sprouts to. You can sprout all kinds of dry beans such as pinto, black, kidney and navy. You can also use peas such as black-eyed peas or the green English peas, grains such as alfalfa, wheat and sunflower seeds. Mustard, Radish, Almonds also make good sprouts. Bean sprouts are a food rich in amino acids (proteins), vitamins and minerals, and fiber. The vitamins that are in bean sprouts are all types (A, B, C, D, E, and K). Folic acid along with minerals iron, potassium, copper, selenium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus and zinc. Sprouts, being alive have needed enzymes too. I bring up bean sprouts because with long term food storage you may not get the required vitamins you need, but when you add the bean sprouts to your diet it makes your diet more complete and nutritious than without them. Have you ever heard of scurvy? It is what the sailors use to get when they were out on the ships for months or a year at a time. By 10 weeks their stores of Vitamin C in their bodies had been depleted and they would start showing signs of scurvy. They did not have fresh fruits or veggies and had never heard of sprouting. By 10 weeks all of the fresh fruits and veggies would either be eaten or moldy. And scurvy was a fatal disease. As time progressed the sailors did learn about citrus fruit juices and started stocking that which helped treat scurvy. The English often stocked lime juice and from that we get the term ‘limeys’.
Bean sprouts have a crunchy texture and a nutty flavor. They can be put in salads, on sandwiches, in soups and in stir fry or you can add them to breads. For best results eat the sprouts raw.
This will add freshness to your food storage and variety to your meals, plus many of the all necessary vitamins you need.
It takes about 1 week to sprout beans to the size that you will want to use. But then they need to be eaten rather quickly to avoid mold. So it is best that you grow in small portions and start at various times in rotation. You have to have a bottle or a tray that is just started and then in 3 days start another and in 3 more days start another. By the time you start the 3rd tray the first should be eaten. Plan on using about 1 to 2 ounces dry weight per day per person, start with less and see how well they get consumed.
Sprouting trays and jars can be bought as a special purpose item. Or you can re-purpose items. What you are looking for is a container which will hold water [and the seeds] to soak them at the beginning AND such that you can drain the water out, reserving the sprouts along with letting air circulate too. Do not discard the sprout water! Instead use it to water your plants or for use in soups and stews OR as the basis for drinks.