Sprouting

Did you know that sprouts come in varieties other than alfalfa and mung beans?

A major benefit of working in the local/healthy food industry (can I call it an industry?) is that events are obligated to have healthy and usually locally-sourced meals and snacks. At one such event, there was an amazing salad with about ten kinds of sprouts--alfalfa, lentil, garbanzo, red bean, radish, pea...so many delicious sprouts!

Inspired by this salad, I'm attempting to sprout. Apparently the simplest way to do it is in a mason jar. Lucky for me, we are swimming in mason jars since I discovered my canning obsession. Seriously, I might have a problem. I've bought a few packages new (they come in packs of twelve), and I clear out thrift stores every time I'm in them. Our shelves are now lined with mason jars full of anything we need contained: grains, beans, ginger candy (an important food staple in our house), rubber bands, coins, pens, qtips....

Since I had my bases covered for sprouting containers, I then bought sprouting alfalfa seeds and peas from our co-op. I started with the peas because I'm not sure how to rinse the alfalfas without dumping them down the drain (any suggestions? coffee filter?). I put two tablespoons of peas in a quart-sized jar, covered the opening with cheese cloth, and let them soak overnight. In the morning I rinsed them several times, letting them drain really well. Now the jar is sitting on its side in my kitchen (supposedly allows for better air circulation).

Day 1

Five days later....

I've been rinsing and draining my peas twice a day for almost a week. They sprouted really quickly! On the first day there were tiny tail-like sprouts sticking out of the peas, and today they actually have the beginnings of little green leaves. Time to eat them, I think!

Day 5