Picking Your Sprout Seeds

  • Your sprouting seed absolutely must not have any human pathogens.
  • Your sprouting seed should not have plant pathogens.
  • Seeds for growing sprouts should be uniform in size and color.
  • Sprout seed should have a high quick germination.
  • Sprouting seeds should not be scarified and should have very few damaged seeds.
  • Sprouting seeds should have a low moisture content but not so low as to damage the seed.
  • The sprouts produced from purchased sprouting seed should germinate uniformly and show good vigor.
  • The sprouting seed should have few over-soaks (over-soaks are seeds that soften quickly when put in water.)
  • The age of the sprouting seed is important. Some seed is best if aged, while others are not.
  • The sprouts grown from the seed should have a good flavor and shelf life.

How to Safely Sprout your Seeds

Growing and harvesting sprouts in your kitchen is as easy as it gets.  Using safe handling practices for growing sprouts in your kitchen is no different than any other food. Following our specific guidelines below for food handling safety for growing and serving sprouts to your family ensures the highest quality, free of any pathogens.

7 easy steps to follow:

  1. Sanitation is very important when sprouting seed. Clean your sprouter or mason jar before each use.
  2. Place 1 – 2 tablespoons of seeds in your sprouting jar or tray. For jar sprouting add a few inches of water and replace lid. Swirl seeds for approximately 30-45 seconds then drain water. For tray sprouters, run the tray under running water to rinse the seeds.
  3. For jar sprouters completely cover with approximately 2-3 inches of warm water. Place the jar lid or tray top on the sprouter and let this sit overnight on the counter top. Room temperature works fine for growing sprouts. For seed tray sprouter complete sprouting with instructions provided with your sprouter.
  4. Some varieties, such as mung bean, have flavor improved by blanching. Blanching is simply a process when you cover the sprouts with a cloth or towel to prevent light from greening up the sprouts as they grow. Blanched sprouts will have white-ish appearance, free of greening caused by light. We suggest experimenting with different varieties.
  5. Drain the water the very next day and remove the top. Rinse the seeds thoroughly by adding new water and swirling the water and seeds for several seconds. Replace top and drain this water and repeat the process. After rinsing for the second time do not add additional water. This seed cleaning process is critical for tasty, healthy sprouts.
  6. Repeat this process twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening, until your sprouts have reached their desired size. As a rule, this time period is generally 3 to 7 days, depending on the variety of sprouts you are growing.
  7. Store mature sprouts in a bowl or plastic storage bag and add a paper towel in the bottom to absorb excess moisture. It is highly recommended to consume your sprouts within 5 to 7 days to realize best quality and health benefits.