Beans, beans the magical fruit... (Plant-Based Projects)
Beans, beans the magical fruit the more you eat them the more you toot!
Couldn't resist.
Switching to a plant-based diet was probably the best decision I ever made. I feel fantastic! My skin feels better, my body feels better and I rarely get sick. However... there is the farting.
Once you start eating healthy and searching around online you come to realize there's always one extra level of healthy, plant-based eating than you realised. Raw Vegan (Level 26.) Sprouted eating. WFPB. WFPBNO. OMGWTFBBQLMAOalksdjfaweiothsjk. It's just like it was before - everyone's is always telling you their way is better and it changes all the time.
Because I can't sit still and I'm always looking for something to do - the project of sprouting came up. One - because it's so easy and cheap to do. Two - because I wanted to add some extra nutrition into our meals and hopefully reduce the amount of aromatic air flying around our apartment. Plus, saying MUNG beans is hilarious.
Why sprout?
So from what I've gleaned from Google the benefits of sprouting are pretty big. For starters - when eating sprouts and microgreens you are basically eating the most nutrient-dense part of the plant: the cotyledon. This is the first part of the plant that has all the food for the plant to grow and processes the chlorophyl and all that junk to get the plant started.
Apparently these have a huge laundry list of phytochemicals that are diluted by time the plant is fully grown and you actually eat it. Sprouts contain a significantly higher percentage of things like calcium and protein. Radish sprouts, for example, supposedly have 6.3% more protein than the full plant. You know us vegans - we're all protein deficient. The other chemicals do things like increase your HDL (good cholesterol,) decrease your LDL (bad cholesterol,) help prevent cancers, reduce osteoporosis and help with symptoms of menopause! And since sprouted and fermented foods are more 'bioavailable' (whatever that means) it helps with the farting.
I'll never track this shit into my old age or really be able to tell if it helped me one way or other until I'm actually old and still healthy but what kind of plant-based person could I call myself if I didn't at least try!? So...
PROJECT TIME!!
After weeks of watching videos and reading articles off and on I decided on mung (hehehehe) beans for sprouting. The taste is reportedly milder and more neutral for eating raw. They're cheap to buy and you can eat them without waiting for the tall, stringy, (gross) tails that alfalfa sprouts have.
I also read about the threat of getting sick from unclean sprouts so I also opted for an idea I found for using plastic mesh craft sheets for the strainer on the top. The cheese cloth suggested in some tutorials seems like it wouldn't dry out enough.
Cost-wise: The bag of mung beans and the plastic canvas sheet were a few dollars each and will last for several uses. The jar I already owned.
The process is a follows:
Soak the beans (I started with 2 tbsp) in full water for 8 - 12 hours. Then rinse and rest the jar opening-side down in a bowl or tray to drain the water. Rinse twice per day for 3 - 5 days before the beans will start to germinate or sprout. Then you can cook them in stir fry or eat them raw on salads!
Updates will be posted!
