How do you sprout yours?

[Annpan]

beans... that is.

I have been trying to sprout some mung beans, but I am not doing very well, any suggestions?

[Shirley]

What have you tried so far?

Here is a good site for info

http://www.sproutpeople.com/seed/mung.html

[Annpan]

Thanks Shirley, I think I need to buy a sprouter thing.

I have been looking forward to a stir-fry with home grown bean-sprouts, courgettes and mange-tout

I have some in a tupperware style Ikea sandwich box, it has a vent in it (which I thought was good for air flow) I have been rinsing them once or twice a day for four days and today there was a tiny bit of mouldy fluff in there... I knew I must be doing something very wrong.

Before, I have tried in a glass jar and another time in the fridge and I have never been successful ... well, if at first you don't succeed...

[Shirley]

Quite a few folk have had success with the glass jar method. Fia on Neeps has done it successfully (I know, cos she bought a heap of beans for sprouting at our food co-op)

[Mainer in Exile]

I use a glass jar either with a loose fitting lid or a tea towel over the opening. Rinse the beans once or twice a day and keep them in a warm, dark place. The only failures I've had is when I forgot to rinse them for a day or two.

[Odsox]

I agree, a large glass jar is all you need.
An old sweet jar works well ... cover the top with muslin and an elastic band, and put it in the airing cupboard.
Don't forget to rinse a couple of times a day and that's it, easy as falling off a log.

If you sprout them in daylight they will go green and tough (virtually inedible)

[Annpan]

right I am trying again... starting now... in a kilner jar with some muslin over the top.

Oh, should I remove the muslin to rinse? I think those fancy sprouting jars you just leave the gauze lid attached

Thanks everyone

[Odsox]

No need to remove the muslin, that's the beauty of it.... the water goes through it and then strains it on it's way out.
No mung beans down the drain.

[Annpan]

Super, thanks for that.

I found some gauze in the medicine drawer, so I think that will be better than the muslin I have (which is quite heavy) Also the gauze is so thin that the kilner jar screw ring goes around it

What about the husks? ie the green bits that come detached.

Am I right in thinking warm and dark is the best place for them?

[ina]

I use a glass jar either with a loose fitting lid or a tea towel over the opening. Rinse the beans once or twice a day and keep them in a warm, dark place. The only failures I've had is when I forgot to rinse them for a day or two.

That's how I do it, too. I now have a dark jar (Lidl's organic instant coffee - the coffee wasn't terribly nice, but the jar comes in handy!). I usually just sprout lentils; they've never failed me yet. (Which reminds me: I still have some in the fridge that need using up.... )

[Millymollymandy]

I had a go a while back with a jam jar with muslin but it was not successful and most of the seeds just would not sprout. Can't remember what they were though!

[possum]

I use a white ice cream tub and just leave it on the worktop, rinse them most days and remove the green husks and feed them to the chickens. They are unlikely to germinate in the fridge as they need warmth. Germinating in the light - though filtered through the container is not s problem though. Cheapest place to buy moong beans is from an Asian/Indian grocers as they are used a lot in that style of cooking, they sprout as well as any bought specifically for sprouting. (this applies to NZ as well as many people think no seeds are viable after being imported here)