Best Grown in the Sprout Master Sprouters, Terra Cotta Sprouters, The Easy Sprouter, The Easy Green Automatic Sprouter. One of our most popular certified organic NON-GMO seeds. A beautiful dark golden wheat colored seed produces a bright green sprout. Tastes so much better when grown fresh at home then store bought commercial sprouts. Use as a base for salads and raw sprouted soups. Great sprout for juicing.

 

 

I know many of you follow the Eat Right for Your Blood Type Diet. Alfalfa sprouts are not recommended for Blood Type O; they are Highly Beneficial for Blood Types A and AB; and remain neutral for Blood Type B. (Note from Sprout Lady Rita: if you are following a different diet plan, let me know and I will do my best to incorporate that plan into my blog posts.)

 

So they are sweet, mild tasting sprouts that are a good source of protein, vitamins, minerals. They contain lots of water and do well for juicing. Alfalfa sprouts are easily digestible. They are a good choice for eating by themselves, or in a salad, or the basis of a salad, or juicing. You can also make them in a raw sprouted soup which is very cooling during the hot months.
No wonder they are so popular.

 

Here is my non-medical advice: if you have any doubt at all, any question that niggles in your mind just a little bit, then don't eat alfalfa sprouts. Go ahead and try a different sweet, mild tasting sprout like red clover. Don't ever proceed with eating anything at all when you have any doubt. You are in control. You should also contact your doctor or health care provider if you have any questions about eating alfalfa sprouts. Only your doctor or health care provider can help you make a well-informed decision.

In Alfalfa Sprouts Part 1 we discussed some general knowledge about these sprouts, in Part 2 we had a discussion on the nutritional value of the sprouts and in Part 3 we discussed the controversy surrounding alfalfa and Lupus. Here, in Part 4, we will review basic manual sprouting techniques for alfalfa organic sprouting seeds and lightly touch on sprouting with automatic sprouters.

Alfalfa sprouting seeds are versatile and easy to sprout across all platforms - jars, trays and automatic sprouters. They are perfect for beginner sprouters because of the quick result you receive sometimes just from soaking. They are a hardy seed that produces a great alfalfa sprout.

In future posts I will go into more detail about how to sprout these seeds but let's just review some basic sprouting directions.

 

The Beginning of Alfalfa Sprouts

First, and to my mind the most important step in sprouting, is the soaking process. During soaking, the seed absorbs water which turns this dead dormant seed into a live sprout. The water diffuses through the seed coat into the embryo causing a swelling of the seed. You can sometimes actually see this by observing the cracked seed casing after soaking. Once you add oxygen to the soaking seed then growth occurs. Germination takes place at above 65 degrees Farenheit. This is a good time to add liquid kelp fertilizer. The seed will absorb the fertilizer as it is absorbing water.

For automatic sprouters a soaking process is not usually necessary. That is because the automatic sprouter will rinse the seeds in a recurring cycle throughout the day. So the seeds will get enough water druing the cycles to replace the soaking process.

Soak the seeds in a jar or bowl of water. You can soak seeds for about 8 to 10 hours, or overnight. You can actually soak seeds for up to 24 hours with a water change in the middle at 12 hours. Do not reuse the soaking water on your sprouts. It carries waste materials from the soaking seeds. You can use it in your garden or house plants, but please do not reuse this water on your sprouts.

Use cool water. If you live in a very cold climate, during the winter months you may want to use slightly warm water. Not hot, not boiling, just a little warm to the touch. Use the best water you have available to you. Ordinary tap water is fine. That is what I have always used along with well water when we had it. Well water is fine. Filtered water is fine. R/O water is fine. But remember, if you use filtered or R/O or some other type of water, you are increasing the cost of the sprouts. That's not a bad thing, it is just something you want to keep in mind.

 

The Process for Alfalfa Sprouts

If you are using a tray sprouter, then pour the seeds and soaking water from the jar or bowl into the tray sprouter letting the excess water drain out. If you are using a jar sprouter, pour the water out of the jar using a screen or lid to keep the seeds in the jar. In both cases, you should have only wet seeds in the tray or jar without any standing water.

Rinse the seeds with fresh water and drain out that water. Making certain you have only wet seeds in the tray or jar without any standing water.

You will repeat this process - rinsing and draining - two times each day: once in the morning and once in the evening. Make sure you drain out as much water as you can and that there is no standing water left.

And don't rush. I know, you are busy. If you do not give your sprouts the right amount of water, they will fail to thrive.

And be consistent. These little ones need consistency. They like a bath in the morning and an evening one, too. It makes them feel refreshed and ready to continue to grow. Sing a little song to them while they bathe. It will do wonders for them. Don't forget, you are everything to them. You are Mother Nature. They know only you. So don't rush and don't forget to water them twice each day. After the rinses, make certain that there is no standing water, just wet seeds or sprouts.

If you are using an automatic sprouter, you should follow the manufacturer's directions. Basically, you will put dry seeds in the sprouter, fill up the water reservoir and set the timer. Once everything is in place then go ahead and plug it in to start the machine.

Just About Ready to Eat Alfalfa Sprouts

Alfalfa sprouts are ready to eat in about 5 to 7 days, 5 in the warmer temperatures and 7 in the cooler temperatures. Although there have been some weeks in Janaury and February where it has taken mine 10 to 12 days to come to maturity. There are places like Southern Florida, Southern Texas and Southern California where the sprouts are ready in 3 days, but generally, it take 5 to 7 days. With automatic sprouters the time for mature sprouts may also lessen as they are getting more water consistently throughout the day.

Chlorophyll is developed in a sprout that has been exposed to light. You do not need any special lighting, ordinary daylight that comes in a room will do fine. Don't put them in direct sunlight as on a window sill. Just a sunny room will do. It only takes a few hours, say from breakfast to lunch, to green them up. If you live in a not very sunny place, or if you have no natural light or if you are growing your sprouts in the basement then you may need an alternate light source. No need to get too fancy, an all spectrum light from the hardware store or local nursery should do just fine. Someone out there is going to try to sell you the latest and greatest lighting system. It is not necessary for sprouts and it will increase the cost of the sprouts.

Store your alfalfa sprouts in the refrigerator.