How to Harvest Bean Sprouts

Use mung, lentil or soy for bean sprouts.

Beans are compact or vining summertime plant grown in the warm season producing late-summer pod harvests. The beans offer year-round harvests as well in the form of their shoots or sprouts. Bean sprouts add healthy, crispy aspects to salads and cooked dishes, and play a large part in Asian cuisine. Produce your own healthy bean sprout harvest with fresh mung beans (Vigna radiata), a bowl and some time.

Things You'll Need

• Fresh mung beans
• Bowl
• Strainer
• Jar
• Cheesecloth
• Knife

Instructions

1. Wash fresh mung beans for sprouting eliminating any husks, dirt or litter. Throw out any beans that float, as they won't sprout. Put the beans in a bowl of warm water and let them soak overnight. This soaking softens the outer husk for easier sprouting.

2. Collect the beans and transfer them into a jar for sprouting. Sprinkle 1 to 2 teaspoons of water over the beans, cover the jar with cheesecloth and put them in a dark, warm place for sprouting. Don't fill the jar with water, as they rot instead of sprout. Keep the beans at 70 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit for best sprouting.

3. Sprinkle the beans with more water two to three times every day and tilt the jar after watering to keep them evenly moist. Expect sprouting in three to seven days.

4. Collect the beans after sprouting and rinse them again. Remove the husks and any beans that failed to sprout. Cut the sprouts from their beans with a sharp knife.

Tips & Warnings

• North Carolina State University recommends using nonchlorinated, pure water to sprout beans. Chlorine retards sprouting and results in a poor harvest.

• Use the sprouts immediately for freshest, crispiest harvest.

• Sprouts grow bitter and woody with size. Use the sprouts when they reach two to three inches for the best harvest.

References

• Raw and Living Foods: How to Grow Bean Sprouts Using Mung Beans and Lentils
• NC State University; Bean Sprouts and Other Vegetable Seed Sprouts; Larry Bass, et al.; December 1994