Bean sprouts have been traditional Chinese ingredients for a long history especially the mung bean sprouts. In Chinese, we call mung bean sprouts green beans because they are green in color. When Elaine was a child, grand mother lived in mountain areas where it was not so easy to purchase fresh vegetables from the market. We were self-sufficient on food and many other things too. As a little girl, growing different types of vegetables, making homemade tofu, sprout bean sprouts at home all seemed as a magic to me. All the memories, I strongly believe, influence my current life. Past shapes today, right?
However my grand mom had a very cool tool for sprouting mung beans at home—a handcraft basket which had enough room for the growth of the mung bean sprouts and also great for the rinsing process. I am not talking about sprout beans in glass gars but traditional Chinese way. I have seen many instructions teaching you how to sprout beans in jars. And we are going to grow some awesome and beautiful sprouts out of the green beans.
Firstly we need to purchase dried organic mung beans. Pick the plump ones and discard any ones that have been broken, or wizened.
Day 1
Wash them careful and then soak the pickled mung beans in clean water for at least 12 hours until they are double in size and the sprouts begin to appear.
Day 2
Discard the soaking water and rinse them in clean water again. I have experienced using two tools this time-a clay pot and a vegetable washing basket. Place one layer of little mung bean sprouts on the bottom of clay pot and cover the lid. For washing basket, firstly layer a wet cloth (cotton cloth will be the best) on the bottom and lay one layer of mung bean sprouts on the surface. Cover with another wet cotton cloth. Place both of them in a dark place to avoid photosynthesis otherwise they will grow green leaves.
Twice per day, in the morning and in the evening, rinse the pot or basket in clean water. For the clay pot, pour the water out. Remember dark and cool places please. Then wait for around 4 days (it grows faster in summer than in winter). In winter, it may need around 7 days.
Day 3
Here we are. Since I photo them from time to time , so there are some fresh green leaves. When you sprout at home and there is no need to take pictures. You can avoid the fresh leaves.
Cut the root and use it in your recipes. If you need to store, place them in a plastic bag, sealed and keep in refrigerator for up to one week. Now I find a new tool, this egg basket, which can function very similar to my grand mom’s handcraft basket. If you have one, I strongly suggest you using something like this.
From the washing basket.
Here is a salad recipe for you. Eat it fresh!
- 300 g homemade fresh mung bean sprouts
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tsp finely chopped spring onion
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon roasted sesame seeds
- 1 teaspoon light soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon chili pepper powder , optional
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Wash the mung bean sprouts and remove any roots or bad ones.
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Add around 1 teaspoon of salt in water. Bring the water to a boiling and then rinse the mung bean sprouts for 1 minute.
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Transfer out and rinsing in cold water for around 1 minute. Use your hand to squeeze o remove excess water.
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Mix with sauces and serve.
cutting the roots off is a time consuming work. Do you have a better way to cut instead of cutting the roots one by one?
Hi Vicky,
I really hope that I have the easier method. If I buy some from the market,then I just have to remove the roots one by one. However for home sprouted, just gather a small group, tity up and use a scissor to cut the roots by batches.
If I eat raw mung sprouts, I can’t eat the seed itself, only the sprount which is growing from the seed?
Hi Mask,
When harvest the sprouts, you can remove the seeds along with the roots.
Why some bean sprouts are green, while some are yellow? Are there any distinction on cooking method or nutrition?
Hi Jessica,
Home sprouted bean sprouts usually has a slightly yellow color. There are green sprouts on the market, which are cultivated in sand in large containers, with a weak light environment for photosynthesis. Photosynthesis brings the green color. I believe cooking methods are the same but I am not sure about the nutrition part.
Mine grew leaves! Can I still eat them?
Hi Mary,
They are still edible but might taste slightly bitter.
My home made sprouts leaves are yelllow can we eat and how long I can keep in refrigerator
Wondering why roots need to be cut off. If I’m using all st the same time, can they be left on?
Hi Pat,
We are removing the roots because of the the texture. They can be left on as long as they are tender enough to accept.
I LOVED THIS SO MUCH. IM GONNA START MY OWN INDOOR LITTLE TABLE TOP GARDEN. THANK YOU SO MUCH WITH ALL YOUR INSTRUCTIONS AND THE PICTURE. THEY HELPED ALOT. I CANT WAIT TO EAT SOME OF MINE, WHEN THEY GROW.
Yours look like they grew so nice and tal and straight up and down. Mine just grow all in a tangle whether in a jar or in a washing basket with paper towel on the bottom. How can o get mine to grow straight?
Hi,
Are the bottom flat enough?
Here’s my method for getting them tall. Don’t try to sprout more than one layer of beans at a time if you don’t want them to tangle, then they will grow tall and not become a scrambled mess. Even if there are more beans in the pot most will grow tall but you will get bunches where they won’t.
I sprout my beans in a big double boiler. My double boiler is an All-Clad and a good size but about 1/3 cup of soaked beans is enough to cover the entire bottom of the top pan with the holes. Paper towel in the bottom under the beans. Spread out the soaked beans and then rinse lightly, drain some, place top in bottom of double boiler, cover with lid and let drain. They are in the dark on the counter and I usually have a good crop by the end of 4 days. Trim or don’t trim roots.
Start a new batch immediately if you eat a lot of them, which we do, and even my dog loves them so by the time my current batch is eaten the new batch is ready to rinse in icy cold water in small batches to remove the green pods, drain well in a wire mesh basket and package up. I store mine in a tall plastic container with lots of paper towels in the bottom to catch excess moisture. Happy sprouting!
Thank you very much for sharing the method. I used my clay pot and the beans grew beautifully. I was looking for this method for a long time and haven’t seen such a good instruction.
Hi Elaine,
I really like the mung bean sprout salad. It’s such a nice basic recipe which can be varied in numerous ways depending on what you serve it with. I often substitute the soy sauce by fish sauce or add thin slices of cucumber and/or radish. Sometimes I add some drops of sesame oil, too. I always try to make it balance the meat dish and the soup, so when those are spicy and oily I leave out the sesame oil and the chili and the other way around.
Hi Elaine, thanks so much for the instructions. My egg basket worked so well that now I need one just for sprouts! Best method I have tried.
Thanks Nikki,
Now you have the freshest and healthiest bean sprouts stand in your kitchen.
I have grow bean sprouts for 50 years and have learned a way to take care of the roots IF you care to be crafty. I use plastic needlepoint canvas with the largest gauge I can find. Then I cut this into shapes that will fit into the bottom of whatever container I am using. Roots will grown thru plastic canvas. Canvas can be scrubbed and bleached. With luck…and application of 8 or more oz of weight on top of growing sprouts, you can knock the mass of beans out of container BUT with the roots still firmly “rooted” in the mesh bottom. Then use a sharp knife to cut the sprouts off the mesh. Works pretty good IF you experiment with the size of the mesh canvas inside whatever container. I used to use fabric (cotton) that was throw away…and let the roots get “rooted” into that, then pulled the mass of sprouts out with the fabric, then cut the sprouts off the fabric. Pulling off the fabric in hopes of reusing didn’t work so well…so I experimented in making my own sprouter that was solid black top and bottom and used something like some plastic caps to hold the mesh off the solid bottom of black container (for air and drainage).