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How To Sprout Buckwheat and Quinoa
And Any Other Grain Or Seed You Like
Learn how to sprout quick-grow seeds like buckwheat and quinoa. We'll teach you step-by-step how it's done. Plus, the best easy-to-use sprouting trays.
We love to make buckwheat and quinoa sprouts because they're two of the easiest you can make. Why? Because it's so easy to get them to turn out perfect for you (unlike some other sprouts...yes, I'm talking to you, alfalfa!)
So we'll teach you how to do it step-by-step. Plus, why we use sprouting trays and which we recommend.
If you've never tasted your very own just-made sprouts you're in for a real treat.
Let's be clear -- buckwheat is raw, and kasha is the toasted version of buckwheat.
Always remember: You can't sprout anything that's already been cooked in any way, shape, or form.
Seeds, grains, beans, and whatever else you may sprout in your lifetime must be in its raw form.
Sprouts are a wonderful and easy way to add raw foods to your diet. They're the utmost in fresh because you eat them at their peak of life! You may notice, as I have, that when I add fresh sprouts to any meal you eat a lot less -- which really helps if you need to shed a few pounds.
Let's get started...
First and foremost you'll need something for your sprouts to grow in.
You can look online for all sorts of containers to use for making your sprouts. But my all-time favorite and super easy-to-use-ultra-non-high-techy tools are sprouting trays.
Here's what they look like. They measure 8 inches or so in diameter and they're about 2 inches high, and they function not only as a sprouter, but as a crisper. This allows you to store your sprouts in the fridge and they'll stay crispy and of the utmost in fresh.
Without fail, every time I've tried to make sprouts in upside-down jars with a mesh screen or cheesecloth is that the sprouts turn moldy on me before they even grow! But I always have an excellent experience with sprouting trays. Plus, they stack one on top of the other which saves on space in your kitchen.
Okay, we're ready to move on...
How To Make Your Sprouts
We'll use buckwheat in our example. But the directions apply to anything you'd like to sprout, such as quinoa or lentils.
- Begin with 1 cup of raw buckwheat, rinse thoroughly, and drain. Pour the sprouts into a container (I use a wide-mouth jar) and fill with 2-3 times the amount of FILTERED water. Let sit 4-6 hours (I usually just let it sit overnight).
- Pour into a colander and rinse thoroughly. (Soaked buckwheat, in particular, happens to be surrounded by a bit of a thick, syrupy sort of liquid after soaking. Just keep rinsing and draining a few times until you feel it's rinsed as well as it's going to be. You'll know because there comes a point that the rinsing you're doing isn't REALLY making too much of a difference.)
- Lay the soaked seeds/lentils in your sprouting tray(s). Just line the bottom, no need to pile it on. If the bottom is lined and you still have more to use, just use a second tray.
Most sprouting trays come with covers. One of the covers can serve as a base so AFTER rinsing and draining, you can put the tray back on the countertop with a cover on the bottom to catch any water drips and to allow air circulation, and one on top to keep your sprouts clean as they grow up to be big and strong. Awwwwww! :) - Now, put your covered sprouts in an out-of-the-way place -- I just set them on top of my fridge. You're going to rinse and drain these sprouts with clean, filtered water 2-3 times/day.
And that's all there is to making sprouts.
As long as you remember to water and drain your sprouts 3 times/day, they should be ready to eat in 2 days. You'll know they're ready because they'll have grown a teensy little tail -- and they taste almost sweet when they're at their best, with no bitter aftertaste.
Placing your sprouts in the refrigerator will halt the growing process.
When your sprouts are ready to go, do NOT rinse them before storing in the fridge. They should be dry when stored. You can also expose them to sunlight for a couple hours when they're grown to the length you'd like before storing in the fridge.
Happy Sprouting!
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