Grains Beans & Seeds Cooking

Sprouting grains, beans, almonds and other seeds is a much overlooked way to use these basic foods. You'll find ways to use sprouts in various recipes in this section. You' may also use them in place of green leaves in the winter. As a sandwich filling sprouts give body ad flavour. The followings and table will show how simple it is to prepare sprouts. Use dry beans, whole hulled sunflower and similar seeds, and shelled, unbalance almonds.

Soak seeds in water overnight in a mason jar. Next morning, drain off the water and rinse the seeds until the water runs clear. Drain well. Place a stainless steel screen in a metal ring or cheesecloth with a rubber band over the jar opening to hold in the seeds. Large seeds may be grown and rinsed in a colander.

Set the jar on its side, and rinse the seeds two to three times a day for one to four days. Refrigerate the sprouts when they are ready.

Variety	No of days	Amount of seeds	Serving suggestions	Health benefits
Alfalfa	3-4	1-1/2 Tablespoon	Raw in salads, sandwiches, or chopped in Baked goods	Vitamin C, carotene, chlorophyll, vitamin.K and many other nutrients
Almonds	1	1 cup	Raw or roasted snacks, salads, hors d'oeuvres	Lower blood cholesterol level, reduce heart disease, rich in vitamin E and useful source of calcium
Adzuki beans (or azuki beans)	2-3	1 cup	Cook until tender and use in ban salad or chili	favourable calcium to phosphorous ratio (4:1) for helping preventing osteoporosis
Black beans (Black turtle bean)	1-3	1 cup	Cook and serve on tortillas or other flat breads. Use in bean soup.	Beneficial to kidneys and reproductive function and diuretic effect. Black bean juice is effective for hoarseness, laryngitis, kidney stones, bed wetting, urinary difficulty, and hot flashes of menopause. * see preparation and dosage
Garbanzo beans (chick pea)	1-2	1 cup	Cook until tender and use to make hummus or toss in salad or soup.	Beneficial to pancreas, stomach, and heart. Contains more iron than other legumes and is also a good source of unsaturated fats.
Lentils	1-3	1 cup	For lentil soup and cooked for lentil salad	Diuretic effect, beneficial to the heart and circulation, stimulates the adrenal system, and increases vitality of the kidney.
Mung beans (The common Chinese sprouts)	2-3	1 cup	In Chinese recipes, salads, in a miso soup and as stir-fried vegetables.	Detoxifies the body, beneficial to the liver and gall bladder and diuretic effect.
Soybeans	2-4	1 cup	Cook until tender, add to salads, mash for Sandwich spread	Helps lower risk of heart disease, eases constipation and improves intestinal health, Steadies blood sugar level, rich in iron, Calcium and potassium, ease menopausal Symptoms, and may reduce the risk of breast Cancer breast Cancer
Sunflower seed	1-2	1 cup	toasted or raw for snacks, tabbouleh fruit salads	Provides good levels vitamin E and B-vitamin and Iron. Contains linoleic acid that lower blood Cholesterol levels and prevention of heart Diseases

Nutrients: Legumes are not only high in protein, but also in fat and carbohydrate. They are rich sources of potassium, calcium, iron and several B-vitamins

Simmer one cup of beans in five cups of water of ran hour (remove the juice and continue cooking the bean). Take 1/2 cup of juice 1/2 hour before meals as a remedy for nephritis and most other kidney complaints. Regular use of the juice with meals increases mother's milk.

Legumes (1 cup dried)	Simmer		Pressure		Herbal Combinations
	Cups water	time	Cups water	time
Adzuki bean	2-3	1-1/2 hrs	2-3	45 mins	Coriander, cumin, ginger
Black bean	2-3	2-1/2 hrs	2-3	1-1/4 hrs	Coriander, cumin, ginger, sage, thyme, oregano
Lentils	3-4	1 hr	3	20 mins	Coriander, cumin, ginger, sage, thyme, oregano, dill, Basil, , mint, garlic
Green split peas	3-4	1 hr	3	20 mins	Dill, basil
Whole peas	3-4	3 hrs	3	1 hr	Chive, rosemary, tarragon, thyme
Pinto-Kidney bean	2-3	2-3 hrs	2-3	1 hr	Coriander, cumin, ginger, sage, thyme, oregano, fennel, cumin
Garbanzo bean	3-4	4-5 hrs	3	2-3 hrs	Dill, basil, mint, garlic
Limas and Black eyed pea	2-3	1 hr	2-3	35 mins	Coriander, cumin, ginger, sage, thyme, oregano, fennel, cumin
Mung bean	3-4	1 hr	3	20 mins	Coriander, cumin, ginger
Yellow or black soybean	4	4-6 hrs	3	2 hrs

Soak legumes for 12 hours or overnight in four parts water to one part legume. For best results, change the water once or twice. Lentils and whole dried peas require shorter soaking, while soybeans and Garbanzos need to soak longer. Soaking also promotes faster cooking and improved digestibility, because the gas-causing enzymes and trisaccharides in legumes are released into the soak water. Be sure to discard the soak water.

After bringing legumes to a boil, scoop off and discard foam. Continue to boil for 20 minutes without lid at beginning of cooking to let steam rise (break up and disperse indigestible enzymes).