To wash sprounts?

[carissima]

I refer to various types of sprouts that come in plastic containers.
Should they be washed before eating?

[NVJims]

Major recall of sprouts due to e coli. Washing is needed. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100522/a...

[mickie44]

Yes they should be washed. But they are so easy to grow that I've stopped buying already sprouted sprouts. In the winter months (when fresh local vegs aren't as available), we keep two or three kinds of beans on the go. Lentils and peas seemed to be our favs last year.

[enbell]

Okay I feel like an idoit! I have tried the jart with screen method time and time again with poor or no results. I have tried mung bean and pea - am I really that toxic? Any pointers? Thanks you :)

[mickie44]

For years, I thought it was complicated and didn't do it. But I find this simple technique never fails: use a quart canning jar and a small mesh screen (I just bought some screening material from a hardware store). Put a few tablespoons of seeds/beans in and use the screw top from the canning jar to hold the screen in place. Rinse the beans, then soak them for a few hours, then rinse and drain and continue to do that morning and night until the sprouts are where you want them (usually 2-4 days depending on the seed).

One time we let them soak too long and they spoiled (new kind of bean for us). All the directions I've read talk about darkness and sun at different points but I get good sprouts just leaving them on the counter away from sunlight.

We started doing this when reports of e.coli in alfalfa sprouts hit the news and would never go back to storebought. Good luck.

[mickie44]

I should have asked about your source of seeds. We get ours at the health food store. Could the source of seed be your reason for failure? What happened with yours?

[enbell]

I think my first package of mambosprouts were from Wild Oats (tells you how long ago that was!) After that I just ordered them online. I just never had much sprouting activity. Not a lot of growth, but I never put the jars on their sides. I'll give this a try, thank you.

[mickie44]

Yeah, put them on their sides with lots of space. They seem to survive any indignities we have exposed them to. If you have an active health food store (lots of turnover), I would try that rather than online, but that's just me. I've also got mung beans from Superstore/Loblaw's and they worked too although the mungs always have a few that don't sprout so one has to chew carefully when throwing them into a salad. Don't want to be supporting any dentists. Just remembered we liked radish sprouts a lot too.

[enbell]

thank you!

[greygarious]

I've read that to kill the E.coli in sprouts, they need cooking - which for alfalfa sprouts is like saying you should cook ice before using. So rinsing may be futile, but if you choose to do it, don't rinse more than you're using right away unless you want a bag of slime in your fridge. Dry in salad spinner lined with paper towel.

[carissima]

I'm thinking how much I need those vitamins and minerals in the sprouts vs the risk of getting E. coli...

[enbell]

That is what I know (read abou) as well. Bean sprouts are okay cooked in stir-frys but for the most part I like them raw for a reason. Perhaps I'm tempting fate, but at least if I go out this way it will be with a big crunch and plenty of vitamins and minerals.

[lynnlato]

I remember my mother was on a health kick back in the late 70s and she used to grow alfalfa sprouts in a jar, laid on its side and covered in a dark sock. She ate them on just about everything. I love them, to this day, because of that and especially on chicken salad. :)

[carissima]

Got it. Thanks to everyone.

[pacheeseguy]

And don't forget to score their bottoms before cooking.

[pacheeseguy]

My apologies, I saw sprouts and immediately thought Brussels Sprouts.

[im_nomad]

lol, good thing ! My first reaction was how the heck does one take a knife to those teeny alfalfa sprouts ! or, that you were poking fun ;)

[Maximilien]

washed ? probably not, rinsed under running water for a few seconds then dried, yes.

[Gio]

Right. I put sprouts in a colander, shush them under running water then drain....