One of the easiest and least expensive ways to get started sprouting is to sprout using a mason jar, and one of the fastest seeds to sprout is wheat. Canning jars are easy to come by (especially if you do any canning). They can be purchased new or bought at thrift stores or yard sales or on craigslist, etc. for very little cost. To use your jar for sprouting you’ll need a mesh lid. You can purchase a specialty sprouting lid or make one yourself. I made mine from a piece of vinyl screening from the hardware store.
I’ve heard of people using a couple layers of mesh fabric (depending on the size of the holes in the mesh and what they’re wanting to sprout), or a piece of clean nylon stocking. You want something that will keep all your seeds in and allow for some air circulation. If you’re making your own lid, you’ll want to screw it on with a newer canning ring–not one that’s going to rust on you as there’s plenty of moisture involved in sprouting and you don’t want your sprouts getting all “rusty” from the lid.
And today we’re sprouting wheat in our jar. You do have some wheat, right? Any hard wheat is fine–red or white doesn’t matter. You can even sprout wheat that has been stored with oxygen absorbers (just in case you’ve heard that food storage myth going around). This process will be similar to the sprouting we did in the sprouting tray, it just looks a little different because it’s in a jar.
Step 1: Soak your seeds. You can do this right in the jar. Use 2-3 times the amount of water as seed. 6-8 hours or overnight is good.
Step 2: Drain the soak water. With the sprouting lid or mesh secured to the jar opening, tip the jar upside down over the sink or your favorite plant.
Step 3: Rinse and drain. We’ll give the wheat seeds a super fresh start by giving them a rinse right before putting them away.
Step 4: Find a nice dark place to store your jar where you won’t forget it. I put mine in the kitchen cupboard. You’ll need to prop your jar so it can continue to drain, but the air supply isn’t cut off and give it something to drain into. Sometimes you can prop it with other things in the cupboard and let it drain into a little tupperware type container. I also like to roll the seeds around the jar (some will stick to the sides) before putting it in the cupboard so they’re not all stuck in a pile on each other.
Step 5: Rinse and drain 2-4 times a day. Just fill the jar with water right through the mesh lid, swish it around, and dump it out. Super easy. I do this a couple of times a day–usually around breakfast and dinner time. Wheat sprouts only need to be in the sprouter for 1-2 days. You want the sprout tail to be about as long as the wheat kernel or shorter (I like it shorter). The longer they get, the more “green” they taste. How fast they grow will be affected by the ambient temperature and whether they are kept moist or not. Taste them along the way and see at what point in the sprouting process you like the flavor best.
Step 6: Storage. If you don’t eat all your sprouts right away, they can be stored in the refrigerator in the jar.
Sprouting using a jar is an inexpensive way to test out sprouting. There are a couple of minor drawbacks to sprouting in a jar, but none too serious. One is that if you’re growing long sprouts, they’re not as “pretty” as they are in a tray. They don’t grow tall and straight, they just kind of end up in a bundle. Another drawback is that the jar doesn’t get quite as good of air circulation as other methods of sprouting. Because of this I like to rinse my sprouts more often when I’m growing them in a jar. And lastly, being able to rinse and drain without taking the lid off the jar is nice, but makes it hard to steal a pinch of sprouts during the growing process! :)
So see if you’ve got some wheat and a jar around and rig up a lid for it so you can get some sprouted wheat growing! Super yummy for a snack or putting on salad or in bread.
Keep preparing! Angela
***************************************************************
Subscribe to my email newsletter for updates and special deals.
Please be sure to follow Food Storage and Survival on Facebook which is updated every time there is a new article. You can also find me on Pinterest, and purchase my book, Food Storage for Self Sufficiency and Survival on Amazon.
***************************************************************
Shop the Thrive Monthly Specials or my favorites, the freeze dried vegetables and yogurt bites!
***************************************************************
What do you do with sprouts that small? What kind of sprouts am I eating when I eat a deli pita? I would like to grow more green sprouts to add to salads to stretch my salad greens.
Plus, chickens need green to produce more healthful eggs. So, growing green is important for me.
Thanks
You can eat these fresh, top a salad with them, add them to bread, etc. They are kind of “nutty”–really tasty just as they are. We usually just eat the sprouted wheat by the handful. The sprouts in a pita sandwich are most likely alfalfa. “Vegetable” variety sprouting seeds make the best green sprouts–things like broccoli, radish (spicy), fenugreek, alfalfa, clover. To green them up, just let them sit in the sunlight for a few hours once they have leaves formed.
“Alfalfa” was the word I was searching for. Yes, I knew that I knew, just could not find the word. Now, to find a store selling all these sprouting seeds.
Two things. First, why not just use a rubber band to hold the mesh on? Then you wouldn’t have to worry about rust, and could use just about any jar you have. I haven’t tried sprouting yet, but hope to start soon. I’m saving spaghetti sauce jars. Second, nuts.com sell all kinds of nuts, seeds,beans, FD & DH fruit and all sorts of yummy treats. They don’t sell their seeds and beans specifically, so some of the stuff is roasted, but they have a raw section. I ordered poppy seeds, sesame seeds, caraway seeds, etc that could be used for baking &cooking as well as for sprouting. Also, their prices are better than most sites I’ve found, and their shipping is lightening fast! I ordered (cheapest method – ground transportation) on a Thursday afternoon, and the box arrived Friday morning! I couldn’t have gotten it any faster if I overnighted it. I’m definitely going to be a repeat customer.
A rubber band would work great to hold the mesh on. And as long as the seed is being produced and sold for human consumption, it’s fine for sprouting, so thinking outside the box of “sprouting seed suppliers” to get your seed can save a bunch. Thanks for your comment!
Where do you find our wheat?
I get my wheat from honeyville farms or the LDS cannery. Your local health food store would probably have it if you just want a smaller amount.