How do you sprout quinoa to eat raw?

Answer 1

Quinoa (pronounced "keen-wah") is a nutritious grain-like seed. It's sprouts are also very nutritious. To sprout quinoa seeds for sprouts to cook or to eat raw, wash the seeds then soak them in tepid water for 2-4 hours. Drain, and rinse and drain again, then keep moist (but not wet) and away from direct light. Rinse the seeds with fresh tepid water twice a day for 2-4 days, or until they develop little "tails". The longer you allow them to sprout the softer they will be. They keep better in the refrigerator and many people prefer eating them when still crunchy with only very short "tails". Quinoa seeds do not require complete darkness to sprout, but you don't want the sprouts to have enough light for the photosynthesis process. If you let them sprout too long, you will end up with red grass.

When most other sprouts turn green from chlorophyll, they can become less tender and have a change in flavor, usually to more bitter. Some sprouts, like alfalfa, however, benefit from more (indirect) light toward the end of the sprouting period rather than left in total darkness.

You can fashion a very good container for sprouting seeds if you can find a brown glass jar or wide mouth bottle. Fasten some fine mesh screen over the top so you can rinse and drain easily through the screen (a piece of panty hose or fine cheesecloth will also work). Store out of direct light on its side to allow the seeds to spread out in the jar more while sprouting. A canning Mason-type jar and lid work well because you can replace the flat round piece of the lid with the screen and the other part of the lid with the screw top will hold the mesh in place. Clear glass jars will also work if you keep in low light areas...or you can cover them with a "sleeve" of dark colored panty hose to provide some shade.