6 Super benefits of sprouts, mixed sprouts

Sprouts are called ‘The Living Food’

In the search for nutrient powerhouses, sprouts have emerged victorious! Recognised as the true ‘living food’ and ‘Nature’s boon to mankind’, sprouts have added value to our diet since ancient times. Sprouts exemplify the amazing way in which nature works at continuing life. We all know that when a plant produces seeds, it stores in them all the nutrients needed for the new plants to grow from them. These nutrients remain latent until germination occurs; and so, sprouting activates all these nutrients harnessing the full potential of the seed.

Mixed Sprouts Salad

6 Enough Reasons to Bother about Sprouts!

The process of germination or sprouting brings about many remarkable changes in the seeds. Here are some ways in which sprouts are beneficial:

1. Easy to digest: Sprouting converts the complex nutrients stored in the seeds into a form that can be easily digested. In other words, the starch gets converted into simple sugars like glucose and fructose, proteins are broken down into amino acids and saturated fat gets converted into simple fatty acids. Sprouts also contain enzymes that aid digestion. In addition, sprouting destroys the seeds’ natural preservative enzymes that inhibit digestion.

Mixed Sprouts Fruits and Veggie Salad

2. Ideal for dieters: Sprouts are a good source of fibre that binds extra fat and throws it out of the body. Besides this, when had as a salad or breakfast, sprouts are very satiating, thereby keeping you away from impulsively snacking on high calorie foods.

Paneer, Bean Sprouts and Spring Onion Soup

3. Contains extra proteins: Sprouting increases the availability of proteins. For example, on sprouting, the protein content of moong increases by 30%, i.e., 100 g of unsprouted moong contains 24.9 g protein, but on sprouting it increases to 32 g. The inactive enzymes present in the seeds also become active after sprouting thereby enabling easier digestion and absorption.

Moong Sprouts and Bajra Pessaruttu

The nutritive value of moong alters upon sprouting:

Energy (calories)	decreases by 15%
Carbohydrate	decreases by 10%
Protein	increases by 30%
Vitamin A	increases by 300%
Vitamin C	increases infinitely
Calcium	increases by 35%
Potassium	increases by 80%
Iron	increases by 40%
Phosphorus	increases by 55%

4. Provides a vitamin boost: On sprouting, the seed becomes a veritable nutrient factory with a greater concentration of Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Vitamin K and B-complex. For example, wheat sprouts contain three times as much vitamin E as unsprouted wheat; lentil sprouts are an excellent source of vitamin C; and sprouted moong shows a dramatic increase in the amount of vitamins and minerals as shown in table.

Mixed Sprout Vegetable

5. Easy to absorb, enhanced mineral content: Sprouting helps stored minerals like iron, calcium and potassium to be absorbed easily as they are set free.

Schezuan Style Paneer and Bean Sprouts

6. Fights diseases: Sprouting the seeds of broccoli, alfalfa and brussels sprouts also increases the content of beneficial plant chemicals or compounds called phytochemicals, antioxidants and bioflavonoids that help to prevent degenerative diseases like cancer and diabetes.

Broccoli, Mushrooms and Bean Sprouts Stir Fry

What is more interesting is that sprouts are actually fun and simple to grow, cheap and versatile – lending themselves to a lot of interesting soups, salads, subzis and what not! As the seed sprouts, their flavour is enhanced making them sweeter, crisper and tastier.

No denying that they are healthy, tasty and easy to handle, but surely none of us can eat a bowlful of sprouts again and again, made in the same boring salad style (with lemon and salt) or as a conventional subzi. After all, variety is the spice of life! Hence, we thought why not whip up some delicious recipes using a variety of sprouts so that you have the benefit of tasty choices in addition to the health benefits.

Sprouts Misal, Protein Rich Recipes

Here’s a collection of delectable recipes that make this tiny-sized treasure trove of nutrients a part of your daily meals.

1. Sprouts Pancakes

2. Sprouts Misal

3. Sprouts Tikki

4. Sprouts, Spring Onion and Tomato Salad

5. Sprouts and Palak Idli

Tomatoes Stuffed with Bean Sprouts ( Low Calorie Healthy Cooking)

6. Sprouts Kadhi

7. Sprouts Dhokla

8. Mixed Sprouts Parota

9. Spinach and Mixed Sprouts Raita

10. Oats Palak and Sprouts Mini Uttapa

11. Buckwheat and Sprouts Khichdi

Sprouts Khichdi

Just a word of caution before we leave you to your ‘sprouting’ experiments… While sprouts should definitely be included in one’s diet every day, overdoing it may lead to indigestion and flatulence, so portion size is to be selected individually.