Sprouting your way to health

Sprouted moong dal is the only nutritious ingredient in the delicious but not-so-healthy pani-puri. Even though sprouts are packed with health benefits, they are not revered for their taste and are often termed ‘boring’. But for food bloggers like Jeyashri Suresh, they open a whole avenue for experimentation. On her blog, jeyashriskitchen.com, Jeyashri has exhibited her creativity with moong sprouts with recipes like sprouted green moong dal sandwiches and sprouts fried rice.

Jeyashri’s family has been eating sprouts daily for the last 20 years. “For vegetarians like us, sprouts are an essential source of proteins, antioxidants and other nutrients,” she says.

Though she was not fond of raw sprouts earlier, she has developed a taste for them and now prefers them to cooked sprouts. “After steaming the sprouts for around two minutes, I add onions, tomatoes and some chaat masala to them. It’s a favourite with my kids,” says the 34-year-old homemaker.

Like her, Pune-based Maria D’Souza, who blogs on flavoursofmumbai.com, confesses ‘binging’ on sprouts. Her favourite is the versatile mixed sprouts curry that can be eaten with chapatis, rice or even bread. She says that the water used for cooking the sprouts can also be used as stock later as it is full of essential nutrients.

Nutritionist Hira Mahajan believes that aside from being a rich source of proteins and vitamin C, sprouts are one of the most versatile foods when it comes to experimenting. “They can be made with any kind of pulses like moong, white or black chana and matka,” she says. She recommends them for people looking at losing weight without compromising on taste as they can be had in the form of bhel or even Maharashtrian dishes like misal and usal.  

Hira, however, discourages buying them from the market and recommends sprouting them at home to decrease chances of getting an infection. “When you buy them from outside, you don’t know what kind of water has been used for soaking them,” she says. She adds that sprouts should not be cooked in excess water as that can kill the  nutrients.

“Sprouts can be sautéed in minimum oil, steamed or even par-boiled in minimum water. The skin should not be discarded as it adds fibre,” says Hira.

Sprout at home
While there are sprout makers available in the market today, Maria prefers to make her sprouts the traditional way. “I soak them in water overnight. The next day, the water is thrown and the sprouts are wrapped in a damp muslin cloth. After 12 hours, rinse and wash them once as this helps to stave off any smells that may come with certain sprouts such as chickpeas. After 3-4 days, the sprouts will be ready,”  she says.

Ingredients
250 gms mixed sprouts
7 to 8 garlic coarse paste
2 tbsp oill1 onion chopped
1 tomato chopped
1 tbsp garam masala
1 tbsp ambadi mix masala
1 tbsp red chili powder
1 tsp turmeric
1 cup jackfruit seeds
1 cup water or as consistency required
Salt as per taste

Method Boil the mixed sprouts in a pressure cooker. Wait for 4 whistles. Keep the tender sprouts aside
Take a heavy bottomed pan or wok and add oil. Keep the heat on low flame. Once the oil is hot, add coarse garlic paste to it lNow add chopped onion and sauté for a minute.
Add chopped tomatoes and sauté for 2 mins.lRemove the outer skin of jackfruit seeds. Cut them into halves. Mix them with the tomatoes.
Combine turmeric, red chili powder, ambadi masala, garam masala. Mix all of them well and stir for 2 mins.lMix boiled sprouts with water. Stir and mix well.
Add salt.
Now cover with a lid and cook for 5 to 6 mins on low heat.
Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot with bread or rice.
Courtesy Maria D'Souza