Mung and soy beans are the most common sprouted beans found in the stores around. I think I may have seen garbanzos, too.

Store bought beans can be sprouted too, just make sure never to sprout and eat beans or peas meant for planting as some are covered with certain substances designed to prevent molds/fungus or to help with nutrient uptake.

I have sprouted for many years, for my parrots mostly. Most sprouted beans other than the mung, soy and garbanzos (maybe some others I don't know of) are used in stir-fries, bread or some other cooked dishes. Some taste bitter when sprouted. Some will be bitter if sprouted anywhere but a dark environment. Mung beans (maybe others too) will never attain the plumpness found in market sprouts unless they are sprouted under pressure. It is a method that forces the sprout to collect more water in a shorter main root system with no side roots.. I've never done it since my goal is always to just get the bean to a sprouted level that makes more nutritious, not to have the crisp water-logged roots, that we humans prefer.

Lentils sprout very easily. It is the one sprout that I'm most likely to pick a few out of my birds' supply, to sample myself. I really haven't found a cooked lentil dish that I like, but lentil sprouts have a deliciously sweet and taste. The green lentils are the most nutritious but they do come in other colors: tan, black, red, orange-ish and colors inbetween. These I've see in health food stores where I buy my sprouting legume/seeds/nuts/grain. I highly recommend buying organic to use for sprouting. If you do allot of sprouts at one time, I use a product called GSE which is grapefruit seed extract. It deters bacterial growth.

Some of the beans I sprout for my birds are used ONLY in cooked mashes. The main reason is, in the past, there was major discussion amongst us professional parrot breeders (I'm now retired) and avian vets about the distinct possibility that "some" uncooked beans would interfere with the uptake of calcium.

Hopes this helps.

Crystal

I like radish, broccoli, and alfalfa sprouts. I use a sprouter. I have not sprouted or tried the larger beans as they would be too tough I think.

Mungs need to be kept in the dark when sprouting as they will be very bitter if they turn green. Usually seeds for sprouting are not treated with any antifungals and are usually only viable for a single year to sprout reliably. Radish, broccoli, and many other seeds can also sprout. Because store bought lentils may have been treated in some way (usually heated) they are not going to sprout reliably, neither will navy beans. My sprouters are 3 levels and have small pins protruding from the bottoms to help hold the seeds slightly above the flat bottom surface. Each also has a small hole for draining. Once you pour water in the top level it trickles down to each layer and out to the bottom in a waste pan.

"Because store bought lentils may have been treated in some way (usually heated) they are not going to sprout reliably, neither will navy beans".

ksrogers, I did not know that. I've not tried to sprout store-bought lentils as I only buy from health stores in bulk to make my own mixes. The little Navy beans take longer to cook than some other, even larger, beans. I always assumed it was because they were a denser bean... did not think it was because they are treated! Thanks for that info.

Bejay, I forgot to mention not to use kidney beans for sprouting and eating raw, as they contain a toxin that is only removed through thorough cooking.

Crystal

To help prevent bug infestations on dried beans, they have to do something to help keep them from 'culturing' bugs. Some time ago, Szcheuan peppercorns were banned from the US, due to bugs. There is now a procedure that kills any bugs before these are shipped here.

Some years ago, many manufacturers of bird foods/seed started packaging differently. Now more air tight, these packages could be flushed with nitrogen to help preserve the freshness. Bug eggs are killed in the highly 'nitrogenated' atmosphere. The webs and other insect debris was pretty much eliminated, therefore quality is retained for a much longer period of time.

Perhaps they are nitrogen-flushing beans now. Maybe that'll fix the gas leaks ;-)

Crystal

"maybe that will fix the gas leaks" LOL.

I always thought that was what epizote was for.

Just my 2 c's.

Bejay

I raised parakeets some years ago - very interesting hobby - they were all the rage at that time. Guess it sort of died down now.

I will try to find a health food store - and try again. Perhaps the seeds weren't right for sprouting.

Thanks for the interesting posts.

Bejay

Very good sources for sprouting seeds

http://www.easygreen.com/
http://www.sprouting.com/usastore/enter.html

Here is a link that might be useful: Seed sprouting supplies

Crystal are you still using GSE? The wiki on it says

Independent studies have shown that commercial preparations contain the compound benzalkonium chloride, which is a synthetic antimicrobial commonly used in disinfectants and cleaning products, the related compound benzethonium chloride, the antibiotic triclosan, or the preservative methylparaben.[1][13][19] Some samples were shown to contain up to 22% benzalkonium chloride by weight, despite the known allergenicity[20] and toxicity[21] of the compound at higher doses.[13] These chemicals were not present in grapefruit seed extracts prepared in the laboratory, and GSE preparations without the contaminants were found to possess no significant antimicrobial effect.[1] Self-made citrus seed extracts had no broad-spectrum capabilities as a preservative. Although GSE is sold in health food markets,[13] there is no good evidence for any natural antimicrobial activity.[1]

Here is a link that might be useful: GSE wiki

Bejay,
I bought adzuki beans from the health food store for sprouting. They sprout, but they take three times as long as the mung beans that were specifically for sprouting. I don't know if adzuki beans are normally this way, but the hulls were very hard to get off and maybe a quarter of them didn't sprout.

Even though it's a bit more expensive, I started buying seeds specifically for sprouting. Territorial Seeds has a nice selection.

Here is a link that might be useful: Territorial Seed

Wow - I posted the original question almost a year ago, however, it is very timely anyway. I've perfected my technique somewhat since then, and we recently had some mixed sprouts and some alfalfas - that we enjoyed in pitas and stir fries.

Time to get some more. The only complaint is the high cost of ordering on-line, because of the shipping costs. I found a store near me that carries a lot of bulk foods, such as alfalfa, soy beans, steel cut oats, specialty flours, brans, wheat germ, etc., so stock up whenever I need them. Otherwise, if buying too much, it may be awhile before they are used.

Bejay

Bean sprouts are from Mung neans. If exposed to light and allowed to turn green while sprouting, the sprouts tend to be bitter.

RE: (Wow - I posted the original question almost a year ago, however, it is very timely anyway. I've perfected my technique somewhat since then, Bejay)

.....Hey Bejay. I'd like to get into sprouts to eat. What did you find out over the last year that helped perfect your technique?