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I think you are well on your way to adding legumes back into your diet by sprouting them first, and Sprout People web site is THE place for information. The videos are great.

Sprouting does help reduce the digestive issues. Do you have problems digesting nuts? If so, sprouting and dehydrating them may help you out. I soak and dehydrate all our pecans, walnuts and almonds before consuming them. We call them "Crispy Nuts" and got the information from the book,"Nourishing Traditions". I just did 8-cups of walnuts yesterday and have them safely stashed in the freezer. "Crispy Nuts" last longer in storage than untreated nuts. You need to store walnuts, even when they've been sprouted and dehydrated, in the refrigerator or freezer due to the type of oil in them.

I've been sprouting for decades and have purchased all kinds of sprouters over the years, but my favorite is the Easy Sprout, and I have 3 of them (so far). I sill use 1/2-gallon canning jars with sprouting lids occasionally when sprouting large amounts. Easy Sprout sprouters are constantly in use, especially in the cooler months when I sprout wheat and other grains to grow into grass for juicing as well as sprouts, and sprouts for growing micro-greens. These are our winter source for "fresh" food.

Since you will be holding your sprouts in the refrigerator instead of dehydrating them, I'd also suggest ordering a box of "Peak Fresh" reusable storage bags from Amazon.com for storing them. Sprouts really do keep longer in these bags. After you wash the bags in hot soapy water, be sure to rinse well and air dry. I like to sanitize the bags with a bleach water solution (1 t. unscented bleach to 1-quart of water - in a spritz bottle) and air dry.

FYI - Lentils keep growing after they are refrigerated, so you may want to stop sprouting lentils when the tail is very short, knowing it continues to grow. Sprouted lentils and garbanzo beans will also cook faster since they are fully hydrated, so keep that in mind.

I use a salad spinner (be gentle) to remove the extra water from the final rinse. Too much water remaining and the sprouts will spoil faster.

I do love sprouted and dehydrated lentils, and I dehydrate what I can't use fresh within a few days of sprouting. I can quickly rehydrate them just soaking in hot water if I want to add them to a salad or stir-fry, or use them to make lentil tacos, or add to ground meat mixtures as a meat extender if I don't have any fresh sprouts on hand. I use a cooked mixture of sprouted rice and sprouted lentils as a substitute for ground beef occasionally.

I sprout a bean/seed mixture (adzuki beans, lentils, mung beans, radish seeds, fenugreek and clover) and make it into fried patties to use as a meatless "burgers". (I used a mixture from SproutPeople - "Beanie's Awesome Mix" along with some NOW Zesty Sprouting Mix.)

You're right, I am very cautious about the potential for bacteria growth in sprouts. I use acidified water for soaking and rinsing. I use food-grade citric acid (I buy it in bulk amounts on-line when I find a bargain). Fruit Fresh (which is a mixture of citric and ascorbic acid) will also work if you happen to have some on hand. I mix 1 t. of citric acid powder per 1-quart of water. I generally make up a gallon of water at a time in a glass gallon jug. The acidified water will also help reduce spoilage of sprouts during storage in the refrigerator.

I fill my Easy Sprouter with acidified water to cover the sprouts and swish them around in the water for soaking as well as rinsing. After rinsing I hand-spin the water out like the guy does in his videos at Sprout People.

Hope that helps you out. Happy sprouting and happy tummy!

-Grainlady

Thanks for the help. Yes, I watched the sprout video and was encouraged to give it a try. I'm going to order a couple of easy sprouts to use. My dad made some sort of Greek bean soup every week for his lunches -- either garbanzo, great northern, or lentil -- so I grew up eating a lot of beans. My husband loves my dad's garbanzo and great northern soup, and I used to make them frequently. But between the copious amounts of Beano I would have to ingest and the double, triple, soakings to get rid of the troublesome properties, I kind of gave up. I was happy to find the dried & sprouted lentils in the grocery store. That way I could experiment before actually trying sprouting myself.

I used to sprout alfalfa seeds back in college but haven't done anything recently. A few years ago my daughter gave me some freshly sprouted lentils. I used them in a curry flavored stir fry. They were so tasty, but, as often happens, I promptly forgot about them, and she never sprouted any more. My daughter-in-law soaks almonds before oven roasting them. I'm not sure if she gets them to the point of sprouting, but they have a very light crispiness. Different from regular roasted almonds. A few years ago, Trader Joe's sold frozen green garbanzo beans. I bought several packages after I discovered that I suffered no ill affects from the green garbanzos. Alas, TJ stopped carrying them, and I haven't seen them anywhere else.

Thanks again for your help. I'll be placing my order today.