How to Grow Mung Bean Sprouts at Home: It Turns Out to Be This Easy
SummaryBean seed selection: choose plump beans with no pest or disease damage. Soaking: soak the beans for 12-24 hours. Sprouting: scoop out the soaked beans and rinse them with water 2-3 times, then wrap them in moist gauze and place them in a 22-25°C environment to sprout, spraying water 2-3 times a day; once they show white, they are ready to sow. Cultivation: wrap the mung beans in dark cloth and put them into a small basket lined with a perforated plastic bag, spread an appropriate amount of sand above and below, spray water 1-2 times a day, and harvest at the right time.
How to Grow Mung Bean Sprouts at Home
1. Bean seed selection
Buy some mung beans from a supermarket or vegetable market, then remove the spoiled mung beans and those with insect holes; keep the plump, brightly colored beans that have no damage or pest or disease damage; when buying mung beans, those from the current year or the previous year and fully mature are best.
2. Soaking
Put the selected mung beans into a container with water and soak them for 12-24 hours.
3. Sprouting
Scoop out the mung beans that have fully absorbed water and swollen, rinse them with clean water 2-3 times, then wrap them in moist gauze and place them in a 22-25°C environment to sprout; spray water 2-3 times a day. Generally after 2-3 days the seeds will show white, and they are then ready for sowing.
4. Cultivation
Prepare a dark cloth that is loosely woven and elastic, wrap the mung beans in it, and tie the opening of the bag, but leave enough space for the bean sprouts to grow. Find a small plastic basket, line it with a perforated plastic bag, spread 2cm of moist sand on the plastic bag, then place the cloth bag with the wrapped mung beans on the sand; spread 3-4cm of moist sand on top of the cloth bag, then place the small plastic basket in a cool, ventilated place, and spray water 1-2 times a day according to how dry or moist the sand is.
5. Harvest at the right time
When the surface of the sand cracks and reveals the cloth bag, it is ready for harvest; take the whole cloth bag out of the sand, wash off the sand outside, then cut off the roots below, and what is in the cloth bag is the finished mung bean sprouts.
Benefits of Mung Bean Sprouts
1. Weight loss
Mung bean sprouts are rich in dietary fiber and low in both fat content and calories. When losing weight, eating cold-dressed mung bean sprouts with a little vinegar has a fat-reducing effect and is a very good weight-loss food.
2. Clearing heat and reducing internal heat
Mung bean sprouts are cool in nature; because they are the sprouts grown from mung beans, they have the effect of clearing heat and reducing internal heat.
3. Supplementing vitamin C
Mung bean sprouts are rich in vitamin C and have a certain auxiliary dietary therapeutic effect on diseases caused by vitamin C deficiency.
4. Nourishing the face and beautifying
Mung bean sprouts are rich in vitamin C, which can clear excess free radicals from the body, nourish the face, beautify, and resist aging.
Suitable and Unsuitable Points for Eating Mung Bean Sprouts
Mung bean sprouts are rich in nutrients, and generally everyone can eat them; they are especially suitable for long-term smokers; however, people with weak constitutions should not eat too much.
When stir-frying bean sprouts, use a hot pan and stir-fry quickly so that vitamin C is less damaged; mung bean sprouts are cold in nature, so when cooking it is advisable to add a little shredded ginger to neutralize their cold nature; adding a little vinegar when stir-frying mung bean sprouts can both prevent the loss of vitamin B1 and strengthen the weight-loss effect.