Sprouting vegetables
Sprouting vegetables
Sprouting vegetables are very trendy at the moment. Unfortunately, only a few varieties are well known. Sprouts can be used in many different ways: on sandwiches with a slice of cheese or tomato, in salad, stir fries, as garnish, but there are also recipes for ‘sproutbread’. Sprouts have been used in different cultures for thousands of years and at least as many dishes.
What sprouts can you eat? In principle, the seeds of all edible plants, apart from nightshade-like plants such as tomatoes and potatoes, are suitable to sprout. There is a lot of diversity and the results can be shown on your plate. Sprouts will transform your salad into a culinary feat in no time.
A number of varieties
- Adzuki sprouts: Adzuki is a Japanese relation of the soya bean. The adzuki sprout has a neutral flavour and is therefore mainly used in combination with other sprouts (see sprout mix), mainly in stir fries and soups.
- Broccoli sprouts: soft broccoli flavour, with a hint of radish. On sandwiches and in salads.
- Alfalfa: The most popular sprout vegetable, can be combined with almost every dish. Alfalfa is the icing on your salad and turns your regular cheese sandwich into a healthy meal!
- Coriander sprouts: Distinct coriander flavour with a hint of lemon. Use: Asian and Mexican dishes, curries and delicious with fish. Both raw and blanched.
- Pea asparagus: A long name for an equally long sprout. Originally discovered by a Danish grower. The base is a regular green pea, which grows into a nice sprouts that looks and tastes like mini asparagus in a few days.
- Garlic sprout: Everyone who has met the Garlic Sprout has been surprised so far: the flavour… not to sharp, nice and soft, but unmistakably garlic.
- Greenpeez: Very decorative green sprout. Crunchy with the fresh flavour of snow peas. As a garnish, in salads or in a quick stir fry, delicious!
- Sprout mix: Sprout mix is a collection of short sprouted beans and seeds with a firm flavour. Sprout mix gives a ‘bite’ to salads, raw or blanched.
- Chickpea sprout: The chickpea sprouts are ideally suited for stir fry or to process into soups, for instance. Also delicious roasted, or fried in salads.
- Lentil sprouts: Lentil sprouts can be eaten raw just fine, but steamed they are even better! This nice (double) sprout is easy to digest and is very good for adding to stir fry dishes, soups and salads. Leek and onion sprouts: Leek sprouts have an especially clear leek taste, punchy and herby. These sprouts taste especially good with fish dishes.
- Hotsprout radish: A punchy sprout! There is a reason this radish sprout received the nickname ‘Hot Sprouts’ the first bite is fresh, but after two seconds the real radish flavour kicks in. Perfect on a sandwich, in a salad or a wok.
- Rettich sprouts: Radish lettuce’s green brother, with a fresh and punchy flavour, slightly less peppery than radish lettuce. Delicious on a cheese or ham sandwich, in a salad or in a wok.
- Beetroot sprouts: Beet sprouts have a slightly earthy flavour, a bit different and neutral combined with other vegetables. But it’s the fantastic colour that turns your plate into a party!
- Red cabbage sprouts: Fresh tasting sprout with a very attractive light purple colour. Red cabbage, as a part of the ‘Brassica’ family, contains a lot of natural anti oxidants and vitamin A and C. Rosabi sprouts: the sprouts of this rare Korean beet variety has a beautiful pink colour and a soft, sweet, beet flavour.
- Sango sprouts: Sango sprouts are radish sprouts that, instead of being green or white are now a dark red/ purple colour. They have a funny shape and a clear radish flavour.
- Bean sprout: People mainly know this sprout through the Chinese/Indian kitchen. The juice mung bean sprout has been grown and eaten in the Netherlands for decades. Bean sprouts are fresh and crunchy, taste delicious in stir fries and soups, but also do well in salads, if washed before use.
- Fennel sprouts: Very striking due to the fresh aniseed flavour. Perfect with fish dishes or on a cheese sandwich, as well as with dessert, for instance as a garnish on ice cream!
- Sunflower sprouts: A delicious oil/nutty flavour. The lovely green sunflower sprouts taste delicious in salads, soups and stir fries, both raw and braised.