Happy Sprouted Grains Month! That’s right everybody, sprouted grain is indeed April’s grain of the month. Here at the Whole Grains Council we get a lot of questions about sprouted grains so we thought it was high time to tell you a little more about them, where you can find them and how you can prepare them at home.
So what is a sprouted grain? Grains are the seeds of certain plants, largely cereal grains. All three edible parts of the whole grain – the germ, endosperm, and bran – are crucial to creating the new plant. The germ is the plant embryo, which, when it grows, will feed on the starchy endosperm. The bran layers provide some additional nutrients and — along with the inedible husk found on many grains – help protect the grain seed until it’s ready to start the growth cycle. Until then, the seed counts on certain built-in growth inhibitors to keep it from germinating until temperature and moisture conditions are just right. Then, once sprouting starts, enzyme activity wipes out these growth inhibitors and transforms the long-term-storage starch of the endosperm to simpler molecules that are easily digested by the growing plant embryo. What’s more, the sprouting process apparently increases the amount and bio-availability of some vitamins (notably Vitamin C) and minerals, as well as fiber, making sprouted grains a potential nutrition powerhouse.
To read the rest of the story, please go to: Oldways Preservation Trust/Whole Grains Council
