Broccoli Sprouts are literally sprouted broccoli seeds. They’re little, but it appears that they pack a HUGE punch when it comes to health benefits. We first heard about this phenomena while listening to the Joe Rogan Experience podcast with one of his guests, Dr. Rhonda Patrick. There has been a ton of research on the benefits of these little gems, and we intended to figure some of this out so we could get in on the goodness.
For starters, broccoli is a member of the cruciferous vegetable group, which include superstars like kale, brussels sprouts, cauliflower, and radishes. Since we all know that I’m not a doctor, nor a scientist we’ll keep this pretty high level. These vegetables contain a component called sulforaphane. What’s more interesting is that broccoli sprouts are estimated to contain 10-100 times the sulforaphane as mature broccoli does. But, you ask, what does this sulforaphane do for me? Let me quote another health and wellness guru, Dr. Josh Axe:
“For one, this compound has some super impressive cancer-preventing and cancer-fighting capabilities, but that’s not the only thing it can do. Sulforaphane has been shown to support the heart, bones and respiratory system, and it might help your body fight off a common infection, detoxify environmental chemicals, combat autoimmune disease and even protect your brain after serious injury.”
If that’s not enough to get you to keep reading, I don’t know what is. Guess what else? They’re super easy to grow all on your own with very limited supplies. I’ll admit, I’m not much of a green thumb but I’ve been successfully growing broccoli sprouts on my kitchen counter for a while now. We’ll get into those details more in a minute. What do you do with them? You eat them! It’s that simple.
We keep some fresh sprouts in a sealed container in the fridge and put them in salads or on a sandwich. There’s additional research that suggests freezing your sprouts has an even more profound effect on the sulforaphane levels, so we keep a big bag in the freezer and use it in smoothies.
The big question you probably have is “But, is it working?!?”. My answer would be that I just don’t know. We may never know. There are things you can do to get an idea and hone your health regimen, though. Go to your doctor and request a full blood panel. This will give you a baseline, as well an idea where you need to tweak things. For example, Matt and I were both low in Vitamin D so now take supplements. If your blood sugar is high, take a look at your diet and find ways to cut out sugar, simple carbohydrates, and processed foods (there’s usually tons of hidden sugar in processed foods).
Like I said, we may never know the benefits of eating clean, healthy foods, but I definitely know it’s not doing my body any harm. Also, while I’m on this adventure, spinning around the sun, I want to feel as good as I possibly can, and that includes feeding my body REAL food and nutrients.
You want to know how to grow your own broccoli sprouts, you say? I thought you’d never ask! Here’s what I did:
– Go online and order yourself some organic broccoli sprout seeds. I use www.sprouthouse.com
– Get a large mason jar or any good sized glass jar
– Get some cheesecloth to use as a cover for straining out water
– Put about 2 T in the bottom of the jar and cover with water
– After about 8-12 hours, tilt the jar and pour out all the water
– After the intial soaking, rinse the seed well and drain out all the water 1-2 times a day.
– Be sure you get all the water out, this is important to avoid any bacteria growing
– Watch your babies grow!
– After 4-5 days, pull the sprout bundle out and start over
Give it a shot, I dare ya! But if you do, you have to let us know how it goes. Cheers!
These are amazing! You can also buy a large tray of sprouts (aka Microgreens) from Kara Strauss’ farm, http://www.bloommicrogreens.com. She delivers to Paso Robles once a week. 🙂
Very cool!!! Thanks for the info!
There’s another local company too — Gracious Greens. They sell at several farmers markets, including Atascadero, and at the SLO Natural Food Coop.
https://graciousgreensfarms.com/about/
Oh, thank you!!! We’ll look for them!
Help! I used to grow these, but now for some reason they won’t grow. I’ve been soaking my cloths in vinegar water, could this be the problem? Or is it that I put them in a slightly brighter spot? I can’t find on the internet if they need an alkaline or acidic environment in which to grow. They grow for a few days, then stop.
Hi there! I don’t soak my cheesecloth in anything. I just put some amount of seeds in a mason jar and soak for 12 hours, then drain and rinse every morning. Ours sit near a window, not too much sun. Try that and let me know how it goes. Good luck!