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I love sprouts. From alfalfa to clover, I love the crunchy goodness of a tangy little sprout – yes, even when they are stuck between my teeth!

mmm sprouty

When I was a little girl, my mom would buy packages of alfalfa seeds, fill a Costco-sized pickle jar up with water, and then poor the seeds in. After several washings and draining the water, she’d stick that jar into a dark cabinet above our washing machine and go about her week. Just a short time later, she’d pull out that huge jar and it’d be just packed with green sprouts.

Somehow, I lost the knowledge that this was a possible thing. That you could grow fresh sprouts in your darkened cabinets whilst going about the important work of Internetting and happy houring. So, when I decided to do this whole garden thing, the sprouts seemed like a good place to start.

I don’t have a Costco-sized pickle jar, but I do have a lovely mason jar that had previously been holding a jillion tea sachets. And when I went to start my seed, I found that a cut-off toe of some old nylons worked just as well as a cheesecloth. Here are the steps I followed:

1. Get some seed. You can find alfalfa or clover sprout seed in just about any gardening or hardware store, or online. You’ll also need a big jar, a bit of straining material (cheesecloth or nylon).
2. Rinse your seed. Some people like to do this with a 1% bleach solution to ensure that there is no bacteria (e-coli) on the seed.
3. Put your cleaned seed into your jar, cover the top with your straining material, and fill the jar 1/3 up with water. Drain the water and swirl the seed around the sides.
4. Fasten the lid on your jar and place it in a completely dark place. A cabinet works well, and wrapping the jar with a towel is a good idea.
5. Repeat step 3, 2-3 times a day.
6. Your seed will start to sprout quickly, but only pull out the completely sprouted seed when it looks ready.

Et voila – tasty sandwich and salad crunch for virtually no cost. Considering that a tiny package of sprouts costs upwards of $3 in a store (and less, if it’s gnarly and possibly e-coli infested cheapo stuff) and a package of seed that will grow 20 times that costs under $3, there’s no reason not to do this at home if you love the stuff.