Sprinkle some sprouts

We are just living a summary of a fast-paced life and food habits laced with artificial products. With little or no time to exercise, we look out for shortcuts. But as dieticians and health experts say, healthy food is a product of a healthy kitchen. So, let’s see how health can be sprouted in a healthy kitchen. 

We can grow sprouts very easily at home or pick up clean and organic options from supermarkets. These superfoods are power-packed with proteins and micronutrients. For calorie-watchers, they are low on calorie, fat and sodium. Sprouts have been used since ages and are used for medicinal purposes too. They are also known for their easy digestion. Sprouts are versatile and can be used in various dishes.   

Salad Recipes with Sprouts 

Carrot Kosamalli

Cook time: 5 mins  

Serves: 4 

Type: Salad 

Ingredients: 

Carrot: 3 mid-sized, grated 

Lemon: 1 

Mung dal sprouts: 1-1 ½ cups 

Ginger: 1 tsp, grated 

Sugar: ½ tsp 

Salt: As per taste 

 

For tempering: 

Oil: ½ tsp 

Mustard seeds: 1 tsp 

Chana dal: 1 tsp 

White Urad Dal: 1 tsp 

Asafoetida: ½ tsp 

Whole red chill: 1 

Coriander leaves, chopped for garnishing. 

Method: 

• Take a large bowl and add in the grated carrots. 

• Toss in the sprouts and grated ginger into the carrots. 

• Season them well with sugar, salt and juice. 

• Heat a tempering pan to dress up your kosamalli. 

• Take oil and when the oil warms up add mustard seeds. Wait for the mustard to splutter.  

• Now add the dals and asafoetida. Break the red chilli into two and add into the tempering. Let the whole thing splutter and come together. 

• Pour this onto the salad. Garnish it with chopped coriander leaves.  

(Tip: You can steam the sprouts for 10 mins, if you like.) 

Desi Greek salad 

Cook time: 10 mins  

Serves: 4 people 

Type: Salad 

Ingredients: 

English Cucumber: 2 

Tomatoes: 3 

Onion: 1 

Mixed gram sprouts: 1 cup 

Feta cheese: 150 g 

Walnuts: ½ cup, chopped 

Coriander leaves, chopped 

For dressing: 

Extra virgin Olive oil: ¼ cup 

Vinegar/ lemon juice: 2-3 tbsp 

Sugar: ½ tsp 

Salt and Pepper: to taste 

Method: 

• Chop cucumbers, tomatoes and onion in chunks. 

• Take a large bowl and mix in the three veggies. 

• Add sprouts and walnuts. 

• Cut the feta cheese into cubes and toss in with the salad. 

• Take a jar and add in extra virgin olive oil, vinegar, sugar, salt and pepper. 

• Shake the jar well to prepare the dressing. Check for seasoning before adding into the salad. 

• Pour in the zingy dressing into the salad and toss well.  

• Add another level of freshness by adding coriander leaves.   

Tip: You can throw in few pieces of roughly torn toasted pita bread.

Soup Recipes with Sprouts 

A wholesome soup

Cook time: 20mins 

Serves: 4 

Type: Soup 

Ingredients: 

Carrot: 2 mid-sized  

Potato: 1 mid-sized 

Cabbage: 100 grams 

Mung dal sprouts: 1 cup 

Rice noodles: a handful, boiled 

Vegetable stack/ Water: 2 ½ cups 

Ginger: 1 inch 

Lemongrass: ½ stalk 

Salt: As per taste 

Pepper: As per taste 

Method: 

• Wash, clean and chop 1 ½ carrot and 1 potato roughly. 

• Take a pressure cooker and cook the chopped veggies well with enough water. 

• Finely chop cabbage and ½ the carrot and grate the ginger too. 

• In a deep vessel, blend in cooked carrot and potato. 

• Heat up the blended mixture after adding vegetable stock or water. 

• Into the vessel throw in the aromatics like lemongrass and ginger.  

• When the wholesome liquid starts to boil, add in sprouts and finely chopped cabbage and carrot. Let it simmer for a minute or two.  

• Season well and remove the lemongrass stock before serving. 

• To serve, take a soup bowl and place some rice noodles and pour in the hearty soup with sprouts and vegetables. Serve hot.

Tip: You can garnish the soup with chopped greens of spring onion. You can prepare vegetable stock at home by boiling assorted veggies and some aromatics.

Cold Soup for your warm summers

Cook time: 30 mins  

Serves: 6 people 

Type: Soup 

Ingredients: 

Tomatoes: 1 kg 

English Cucumber: 1 

Red bell pepper: 1 

Green bell pepper: 1 

Onion: 1 

Horse gram sprout sprouts: 1 cup 

Garlic: 3-4 cloves 

Basil: 1 sprig 

Cumin powder: 1 ½ tbsp 

Lemon juice/vinegar: 3 tbsp 

Extra virgin olive oil: 5 tbsp 

Chives or garlic greens, chopped for garnishing  

Salt and pepper to taste.

Method: 

• Make a cross on each tomato. Boil water and put the tomatoes in the boiling water for 3-4 mins till the skin separates at the cross-marked area. 

• Take the tomatoes out of the water and put them to cool.  

• Roast the garlic on fire or oven and mash it well when they are a bit charred.  

• Peel and finely chop cucumber along with the bell peppers, onion and basil leaves.  

• In a separate bowl, add in the chopped veggies, horse gram sprouts and mashed garlic. Hydrate them well with vinegar/lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil.  

• On a girdle, roast the cumin powder till a nice aroma comes. Keep an eye on it as the powder burns off easily. When the aroma comes, take it off the heat. 

• Peel off the skin of the tomatoes and blend them well in a blender. 

• Pass it through a sieve to get a smooth velvety texture. Add water to make it into a thin dal consistency.  

• To the soupy puree, add roasted cumin powder, salt and pepper.  

• To serve this red sprouted goodness, take a soup bowl and pour in the tomato liquid. To this add the prepared sprout and veggie mix.  

• Garnish with chives or garlic greens. 

• Serve cold. 

Sprouts in multiple ways 

Sprout wraps

Cook time: 60 mins  

Serves: 6 

Type: Main Course 

Ingredients for sprout tikki: 

Mung dal sprouts: 2 cups 

Chana dal: 1 cup, pre-soaked for 2-3 hours 

Ginger: 1 tsp, grated 

Onion: 1 chopped finely 

Green Chilli: 1 chopped finely  

Red chilli powder: ½ tsp 

Coriander powder: 1 tsp 

Cumin powder: 1 tsp 

Amchur powder: 1 tsp 

Fennel powder: ½ tsp 

Ingredients for the potli: 

Black cardamom: 1 

Cinnamon: 1 inch 

Clove: 2-3 

Black pepper: ½ tsp

Ingredients for tempering: 

Oil: 1 tbsp 

Asafoetida: 1 tsp 

Cumin seeds: 1 tsp 

Ingredients for roti: 

Maida: 2 cups 

Atta: ½ cup 

Oil: 2 tbsp 

Salt: to taste 

Ingredients for the wrap dressing: 

Mint leaves 

Coriander leaves 

Roasted Cumin powder: 1 tbsp 

Hung curd: 1 cup 

Chat masala to sprinkle 

Onions sliced thinly  

Method: 

• Take a small muslin cloth to make a potli. Put all ingredients for potli in the cloth and tie it well. 

• Take a pressure cooker and put the sprouts, chana dal, ginger, onion, green chilli and all the spice powders. Add salt and the potli into the pressure cooker and cook for 4-5 whistles or till the pulse and the sprouts are well cooked. Once the cooker is cooled, take out the potli and mash up the dals. The mashed-up mixture should be dry enough to hold shape. 

• Heat a pan and add oil for tempering. Add cumin seeds and asafoetida. 

• Once the cumin seeds crackle, add the mashed dals and mix well. Check for seasoning. 

• Make small tikkis and shallow fry them.  

• To make the roti: Knead together maida, atta, oil and salt. Let it rest for 30 mins. 

• While the dough is resting make the wrap dressing. For this, in a bowl add hung curd, chopped mint and coriander leaves and roasted cumin powder. 

• Roll out the roti and cook them on a girdle with some butter. 

• After the rotis are made you can assemble the wrap. 

• Take a roti and spread the dressing, place few slices of onions and sprinkle some chat masala. Over this place 2 tikkis and wrap them tightly. 

• You can cut them into 2 or serve it as a whole. 

Tip: Instead of hung curd you can use cream cheese and tomato sauce as your dressing. Alternatively, for the roti, you can use tortilla wraps. 

Sprout muffins  

Cook time: 30 mins + overnight soaking 

Pieces: 10-15 

Type: Snacks 

Ingredients for stuffing: 

Rice: 2 cups 

Mixed Sprouts: 1 cup 

Green chillies: 2-3 

Zucchini: 1 grated 

Fresh coriander leaves: finely chopped 

Onion: 2 finely chopped 

Oil: 2 tbsp 

Baking soda: 2 tsp 

Baking powder: 1 tsp 

Method: 

• Soak the rice overnight. 

• Grind rice, sprouts and green chillies into a smooth paste.  

• Add in grated zucchini, coriander leaves and finely chopped onion. 

• Add seasoning according to your taste. 

• Preheat the oven at 180 degrees for 10 mins. 

• Prepare your muffin tray by greasing and dusting with flour. 

• Now add baking powder and baking soda to the batter and mix well. 

• Pour and fill ¾ of each muffin mould with the batter and leave ¼ for the muffin to rise. 

• Bake the muffins for 18-20 mins or till a toothpick comes out clean.  

• Leave it to cool on a rack. 

With healthy sprouts, we can enjoy a complete day’s meal. We can spruce up a nutrient-packed breakfast, a hearty lunch and a scrumptiously delicious dinner. And not to forget mid-morning snack and evening tea-time yummy stories. One can enjoy these high-vitamins and minerals yet humble sprouts with a bit of creativity.