Bean Sprouts - When to eat them

[Digger Don]

Being partial to Chinese food we have often eaten bean sprouts from the supermarket.
Just recently we got a present of a seed sprouter.
There seems no way that any sprouts from Mung beans e.g. will be able to grow as large as those we buy.
Should we eat them immediately they have sprouted with just little rootlets, or wait for them to get an inch or so long?
Equally should the shucks be removed as per surpermarket sprouts or are they good roughage?

[BarleySugar]

I eat mine about half inch to an inch long. If you leave them too long the shoots begin to turn brown . I tend to rinse off as many husks as possible, but they are fine to eat. It's just DD being a bit picky .
My sprouting book says they use a special technique to get the long ones, sounds a bit too complicated for home use, but I could look it up if you want. Not suitable for a normal sprouter kit though.

[rana]

I normally wait until they are about 3" long having developed their first leaves (about a week old). They do well in a propper sprouter but I have also grown them successfully in a microwave steamer, as long as they are rinsed through with fresh water every day.

ECONOMY TIP: half kilogram supermarket packs of dried mung beans are usually viable seed and produce bean sprouts as reliably as the very expensive seed sold by seed companies.

[Rocketron]

One Hot Stove: A Primer on Sprouting Lentils
I found this and have had success.

[VJay]

I just was wandering if anyone has managed to grow big beansprouts like the supermarket ones yet?

[Alison Adams]

Ours get fairly long if we can wait that is ! Main thing is to keep them fresh, rinse daily then no reason why they can be supermarket size. I use a large jar with a mesh top for mine. I prefer alfalfa to mung beans tho - they are fabbie in salads and sarnies.

[Hilary B]

My favourite sprouted seeds are fenugreek. Seed sold for use in curries is fine, and I use the jam-jar-and-mesh approach (but I cheat a bit by keeping the jar in my heated propogator when that is switched on). Rinse 2 or 3 times a day if possible.
Must start another batch soon. Haven't done any since I switched the propogator off!