what are wheat berries

[marigold]

what are wheat berries...i thought it was the seed of wheat ....and as i dont eat grains i have avoided it ..but my parner is reading out to me now and we think it may be something else???? :confused:

[kirk]

Hi Marigold,
Wheat berries are indeed the seed of the wheat. It is sold in two different varieties depending on what you want to do with it. Hard winter wheat is used for growing wheat grass for juicing and soft wheat berries are used for sprouting and making dehydrator breads and for making a fermented wheat drink known as rejuvelac (recipe on the internet.) I probably haven't covered it all but, yes it is the seed of the wheat. :).....kirk

[marigold]

thanks kirk..i wonder if its better sprouted - i mean i avoid grains usually but maybe it would be ok ..anyone know ???

[kirk]

Yes. It would be better to sprout it. From what I understand, When a seed is sprouted, it releases an explosion of growth and activates enzymes and nutrients locked in the seed.

[smasty]

I think you have to sprout it to eat it raw (it's too hard otherwise, right? or maybe just soaked is ok, I dunno). There's loads of good recipes in Alissa's book for sprouted wheat. It sprouts pretty fast. I added sprouted wheat to my flax crackers, it was good!

[kirk]

Yep, every book I've read about it states that unless it's sprouted, its too hard to digest, and the seed is still in a dormant state with much less nutrition than the sprouted grain.

[marigold]

i was thinking more that we are not meant to eat grains...( remember doug grahams book grain damage) so i was wondering if sprouted wheat berries are a different thing..are ok better ???anyone know ?

[kirk]

Marigold,
I haven't read Doug's book so I don't know if he placed a difference between sprouted and unsprouted. But I do know that any seed, whether it's wheat or any other, is best sprouted for two reasons:

1. There is higher nutritional content (because the enzymes are activated and biochemical activity is greatly increased.)
2. Sprouted seeds are much easier to digest.

Hope this helps:)

kirk

[thunderdancer]

So is sprouted wheat ok??

What about the fact wheat contains gluten... do the sprouted berries or buckwheat still contain it when they are sprouted??

Not read the grain damage book either, well only a bit of it, he says we don't digest grains well as we don't have a gillet and that they haven't been around long evolution-wise I think.. so I guess in that case the seeds haven't been around that long.. but then again a seed is a lot different to a whole plant that's been ground up to make flour then cooked to make bread..

I think I reckon that the seeds are ok, personally, based on my ponderings above.

Wish there was a definite answer tho too.

[kirk]

Tunderdancer

I'm not sure if sprouted wheat still contains gluten but i do know that wheatgrass juice does not contain it. Sorry I couldn't help more.

[marigold]

whats your opinion alissa as you use them alot ???

[Alissa]

People who have wheat allergies can eat sprouted wheat.
Buckwheat is technically not a grain but a fruit so many people who cannot eat grains are ok with buckwheat.
Sprouted buckwheat is something that i used to use a lot in my shakes and stuff like that.
As for Doug graham... he is against grains, but then again he is against a lot of what most raw fooders eat. He is a natural hygienist.
Doug and i are great long time friends. We actually created the first fitness camp together and traveled for a few months up the coast of CA and into Oregon, eating and working out together every day. I love Doug and although i ate with him for months at a time on his program it is again natural hygiene and mostly mono meals.
He does not agree with 'my diet' and we have had discussions about this, but i know for me it works.
While i was with Doug i felt great, looked great and was always STARVING!
So eventually i went back to eating whole fresh food of fruit and veggies and salads with a prepared meal thrown in there once in a while and a dessert every other night or so....
I personally don’t eat a ton of grains as i just feel heavy if i do. But unless you have been raw for a long time or are healing an illness, etc. i think they are fine to eat occasionaly.
Some people do really well with them and others don’t. Trust your body!
If i want a bread or my rye bagels (with the onion dip, yummy) or some dish with grains i have it, its sometimes months in between and then ill feel the need or be making it for someone and i eat it....
Oh so back to the questions. Yes, marigold, wheat is a grain. You must sprout grains in order to eat them as it gets rid of the enzymes inhibitors that prevent you from digesting it.

Best,
Alissa

[thunderdancer]

***People who have wheat allergies can eat sprouted wheat.
Buckwheat is technically not a grain but a fruit so many people who cannot eat grains are ok with buckwheat.***

Alissa THANK YOU
For that, well all of it, but that and also the best words I can think of hearing from anyone in an advice way...

TRUST YOUR BODY

I'm working on getting more in tune with body right now.

Hoorah I don't have to chuck out my sprouting buckwheat :)

[Alissa]

Sure thing!
Since being in warm weather i actually haven’t been eating much grains at all but Buckwheat is actually a grain that i ate the most of. It always felt ok with me and not as 'heavy'.
Yeah, the trust your body thing... it takes a while but its really the only way.

[Curtis]

Very interesting thread, thank you all for the great advice. :)

[Sadii]

Someone asked if sprouted grains had gluten, was it you, Thunder? Anyway, I believe that if you use the entire sprout, and not just the grass, you are getting gluten.

Hope that helps.

Kathy

[Analeah]

Hi Marigold,
Wheat berries are indeed the seed of the wheat. It is sold in two different varieties depending on what you want to do with it. Hard winter wheat is used for growing wheat grass for juicing and soft wheat berries are used for sprouting and making dehydrator breads and for making a fermented wheat drink known as rejuvelac (recipe on the internet.) I probably haven't covered it all but, yes it is the seed of the wheat. :).....kirk

Thanks for this post Kirk, I didn't know wheat berries were sold in two different varieties. How do you tell one from the other? I have tried making rejuvelac with the wheat berries I bought at the store but I can never seem to get it to ferment. I am wondering if maybe I have the hard winter wheat berries instead of the soft ones? Anyone know how to tell? I bought them already packaged at the store (organic of course) but the label is only in French, German and Italian so I am not sure if it says on the package whether it is a winter hard wheat grain or the soft kind. Is there any way to check just by the grain itself or do you have to know from the manufacturer? Thanks!

[kirk]

Hi Analeah,
The way to tell one from the other is a little difficult unless your looking at both grains at the same time. Soft winter wheat has a slightly shorter grain and is blonde with a hint of brownish red color, while hard winter wheat has a somewhat longer grain and has a distinct brownish red color.
You should be able to make rejuvelac with either one. I think the only difference between the two is that hard winter wheat has a slightly higher nutritional content. Below are some links to some good online sources for wheat and a rejuvelac recipe. Oh, I almost forgot, check out the Kamut it is yet another kind of wheat even more nutritious than the others. I believe that the grain was discovered in a four thousand year old tomb in Egypt.

http://www.celtic-seasalt.com/grainsbeans.html

http://www.sproutpeople.com/seed/grains.html

http://www.sproutpeople.com/cookery/rejuvelac.html

[Analeah]

Hi Kirk, thanks for the clarification! I think it is probably the softer wheat berries as they don't really seem to be longer than oats or any other grain but I guess it is probably pretty hard to tell if I don't have them right next to eachother. It doesn't really matter to me as long as they can both be used in the same recipes. I have been using spelt a lot lately and I love the flavor. Do you know how the nutrition quality compares to that of wheat, oats or other grains? Thanks for posting the links too, I checked out the site with the Kamut and it looks really good. Do you notice a big flavor difference between kamut and wheat or does it taste similar? I think I will put an order in and try it out if they ship internationally that is.

[marigold]

THANKS for this clarrification ..reallly just what i wanted to know..i read dougs grain book and i suspect my headaches were down to grain..i have wheatgrass and am ok and knew that it was diff from whole grain..mm may well try the sprouted grain then.....
love marigold

[kirk]

Analeah,
I have heard some say that Kamut had a rich flavor but I have not planted mine yet. I would think that it's about the same with a little higher protien content.

kirk

[Analeah]

Ok cool, thanks again kirk! I think I will order some soon and see for myself what the flavor is like.