soaking and sprouting garbanzo beans for hummus

[cherbear]

I soaked my garbanzo beans and now I am on day two of sprouting. They are sprouting, but they also have an unusual smell. Sort of like marinated, left on the counter too long kind of smell.

My goal is to make the raw hummus dip from Alissa's book. Has any one else tried to make this. Is it normal for the beans to smell that way? Is it just part of the sprouting process?

Cherbear

[the_lab_rat]

Personally, if my sprouts ever smell bad, I toss 'em (well, compost 'em, that is :) ) Are you rinsing them thoroughly several times per day? Are they out of sunlight, and have adequate ventilation? I don't think sprouts should ever smell like they're bad or fermenting. Hmm, my last 2 attempts at garbanzos have spoiled too...I wonder if they're more sensitive to the summer heat...?

edit: oh hey, I just noticed you live in the bay area too! I was actually wondering if the last 2 batches of garbanzos I bought were bad to begin with, because I've never had that happen before. I got them from 2 different stores here... maybe a bad batch from some local supplier or something?

[cherbear]

lab rat,

I bought mine at whole foods. And I have been rinsing and draining at least four times a day. I was so excited that they were sprouting. But, they smell like sour milk. So, I tossed them. I imagine they aren't any good.

Do you need to live in air conditioning for it to work? We have had a pretty mild summer so far.

thanks for your input.

[the_lab_rat]

I got one batch at WF and another at Rainbow. Both went bad. But earlier ones I'd bought from both stores worked fine. Hmm. No, I don't think you need AC, we don't even have it in our house and most of my sprouts turn out ok. Here's a website about sprouting garbanzos: http://www.sproutpeople.com/seed/garbanzo.html They also have some Q&A pages that might answer your question. I'd guess either a bad batch of garbanzos, or inadequate drainage and/or ventilation.

[queenfluff]

I have heard that it is better to just soak the beans over night and not even bother with them sprouting for hummus. I think two days is definatley twoo long. They go bitter really fast which makes for a weird tasting hummus. For this very reason, I have switched to zucchini hummus. I like the taste of cooked garbanzo bean hummus but not sprouted garbanzo bean hummus because it tastes bitter.

I would try just doing an overnight soak (or maybe a day at the most). Soak them too long and they go bitter and start smelling weird. Once the top layers fell off of mine they got so bad.

[juliebove]

Hmmm... Mine never smelled like that. I wonder if it might be too hot or humid where you are? Or if you didn't drain them fully? You need to get every last drop of water off of them after rinsing.

[greenfeline]

I agree with two days being too long even if sprouting charts saying different. After having two batches go moldy tasting after two days, I soak overnight now and sprout for one day only.

[Stina]

I'm glad someone mentioned this. I sprout and wanted to try that hummus recipe. I live on the coast of Oregon in humid conditions which makes it challenging to sprout 'cause they mold easily. To deal with that I sprout in a fine-meshed sieve over a bowl with a paper towel or dish towel thrown over the top. I also use Now's brand of ascorbic vit c powder; it says right on the bottle that it helps sprouting.

But today for the first time I did the zuke hummus and was very pleased with it.

Anyone else have a hard time digesting sprouted beans? They give me gut ache; I don't get it.

[cherbear]

Thanks everyone for your input.

Yep, I did exactly that. Rinsed them and then let them drain into a bowl from a colandar. I do think that I soaked too long. I started with twelve hours and thought I would soak longer since other charts say you can up to twenty four hours. They were falling apart too. Eww. I have heard from more then one person that the beans don't agree with them. Our house can get up into the eighties during the day. And it can get a little humid in the bay area.

I also just read that temps should be around 70 for optimal sprouting. That's pretty hard to achieve.

Zuchini hummus might be a better option. 8-)