y can I not GET this nut thing!!!

[Shanti]

Okay, so please be patient with me, cuz I want to get this right....

To sprout the nuts: In water, in the fridge overnight, 24-48 hours for almonds. at this time they are NOT covered (also, what kind of bowl? Any?; THEN in the morning, you rinse them....do you cover them with water AGAIN and put them in the fridge in an uncovered container???? And continue this process? Can you simply sprout them overnight and then freeze them, so you don't have to keep rinsing and washing???

Thanks for your help and patience!

[luckitri]

No expert here but if you freeze them the enzymes will be killed (?) Depends on your purpose I suppose.

[Veganforlife]

I sprout them, then use them. Or sprout them, then dehydrate them (almonds with some sea salt, then dehydrated are yummy!). Others will pitch in and give you better instructions.
I freeze them before I sprout them.

[Shanti]

okay, so you don't not put them in an air-sealed container?? They're just loose in the bowl?
Is that true about the enzymes dying if they're frozen? What does that mean for the banannas we freeze, or vegetables etc.?

[Veganforlife]

I don't think freezing destroys the enzymes, it may slow them down or some of them lose their freshness.
Like I said, I soak and use.

[Rawkinlocs]

Shanti,

Hon, please don't try to over-think this whole thing. Many of us do not even bother with soaking/sprouting nuts. I "may" soak almonds but thing is, I don't just eat them as a snack...if I did then I'd be more inclined to soak them. I mainly use them in recipes and even some of Alissa's recipes do not require soaking the nuts first but if it does, then I'll soak to use in the recipe that requires it.

What you want to do is pay attention to how you feel when you eat the nuts. Some people, upon eating unsoaked nuts such as almonds, feel indigestion. Others...MANY others that I've read replies from on here as well as spoke with in person, do NOT feel any discomfort at all when eating unsoaked nuts.

If you do not have a dehydrator to dry your nuts after soaking them then a few here have mentioned laying them out on a towel or paper towel and allowing to air-dry and then storing away in the fridge or freezer. I've never tried it so not sure how well that works. But as Lucy said, when I do soak mine, I usually dry them in the dehydrator so they can be stored more easily without storing in water and so I don't have to eat wet nuts.

Also, from what I read before, freezing destroys "some" (a small percentage) but not all of the enzymes and nutrients. Most of us use frozen fruit or freeze our own and I even store my grains, seeds and nuts in the freezer if I know I will not be using them up quickly.

Best thing to do is, if you are going to soak nuts, soak only what you need or what you are going to use at the time - that is UNLESS you have a dehydrator to dry them in for more longevity in storage.

[tisha]

Here's what I do:

Step 1: The night before-Get a 2 cup measuring cup
Step 2: Pour in 1 cup almonds
Step 3: Add water to cover-don't worry if you have floaters, they will absorb water, too
Step 4: Put in fridge overnight
Step 5: The Next Morning-Hold your hand over the cup and drain the water into the sink
Step 6: Put almonds and 3 cups water in blender
Step 7: Blend
Step 8: Strain almond milk into a 4 cup measuring cup
Step 9: Pour back into blender
Step 10: Now you are ready for smoothies. :)

I hope you don't feel like I'm making fun. I am not. You said you wanted to get it right. This is what I do. It's not hard at all. Don't stress over if you've soaked the almonds long enough. By soaking overnight, they will be soft enough for smoothies or whatever you want them for. I don't use a measuring cup. I just grab a cup out of the cabinet, but I thought it might be less confusing for you to measure. I don't measure anything. :D