soaking oat groats ?

[mbf]

Hi ,

I am getting ready for the arrival of my dehyrdrator tomorrow :D and want to get my oat groats soaking ( that sounds really funny) but am unsure of how much water to put in ? Does it neede to be covered, refrigerated ?Then it says to change water every 12 hours ? Do I just strain water out and refill to cover what has soaked or add more water for expansion ? will it expand ?

Help !

MBF

[ReneeSC]

Quick reply ( hey... no comment from the non-peanut gallery )

I put my oat groats in a collandar. I rinse, rinse, rinse in tepid water ( not warm or cold ). I then place in a glass-type dish leaving about half of the dish's depth empty ( filling only half-full ). I fill with fresh water ( bottled is best if you don't have a filter ), to about 2 inches above the groats. I leave mine on the counter covered with a clean dish towel.

Changing water: I dump entire contents into the collandar once more.. straining off water. I may rinse one more time. Replace back into dish and cover with more clean water to about 2 in. + above. recover with towel
Oat groats can expand about 1/3 (?) their original mass.

If they are to be sprouted, I leave them on the counter to sprout after changing water 2 or 3 times ( depending on if I see the groats splitting to sprout).

That's the glass-dish method. If you're not going to be using many - I used a jelly canning jar to soak. YOu can place a piece of strainable or mesh cloth over top of the mouth and hold down with a rubber band.. That way you can dump out the water and rinse, and reload water right through the cloth. Tip jar to the side for airflow while sprouting.

Once sprouted, they can go in the fridge. If you're not comfortable soaking on the counter hour after hour... you can do the same in the fridge.

[mbf]

Thank You ReneeSC for your very thorough response !

MBF