November 18, 2021
Two years ago, I discovered sprouts.
During my early COVID quarantine time when we were all first stuck at home stocking up on Twinkies and toilet paper, I powered through “The Sprout Book: Tap into the Power of the Planet's Most Nutritious Food” to learn how to use dirt-cheap seeds—readily available anywhere even when grocery stores are sold out of Twinkies and toilet paper—to unlock a host of nutrients in an inexpensive, space-saving environment at home.
I used the “Broccoli & Friends” mix —a potent blend of high-germination broccoli, alfalfa, radish, and clover sprouting seeds) and a glass mason jar sprouting method to sprout for 5 days and…holy cow! I was amazed at the life these little powerhouses took on.
The book teaches you how to easily grow sprouts, microgreens, grasses, and much more, the health benefits of sprouts, including the ability to improve the digestive process, increase metabolic rate, increase enzymatic activity, prevent anemia, aid in weight loss, regulate cholesterol, reduce blood pressure, prevent neural tube defects, boost skin health, improve vision, support the immune system, and increase usable energy reserves. Plus, sprouting deactivates all the built-in plant defense mechanisms. I now use most of these on salads and in smoothies, then salt, spice, and dehydrate a batch for a crunchy on-the-go snack.
Doug Evans, my guest on today's podcast, is an early pioneer in the natural food industry, and he happened to have written The Sprout Book. In 2002, he co-founded Organic Avenue, one of the first exclusively organic plant-based retail chains in the country. He then created and founded Juicero, the first fresh, farm to glass automatic cold-press juicer, with the mission of bringing more fresh produce to the home.
Doug Evans lives in the Mojave Desert at Wonder Valley Hot Springs. Doug Evans wrote The Sprout Book in an effort to teach people about the power of sprouts and has written a transformative plan for sprouting. He's revolutionizing gardening and growing your own food right in your kitchen in an affordable and accessible way. His mission in life is to help people learn how to grow and eat the most nutritious food on the planet…sprouts.
Among the mind-blowing nutritional qualities of sprouts:
- They have 20-30 times the nutrients of other vegetables and 100 times those of meat
- They pack cancer-fighting properties and help to protect us from cardiovascular disease and environmental pollutants
- They aid in digestion
- They are a simple way to grow your own vegetables and are compatible with all diets
The forty recipes inside his book feature sprouts on top of raw vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, spices, sea vegetables, and top-quality cold-pressed vegetable oils for the healthiest diet possible.
During our discussion, you'll discover:
-Doug Evans' personal history…08:25
- Moved to the Mojave Desert about 3 years prior to this interview being recorded
- Growing consumable foods in the desert will take a very long time
- Never sprouted for meals; always as a garnish
- Within one month, the majority of calories were consumed via sprouts grown in a small box
- “Digestion begins with the eyes”
- Microbiome shifted so that sprouts could be digested more efficiently
- Viome
- Gutbio
-How sprouts differ from other plants regarding plant-defense mechanisms…14:30
- The Plant Paradox by Steven Gundry
- Podcast with Steven Gundry:
- The Carnivore Code by Paul Saladino
- Podcasts with Paul Saladino:
- Carnivore Diet Myths Debunked, Hard Questions About Meat Vs. Plants, Are Broccoli Sprouts Really Bad For You & Much More With Dr. Paul Saladino.
- The Toxicity Of Plants, Carnivore For Athletes, Does Meat Cause Acidity, The “Game Changers” Debate & Much More With Dr. Paul Saladino.
- Carnivore Diet, Cleaning Out Your Colon, Eating Brains, Hunting Zebras & Much More With Paul Saladino.
- The Truth About The Carnivore Diet: Everything You Need To Know About Dangers, Benefits, Mistakes & Hacks For Eating Only Meat.
- Podcast with Dr. Rhonda Patrick:
- The soaking process initiates the germination process; removes the enzyme inhibitors and phytic acid
- Find high-germination seeds
-The sprouting process explained…17:15
- All plants naturally want to reproduce just like animals
- One seed has the potential to grow into an entire plant such as broccoli
- Acids in the nutritional process remove the enzymes and prepare the seed for germination
- Sprouting is simulating the reproduction process of particular plants
- Sprouting jars with metal screens are best to strain the sprouted plants
- Sprouting stand
- Rinse them again, invert the jar so the extra water can drain, and still have airflow into the jar
- Alfalfa vs. alfalfa sprouts are a dramatic contrast in edibility and digestibility
- Much more digestible than seeds
- Sprouts don't have sulforaphane by themselves; it's activated when you chew or grind them
-The immediate results of Doug Evans' sprouting practice…31:50
- Expected to be weakened, but became the strongest version of himself
- Sprout safety became a concern
- Didn't discover anything; necessity became the mother of invention
- Realized sprouting could make up the majority of his veggie diet
- Produce in the grocery store is often weeks, even months old when you purchase
- Every single sprout contains every amino acid needed to form a protein
- One cup of garbanzo is 25g of protein and 150 calories
- Many leading nutrition experts are fans of sprouts
- Growing a pound of sprouts using less than a gallon of water
- Water utilization is a priority in the desert
- Yield 10 cups of food from one cup of seeds
- Sulforaphane:
- Anti-cancer properties
- Reduce inflammation of the heart
- Create heat shock protein in the brain that reduces symptoms of autism
- Reduce fasting blood sugar levels to improve Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c)
- SuperLife: The 5 Simple Fixes That Will Make You Healthy, Fit, and Eternally Awesome by Darin Olien
- Podcast with Darin Olien:
- Down To Earth With Zac Efron And Darin Olien on Netflix
-Logistical questions about sprouting answered…42:10
- Everything you put in your mouth is risky
- Put bleach in the water to get mold or mycotoxins get cleaned off the seeds (be sure to rinse off before eating)
- Podcast with Ann Louise Gittleman:
- Seeds are tested in batches for bacteria and pathogens
- Sprouts, shoots, microgreens are all labels
- Microgreen is grown on a tray, shoots up, has a sprouting medium (soil, paper towels, etc.)
- Shoots are similar to microgreens, except harvest before leaves appear
- Start with sprouts, move on to microgreens, and shoots with time
- Roots are a great source of nutrients
- Podcasts with Thomas Cowan:
- Why The War On Cancer Has Failed & What You Can Do About It: Mistletoe, NAD, Deuterium Depleted Water, Melatonin, Gerson Therapy & Beyond!
- The Shocking Story Of Vaccines, The Toxicity Of Ultrasounds, Why You Shouldn’t Play With Your Child & Much More With Dr. Thomas Cowan
- Why Your Heart Is Not A Pump (& What Most Doctors Don’t Know About The True Cause Of Heart Disease).
- How (& Why) To Eat More Vegetables, Why A Plant Is Like An Upside-Down Human, Little-Known Superfood Plants & More!
- Dr. Cowan's Garden (use code BEN to save 15%)
- Writings by Rudolf Steiner
-How to obtain the best seeds for sprouting…52:25
- The best supplier today may not be the best tomorrow
- The Sprout Book has the latest info on the best suppliers
- Sproutman
- True Leaf Market
- Sprout House
- Look for specificity and traceability
- Look for levels of phytochemicals and antioxidants
-Technology that can simplify the sprouting process without compromising quality…56:15
- Testing showed 100% of samples had yeast present
- Molds are ever-present
- Hacks and automation are handy, but are they addressing the above issues?
- Need water source, circulation, the right type of seeds
- Software and community to codify and centralize knowledge for the good of the consumer
-Why Doug Evans can't believe more people are not sprouting right now…1:03:30
- 10x the value if you do a bit of work
- Sprouting isn't mainstream because people get discouraged with the work involved
- Everything becomes easy when the demand hits a certain tipping point
-How to make the best hummus you've ever had in your own kitchen…1:07:30
- Garbanzo can be sprouted in 12 hours
- Garbanzo hummus recipe—blend for 1 minute:
- 1 cup of garbanzo sprouts (8 oz.)
- Pickles (3-4 oz.)
- Brine (3 liquid oz.)
- This hummus can be used as a base; add any other sprouts in (lentils)
- Lentils can also sprout in 12 hours
- Antioxidant levels in lentils double in 12 hours
- Vitamin C content is tripled in 12 hours
- Continuing for 3-4 days quadruples the fiber level
-And much more…
Upcoming Events:
- Keep up on Ben's LIVE appearances by following bengreenfieldfitness.com/calendar
Click here for the full written transcript of this podcast episode.
Resources from this episode:
– Doug Evans:
– Podcasts:
- The Truth About Lectins And The Plant Paradox By Dr. Steven Gundry
- Carnivore Diet Myths Debunked, Hard Questions About Meat Vs. Plants, Are Broccoli Sprouts Really Bad For You & Much More With Dr. Paul Saladino.
- The Toxicity Of Plants, Carnivore For Athletes, Does Meat Cause Acidity, The “Game Changers” Debate & Much More With Dr. Paul Saladino.
- Carnivore Diet, Cleaning Out Your Colon, Eating Brains, Hunting Zebras & Much More With Paul Saladino.
- The Truth About The Carnivore Diet: Everything You Need To Know About Dangers, Benefits, Mistakes & Hacks For Eating Only Meat, with Paul Saladino.
- Everything You Need To Know About How To Use Heat Exposure To Enhance Performance, Burn Fat, Gain Muscle And Think Better, with Dr. Rhonda Patrick.
- How To Biohack Your Morning Routine, The Surprising Compounds That Destroy Stem Cells, The Tastiest Nut Butter On The Face Of The Planet & Much More!, with Darin Olien.
- The Indiana Jones Of Superfoods: Stem Cells, Air-To-Water Machines, Coffeefruit & More With Darin Olien.
- Radical Metabolism: How To Cleanse Your Gallbladder, Increase Your Metabolism, Burn More Fat Without Exercise & Much More!, with Ann Louise Gittleman.
- Why The War On Cancer Has Failed & What You Can Do About It: Mistletoe, NAD, Deuterium Depleted Water, Melatonin, Gerson Therapy & Beyond! with Dr. Thomas Cowan.
- The Shocking Story Of Vaccines, The Toxicity Of Ultrasounds, Why You Shouldn’t Play With Your Child & Much More With Dr. Thomas Cowan.
- Why Your Heart Is Not A Pump (& What Most Doctors Don’t Know About The True Cause Of Heart Disease).
- How (& Why) To Eat More Vegetables, Why A Plant Is Like An Upside-Down Human, Little-Known Superfood Plants & More!, with Dr. Thomas Cowan
– Books:
- The Plant Paradox by Steven Gundry
- The Carnivore Code by Paul Saladino
- SuperLife by Darin Olien
– Other Resources:
- Sprouting Jar on Amazon
- Sprouting Stand on Amazon
- Sproutman
- True Leaf Market
- Sprout House
- Dr. Cowan's Garden (use code BEN to save 15%)
- Viome
- Gutbio
- Down To Earth With Zac Efron And Darin Olien on Netflix
- Rudolf Steiner
Link to sprouting jars, sprouting stands, etc. off Amazon
Episode sponsors:
–Kion Colostrum: With winter in full swing and the gut-busting holidays approaching, it's a great time to start taking colostrum as insurance. You can get Kion Colostrum and save on your first order!
-CAR.O.L: The AI-powered exercise bike that is clinically proven to give you the same cardio benefits as a 45-minute jog in under 9 minutes, with only 40 seconds of hard work. Get a $100 discount off your CAROL bike when you use the code BEN.
–Organifi Gold Chocolate: This superfood hot chocolate is loaded with herbs, medicinal mushrooms & healing ingredients to help the body fight disease during sleep. Receive a 20% discount on your entire order when you use discount code BENG20.
-Four Sigmatic: I’ve been using Four Sigmatic products for a while now and I’m impressed by the efficacies of their mushroom products. I use them. I like them. I support the mission! Receive 10% off your Four Sigmatic purchase when you use discount code BENGREENFIELD.
Ben, you mentioned Rhonda Patrick several times. I listen to all her podcasts and have for a long time. As you said she has talked a lot about sprouting, but I don’t think she has ever suggested putting broccoli seeds in the freezer and then eating them. She has suggested putting the sprouts in the freezer to save them. But not the seeds. In fact, she has wondered about even eating the seeds.
I also have to defend Rhonda here, I believe I’ve listened to most of her content on broccoli sprouts and she’s never recommended just eating the seeds.. great podcast though learned a ton and bought the book with your link!
Ben or Doug –
Curious your thoughts on a sprouting detox /cleanse.
I have done the Dr. Pompa detox and I have noticed after some
research there is a sprouting detox /cleanse.
Ben – Have you decided on your end of year detox?
Blessings from Mexico.
Dale
I began experimenting with sprouting over a year ago during the COVID pandemic. The interview with Doug reinforces all the reasons I got started with sprouting, plus it added more to my knowledge base! I just ordered The Sprout Book, and I’ll have to try making the sprouted garbanzo bean hummus. I imagine it will make a good spread for my homemade sourdough bread.
I have been putting together my own sprout combo where I combine equal portions of mung beans, green lentils, wheat, broccoli and radish seeds. I add a scoop of the combo (about 2 tablespoons) to each mason jar and harvest after 4 to 5 days including the first soak.
I also like cooking up a mix of kidney beans, brown rice and pork, which makes a great burrito filling. I sprout the kidney beans and rice for a few days before cooking. I just wish I had started sprouting 20 years ago!
Thank you for sharing this Jon! Glad to hear my conversation with Doug was reassuring. And as far as starting 20 years ago, well, you know what they say, the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago but the second best time is today :)
Jon! This is great feedback!
You are a great example of putting sprouting into practice.