Sproutmaster - 8x10 Tray Sprouter
WE NO LONGER OFFER THIS DEVICE.
The SproutMaster offers excellent drainage, and is great for growing vertical Leafy Sprouts. The SproutMaster is versatile - it can sprout virtually any seed. It is even able to grow Grass, Greens and Micro-Greens - with proper care, and perhaps a growing medium.
We sell two configurations 1) Three trays that measure 5x6 inches each. 2) A Single tray that measures 8x10 inches (the one on this page). All SproutMaster trays are 2 inches deep.
This SproutMaster is the single 8x10 inch Tray. It comes with 1 Trays, 1 Dividers, and 2 Lids/Bases. If you purchase multiple 8x10 trays, you'll end up with more of the Lids/Bases then you'll use on regularly, but extras can be a good thing....
If you would like the Three Tray version, click here: SproutMaster Triple 5x6.
Yields approximately 4 Cups (1/2 lb.) of Sprouts
Seed Prep
Measure out 2 Tablespoons of seed* (slightly heaping) into your Sprouter or a strainer.
Rinse your seeds to remove dust and debris.
Soak
Transfer your seeds into your Sprouter (if necessary), or to a bowl.
Mix seeds up as you slowly add water to assure even water contact for all.
Add 2-3 times as much cool (70-80°F) water.
Allow seeds to Soak for 4-12 hours.
Do Not Ever Soak Again. Soaking is done only this one time.
We start counting days at this point - when the Soak is done (post-Soak is the phrase we use).
A crop of Leafy Sprouts usually takes 6 days - from This point in time to harvest.
Sprouting
Empty the seeds into your Sprouter (if necessary).
Drain off the soak water.
You can use it - it has nutrients in it. We use it on house plants.
Rinse thoroughly with cool (70-80°F) water.
Drain thoroughly.
Draining Thoroughly (Maniacally even) is the key to great crops. The smaller the seed (all Leafy Sprouts are small seeds) the more thorough you must be. Do Not skimp on Rinsing - but focus seriously on Draining.
If you need to see what we mean by Thorough Draining - check out our videos.
Set your Sprouter anywhere out of direct sunlight and at room temperature (70° is optimal) between Rinses.
This is where your sprouts do their growing. We use a counter top - in the corner of our kitchen, where the sprouter won't get knocked over by cats, dogs, kids or us. Indirect sunlight is fine, as is your regular room light - because light just does not matter much in the first couple days.
A plant can only perform photosynthesis when it has leaves. Until a plant has leaves, light has little if any effect. Sprouts also happen to like air-circulation, so don't hide your sprouts. When leaves do appear, this will be plenty of light for them to green up. You can also use Grow Lights if you like.
Rinse and Drain again every 8-12 hours for 3 days.
Always be sure to Drain very thoroughly. The most common cause of inferior sprouts is inadequate drainage. Even the best designed Sprouting Device holds water, so pay special attention to this step.
Greening
On the 4th day (post soak) relocate your sprouts, if necessary.
If you've been keeping them away from light - move them. Avoid direct sun as it can cook your sprouts, unless you are growing in a Tray Sprouter - in which case direct sunlight is great. Indirect sunlight is best for non-tray Sprouters but grow lights work well too. Experiment - you will be amazed at how little light sprouts require to green up. Photosynthesis is a marvel!
Continue to Rinse and Drain thoroughly every 8-12 hours.
Your last Rinse and Drain will be either at the end of day 5 or the start of day 6.
Always Drain Thoroughly.
Finishing
Your sprouts will be done about the end of day 6.
The majority of sprouts will have open leaves which will be green. You'll recognize them.
De-Hulling
Hulls are the thin coat on a seed. In most cases they separate themselves from the sprout. They are only a problem when it comes to the shelf life of your finished crop. We've eaten them for years and consider them extra roughage, but the crop looks better and lasts longer without them - so removing them is good.
You may De-Hull your sprouts at any time during day 5 or 6.
If you have a Salad Spinner - De-Hulling can be your last step. You can harvest and refrigerate them immediately after you finish.
You can also remove hulls prior to harvest...
If you are growing in a Jar - using the Coarse Mesh Screen will allow some hulls to float out through the screen while Rinsing. Repeating and agitating your sprouts will allow more hulls to escape.
If you're growing in an Easy Sprout Sprouter - transfer your sprouts to the Solid Base, fill with water, and agitate with a fork. This will help hulls get to the surface - where you can skim them off. When you've gotten all you can - move your sprouts back to the Growing Vessel, Rinse again, and Drain Thoroughly.
If you're growing in our Stainless Steel Sprouter you can get rid of most of the hulls by Rinsing Upside Down. Instead of writing words - let us direct you to our short video on the subject: Rinsing Leafy Sprouts Upside Down
Here is our video on De-Hulling.
Harvest
If you De-hulled with a salad spinner - you can go right to refrigeration. If not... Your sprouts are done 8-12 hours after your final Rinse and Very Thorough Draining. If we minimize the surface moisture of our sprouts they store much better in refrigeration, so we let them sit for 8-12 hours after that final Maniacal Draining.
Storing Your Crop
Transfer your sprout crop to a plastic bag or the sealed container of your choice. We have Produce Storage Bags that can extend shelf life substantially.
Leafy Sprouts are best within a week of harvest, but we've had some crops last for over a month in the fridge.
Great work sprout farmer!
*Amount of Seed to Use
* If using Sproutpeople's Single Harvest Pack - use the whole bag (for a one-quart Sprouter). It will produce a crop of approximately 8 ounces.
These seeds yield approximately 7:1 - which means the sprouts will weigh 7 times as much as the seed you start with, but, they will increase even more in volume - so don't start with more than 2 (heaping) Tablespoons per quart/litre of sprouter capacity.
SproutMaster trays (of the same dimension) are stackable. Add trays to build your own sprout skyscraper. SproutMasters are comprised of Growing Trays, each with a removable Divider - which allows you to grow 2 crops in one Tray, and interchangeable Lids and Bases.
TheThree-Tray, 5x6 inch SproutMaster comes with 3 Trays, 3 Dividers, and 4 Lids/Bases. That is enough Lids/Bases for almost anything you want to grow.
The Single-Tray, 8x10 inch SproutMaster comes with 1 Tray, 1 Divider, and 2 Lids/Bases. If you purchase multiple 8x10 trays, you'll end up with more of the Lids/Bases then you'll use regularly, but extras can be a good thing....
A little more you should know:
The bottom of every tray is full of small holes which allows for exceptional Drainage of all sprouting seeds, though as usual, you still have to play an active part. The SproutMaster is made of heavy duty, food grade, white plastic. It will last a lifetime but - it is not dishwasher safe.
The only drawback, besides the price - which is a bit high, is that the holes will require a little poking on your part. When you clean the SproutMaster, after harvesting a crop of small seeded (Alfalfa, Clover, Broccoli, etc.) sprouts, you'll want a paper clip or the like to help get some of the stuck seeds out.
Growing Capacity 5x6 Tray without divider : 1.5 Cups approximately 6 ounces of Leafy or Brassica Sprouts or 12 ounces of Bean or Grain sized Sprouts
8x10 Tray without divider : 1 Quart approximately 16 ounces of Leafy or Brassica Sprouts or 32 ounces of Bean or Grain sized Sprouts
Eat More Sprouts + Grow More Often - Easily!
For Sprouting Instructions, click the name of the Seed or Mix you want to grow.
FOR USE WITH THESE SEEDS/CROPS
Seeds to Sprout in SproutMaster
These seeds are a Perfect match for SproutMaster:
Leafy Sprouts: Alfalfa, Clover and Mixes - Leafy sprouts are the best thing about using SproutMaster. When you grow these in a tray - they grow vertically, roots down, leaves up! It is very beautiful!
Brassicas - Broccoli, Radish, Mustard, Cabbage, etc. These will work just great as long as you remember to keep them from forming a mass. Do Not try to grow Brassicas vertically, as we do Leafy Sprouts.
Exotics - All
Beans - All (see Mung Note below)
Mung Beans - If you want short, sweet sprouts, SproutMaster is perfect. It is slightly less perfect for growing large, thick rooted Mungs. The big points here are - keeping them dark while growing, and applying weight to the growing sprouts. SproutMaster, though not deep is dark inside. To apply weight to the growing crop requires something that fits inside of the growing tray. As that is a very specific size and shape, it may prove difficult to find. The only other issue is the soak period we suggest while growing Mungs. You can submerge the tray in a pot of water to accomplish that, if you're careful. Read the notes further down the page.
Grains - All
Nuts and Seeds - Almonds, Buckwheat Groats, Market Mix, Peanuts, Sunflower - basically All, except Amaranth - 'cause it's a very small seed.
Pre-Sprout Perfection and Possibilities:Grass and Greens - Because the SproutMaster has a top and bottom it can hold moisture well - which makes it possible to grow Grass and Greens without soil. Doing so always requires extra attention, but as long as you keep the seeds moist all through growing, it can be done. WE ARE NOT suggesting this as a good way to grow these crops but we are saying that it is possible. Experiment Freely! The major problem is that the roots will grow out of the holes in the bottom - in a big way. Be sure to cut them off when you harvest. If you try to pull them you could hurt SproutMaster. That is possibly a bit less true, if you grow with a Medium in the tray.
Micro-Greens are possible in SproutMaster if you use soil or another planting medium in the tray. These tiny plant's roots will not be as hard on SproutMaster, but do take care just the same.
Notes
Cleaning: If you sprout small seeds in SproutMaster you might need to poke a few out. We use a paper clip or toothpick (though those can break). Scrub well between crops with soap and water.
Rinse well. SproutMaster is NOT dishwasher safe - at least that's what the manufacturer tells us. We wash ours by hand.
Sterilize: Soap and water usually do the trick, but you can use something stronger every several crops. We used bleach back in the day, but we don't anymore, unless absolutely necessary.
There are many options these days, and though an unclean sprouter can cause your crop to fail - we suggest food grade hydrogen peroxide or grapefruit seed extract - or anything else you are comfortable with. We might even offer something by
now, for sterilizing. Whatever you go with, do remember: It is always true, that a sterile sprouter is a great place to begin a crop.
SproutMaster Configurations: Though the makers of SproutMaster offer other options (single 5x6 trays and triple 8x10 trays), we have limited our selection to the two we offer. If we had more space at Sproutpeople Headquarters,
and endless cash-flow, we would offer them all to you. We apologize for our limitations.
SproutMaster Assembly
Your big decision is whether you want to insert a divider in a tray. If you do - just slide it into this groove. Now you can grow 2 crops at once!
Your other decision is whether to stack or not. If you wish to stack trays, put a base (bases and covers are identical) down (text side up), then a tray, then a cover (text side up), then a tray, then a cover, then a tray, etc. I've had stacks 13 SproutMasters tall!
I have used the 8x10 sprouter and really like it, but I'm looking for the triple tray set and can't find it in the sproutpeople.org website.
Sproutpeople Response: Peg - the 5x6 SproutMaster - along with all of our Sprouters are here:
sproutpeople.org/sprouters. Happy Sprouting!
I have used the 8x10 sprouter and really like it, but I'm looking for the triple tray set and can't find it in the sproutpeople.org website.
Sproutpeople Response: Peg - the 5x6 SproutMaster - along with all of our Sprouters are here:
sproutpeople.org/sprouters. Happy Sprouting!
I bought this and the Easy Sprouter. I prefer this method. There is more room for the seeds to be spread out, so they aren't so piled on top of each other.
I bought this and the Easy Sprouter. I prefer this method. There is more room for the seeds to be spread out, so they aren't so piled on top of each other.
While I prefer the easy sprouter for most of my other sprouts...I have found a way to get long, fat, rootless mung spouts after much trial and error. I now use the SproutMaster for mung beans and am finally happy with results. How I do it is I put down a layer of paper towel or cheescloth OR recently I am trying plastic screening cut to bottom of sproutmaster. Put soaked mungs in. Cover with layer of paper toweling then a wet folded kitchen towel on top for the weight. I then put the bottom and filled Sproutmaster inside a stainless steel steam table type pan about 6 inches deep, then place pan's lid on leaving the sproutmaster lid off. Rinse 2 times a day on day 1 and 2....rinse and soak for 30 mins or more, then place back into stainless pan for another day. Soak day 4, drain then put back into stainless pan...and about this time the sprouts are pushing up above the Spoutmaster...which is good cause the stainless pan keeps it very dark...I harvest when the white stem of the sprout is 5-6 inches long. I pull mass out using the paper towel or screen which holds the branching roots. I "shave" the roots off releasing the spouts from the towel or screen. This takes some practice but it allows you to grow long sprouts and eliminate the tough stringy roots. The sprouts are extremely straight done with way. IF I was the Sproutmaster folks I would change design for folks needing long mung sprouts by making it several inches deeper...AND a removable/flexible screen that one can pull mass of sprouts out and cut off the ends.
