How to Make Rejuvelac – a Sprouted Grain Beverage
Introduction
Sprouting grains has a multitude of nutritional benefits.
During the sprouting process:
- Gut friendly enzymes multiply
- Vitamin content increases (including vitamins A, B-complex, C and E)
- Minerals become more bioavailable ( including calcium, iron, potassium )
- Carbohydrates become more digestible
An easy introduction to sprouting whole grains is making Rejuvelac.
Frequently Asked Questions
Below are FAQs on Rejuvelac as well as a simple recipe to get your started.
What is Rejuvelac?
Rejuvelac is a a cloudy, slightly fizzy liquid with a somewhat cheesy aroma and a mild lemony flavor.
Rejuvelac is the name of a beverage popularized by the raw food advocate Ann Wigmore in the 1970s.
This drink is said to have been inspired by to the Eastern European beverage Bors, made from fermented wheat bran.
Rejuvelac is a made from sprouted whole grains, most often whole wheat, rye or quinoa fermented in water.
Uses of Rejuvelac?
Rejuvelac is a healthful substitute to electrolyte drinks.
People will often add some lemon, honey or other flavoring.
If you like to make smoothies, Rejuvelac can be used as the liquid in smoothies.
For people who make their own raw vegan nut cheeses as suggested by Ann Wigmore, Rejuvelac can be used as the fermenting agent.
How Much Rejuvelac Should You Drink a Day?
Drinking between one half to one cup of Rejuvelac a day is typically recommended for optimal health benefits.
When Should You Drink Rejuvelac?
For optimal benefits, drink Rejuvelac before breakfast or in between meals.
Benefits of Rejuvelac?
For most people, Rejuvelac will have an energizing effect.
Rejuvelac is an easily digestible way to receive the nutrition available in sprouted grains.
Thanks to the soaking time the minerals and vitamins found in the sprouted grains are seeped into the soaking water.
In as little as 3 days, you can enjoy an enzyme and mineral rich tonic which can easily replace electrolyte drinks, at a fraction of the cost.
Side Effects of Rejuvelac?
If you are not used to consuming enzyme rich beverages, you may experience some initial bloating or nausea.
In that case, it is best to start by consuming very small quantities until your gut adjusts.
What Type of Grains Should You Use to Make Rejuvelac?
You want to make sure you are starting with clean, pesticide free grains which have not been irradiated.
Typically organic grains are viable and will sprout well.
The original Rejuvelac recipe promoted by Ann Wigmore recommended using soft wheat berries which are normally used to make pastry flour.
However, hard winter or spring wheat berries can also be used.
Ann Wigmore also mentioned using rye for making Rejuvelac but recommended wheat as the easiest option.
In practice, people have used a host of different grains to make a Rejuvelac.
Once you get the basic recipe down, feel free to try it with other grains of your choice.
Is There Gluten in Rejuvelac?
When Rejuvelac is made from any grain containing gluten such as wheat, rye or barley, it will also contain gluten.
You can make gluten-free Rejuvelac by using a gluten-free grain.
Best results have been reported with the pseudo grain quinoa.
Gluten-free Rejuvelac can also be made with a non grain such as cabbage.
Precautions to Take When Making Rejuvelac
While making Rejuvelac is a fairly simple process, it is still important to watch out for mold contamination.
To ensure success, make sure you are starting with very clean utensils.
Should mold appear or if the Rejuvelac develops a foul odor then it will be best to disgard.
How Long Should You Keep Rejuvelac?
According to Ann Wigmore in The Sprouting Book, Rejuvelac will keep covered in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days and is best consumed within that time frame.
However, many people report keeping Rejuvelac for a few weeks in the refrigerator.
It is also possible to freeze Rejuvelac.
Keep in mind that Rejuvelac that has been frozen will not ferment cheese as well as fresh Rejuvelac because freezing can reduce enzyme strength.
Recipe Notes
Grain Soaking Time
Optimal grain soaking time will depend on how old the grains are and how hard the bran layer is.
Hard spring wheat berries will take longer to soften than soft spring wheat berries and therefore the soaking time will be longer.
Soft wheat berries have been reported to reach optimal germination in just 3 hours but most sprouting recipes call for an initial soaking between 6 and 12 hours.
There is flexibility in this process and for many people, the easiest will be to just soak the grains overnight.
Temperature and Sprouting Speed
Temperature is a factor in sprouting.
The grains will sprout faster under warmer conditions than under cooler conditions.
Water to Use
You will want to use chlorine free water as chlorine destroys enzymes.
Filtered water can be used.
Tap water that has been boiled to let chlorine bleach evaporate and then cooled to room temperature can also be used.
Initial Soaking Water
Initial soaking water can be used to water plants.
It is not usually recommended to drink it as it may contain the hard to digest components of the whole grain that are released at the start of germination.
Using Up the Leftover Sprouted Grains, aka “Spent Grains”
After three soakings, the sprouted grains are considered “spent grains” as what is left behind is largely fiber.
These “spent grains” are similar to the grains leftover from brewing beer.
The spent grains can be used up to bulk up veggie burgers or as partial substitute for whole wheat flour in baked goods.
Alternatively, some people will feed them to their chickens or compost them.
Rejuvelac
Equipment
- 1 half gallon mason jar ( alternate: any wide mouth glass jar )
- 1 sprouting lid ( alternate: cheese cloth with rubber band )
- 1 sprouting stand ( alternate: glass bowl )
Ingredients
- ½ cup soft wheat berries ( alternate grains include: hard wheat, rye, quinoa )
- filtered water (alternate: boiled tap water brought to room temperature )
Instructions
Hydrate the Grain
- Place wheat berries in mason jar.
- Fill jar half way with filtered water.
- Discard any wheat berries that float to the surface.
- Cover with sprouting lid.
- Soak wheat berries for a minimum of 3 hours and up to 12 hours.
- Pour out soaking water.
- Rinse berries by placing covered jar under tap water and filling it to point of overflowing.
- Pour out rinsing water.
Sprouting the Grain
- Shake berries in jar so that they are spread apart.
- Place covered jar at a 45 degree angle, mouth down so that water can drain off.
- After 12 hours, place covered jar under tap water and fill it to point of overflowing.
- Pour out rinse water and place jar back at 45 degree angle.
- Repeat the rinsing process every 12 hours until wheat berries have sprouted and tail is slightly shorter than the wheat berries – this should take no more than two days total.
Ferment the Grain
- When wheat berries have sprouted, rinse them and then fill jar one third of the way with filtered water.
- Water will have turned into Rejuvelac when it becomes cloudy and fizzy after 24 to 48 hours at most.
- Pour off the Rejuvelac into a separate bottle. Rejuvelac can be used immediately or refrigerated.
- Refill jar of sprouted wheat berries one third of the way with water and soak for another 24 hours.
- Pour off Rejuvelac batch into a separate bottle and refrigerate.
- Refill jar of sprouted wheat berries one third of the way with water and soak for another 24 hours.
- Pour off the final batch of Rejuvelac into a separate bottle and refrigerate.
- Remaining spent grains can be saved in refrigerator for a couple of days or frozen for later use as discussed in blog post.
- Enjoy your Rejuvelac plain or mixed with fruit juice and a sweetener according to your taste.
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