I have mentioned “soaking grains” frequently here at The Nourishing Gourmet. Many have wondered what in the world I was talking about! Others have wondered whyย I would add another step into my cooking, when cooking from scratch takes so long already. An explanation is long overdue. Especially because this is a nourishing practice that I consider vital to our health.
Why I soak my whole grains
Most all of us know the nutritional advantages of whole grain food verses refined flours. Whole grains retain vitamins, minerals, and fiber that are vital to our well being. But what if I were to tell you that in all whole grains there are enzyme inhibitors that can interfere with digestion and other natural substances that blocks you from absorbing all of those great minerals and vitamins?
Grains, that are not soaked, equal poor digestive worth, and blocked vitamins and minerals
Unfortunately, it’s true. But there is a solution!
It’s only been in more recent years that we have disregarded traditional methods of sprouting, soaking, and fermenting grains. Not understanding the importance, we slowly forgot these methods of preparation. But we now know better …
Phosphorus in the bran of whole grains is tied up in a substance called phytic acid. Phytic acid combines with iron, calcium, magnesium, copper and zinc in the intestinal tract, clocking their absorption. Whole grains also contain enzyme inhibitors that can interfere with digestion. Traditional societies usually soak or ferment their grains before eating them, processes that neutralize phytates and enzyme inhibitors and in effect, predigest grains so that all their nutrients are more available. Sprouting, overnight soaking, and old-fashioned sour leavening can accomplish this important predigestive process in our own kitchens. Many people who are allergic to grains will tolerate them well when they are prepared according to these procedures. Nourishing Traditions, Sally Fallon, Pg 25
Soaked grains equal better digestive worth and make vitamins and minerals available to absorb
For those who have had digestive trouble when eating whole grains, this could be part of the answer for you. For the rest of us, it will help make sure we don’t develop digestive issues and insure that we are able to fully utilize all of those vitamins and minerals we eat whole grains to get!
How do you do it?
It’s quite simple. You can soak grains like rice, millet, quinoa, wheat,ย 12 to 24 hours at room temperature in some waterย with 1-2 tablespoons of whey, lemon juice, vinegar, buttermilk, yogurt, or kefir (this gives it an acidic medium which helps neutralize anti-nutrients).ย You can then rinse the grains to remove any acidic taste to them, and then cook in fresh water.
Or you can sprout your grains (check out my post about sprouting grains for more directions).
For baked goods, you can soak your flour in buttermilk, yogurt or kefir 12 to 24 hours and then add the rest of the ingredients right before baking. This makes the fluffiest whole wheat pancakes! I have been able to do this method dairy free as well very successfully (like this recipe for soaked pancakes)
Sourdough is also extremely helpful in reducing anti-nutrients as well. Read this post about the benefits of sourdough, and here is an example of a recipe using sourdough to effectively soak your grains.
I will give more specific direction in individual recipes, but those are the basic guidelines. I have personally found that it isn’t harder to add this step in, it just takes forethought! And it’s definitely worth it for our family’s health.
(Wheat flour soaking in buttermilk for buttermilk pancakes the next day)
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Anonymous
Instead of buttermilk, can I use milk that has been soured with vinegar or lemon juice?
Jo
Sarah
We love raised waffles and no-knead bread. Since the basic recipes use white flour they may not be ideal, but they have such a wonderful flavor and you can use some whole wheat flour; so am I right that they would count as “soaked”?
Sarah
Oops, I didn’t mention that those recipes rise overnight with yeast. Does that give the same effect?
Lynn
Do you just use the liquid that the recipe calls for to soak the flour in the pancakes/waffles? Or do you have to have a special recipe to do it that way? If you just use the liquid from the recipe do you use it all or just part of it?
Kimi Harris
JO,
I not sure…if the milk actually soured enough to become “cultured” than definitely. But sometimes it just makes our milk sour without culturing it, so then it would be a “no”. Good question (even though I don’t have a good answer).
Sarah,
When you are using white flour, you don’t have to worry about whether they are soaked or not. ๐ But if you were using whole wheat, like you said, in the recipes, then it could be considered soaked, I assume.
The only thing I am not positive about is how the yeast interacts in the soaking process, and am curious as to whether Sally Fallon has addressed that in any of her books. For her quick bread recipes, she will have you leave out the salt overnight because that hampers the soaking process. She also has several warnings in her book against yeast, though she does have a soaked, yeasted bread recipe that is a bit of a compromise but shows that she doesn’t think it’s terrible for you. ๐
Good questions, ladies.
Kimi Harris
Lynn,
I just use the liquid that the recipe calls for. For example, I used one of the pancake recipe over at 101cookbooks.com, and soaked the flours in buttermilk overnight using their measurements, and added the rest of the ingredients in the morning. It turned out great! The soaked flour and buttermilk will have a slightly different texture as you stir things in, but you won’t notice in the end product.
5intow
I definitely agree that taking this step to soaking/sprouting doesn’t take more time, just planning.
A friend of mine modified a waffle recipe to use blended, sprouted wheatberries. They are excellent! Maybe by next Tuesday I will get around to typing that up into a post. Better yet, I should make them and post pics. We’ll see how ambitious I get.
Thanks for your blog. It is great to have gentle nudges reminding me to keep putting into practice all that I have learned about nutrition. It is sometimes easy to fall back into some of my old habits. Overall we are way ahead of where we were a year ago, but I don’t want to be content with that and stop moving forward.
Thanks!
~Erin
Sarah
If I want ti make whole wheat bread using this soaking method, how would I do that? I’m trying to get away from the whites, and this soaking thing really makes a lot of sense. Is there a baking cookbook that uses soaked grains that you recommend. Thanks for your help
lindsay edmonds
Kimi, I have heard from a reliable source that the acidic soaking agent is essential unless you soak for several days, and then it would collect it from the air. It is necessary to break down the phytates.
In my experience for soaking breads, muffins, etc. it is best to include the oil/butter and sweetener into the mix as well in the first step. This makes it wetter and more moist. This is what Sue Gregg recommends. (By the way, her breakfast book is a great resource for a soaking bread book!)
When I have soaked some of my muffins with all the flour and just the liquids called for in the recipe (along with buttermilk/kefir), it has on occasion resulted in small hard clumps from the dough drying out over night (not enough liquids to keep it moist!). Adding the oils and sweeteners solve this problem, then you only have to add the leavenings the next day!
Mrs. U
This may be a silly question, but do you cover your grains while they soak with a lid or with plastic wrap? Or do they need air to breathe??
His,
Mrs. U
Kimi Harris
Sarah,
Sometime soon I hope to do a post about how I make my own sourdough bread (yeastless). We like it a lot. But the best resource I have found for cooking/baking is Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon. I don’t agree with everything, but it has been very helpful by giving a lot of information and a lot of recipes. I have heard good things about Sue Gregg’s Cookbooks. She has changed a lot of her recipes to follow some of Sally Fallon’s principles, such as soaking grains. I can’t vouch for them personally, however, since I don’t own them.
Actually, come to think of it, if you go to her site, she gives some recipes for whole wheat bread that is soaked or sprouted. Check it out! http://www.suegregg.com/
Lindsay,
The only reason I feel that sometimes water is a reliable soaker by itself is that some of my grains will actually sprout in just water in shorter amounts of time. If they sprout, my understanding from NT is, all of the phytic acid and such is gone. It may not work well with all grains, but it seems to work fine with many of them (my buckwheat will sprout in about eight hours sometimes!).
I think, however, what you might be referring too is the yeast that you can gather from the air when soaking over longer periods of time. I don’t have a very strong understanding of this, but Amy was telling me how when you make pancakes, for example, and use buttermilk/kefir all of those organisms and healthy yeast help the final product be lighter. This is where just using water wouldn’t make as good of a product.
Interesting tip about adding in the oil and sweeteners and such, though. I have never done that, though I truthfully have never had any problems with dry spots. But it’s good to know!
Mrs. U,
It’s not a silly question! I do always cover it with plastic wrap or put a plate over the bowl. ๐
Stephanie @ Keeper of the Home
Excellent explanation, Kimi! You’ve explained it far better than I’ve even attempted to at this point! I’ll probably end up linking to this post at some point as a further explanation for why soaking grains is important.
As for covering up what you are soaking, I simply use a clean dish towel. So simple, reusable, and keeps it fresh. Just make sure you don’t do what I do and accidentally leave a mixing spoon in it, so that your towel is not draped properly and too much air can get in, as this will (duh, silly me!) dry out your dough.
amy best
Hi Ladies- in regards to soaking in just water, I asked that question to Lauri Tauscher (who knows her stuff!) a while back, and this was her reply:
“The soaking accomplishes two things. One it “deactivates” the enzyme inhibitor that makes grain, nut and legume storage possible. This can be accomplished by soaking in just plain water – since this is the most important function of the soaking, it is definitely worth doing. The second function of soaking, using an acidic medium, is to help break down phytic acid, so this is the part that won’t get done by just soaking in water”
Anonymous
Do you leave it in the fridge or on the counter? I’m just wondering about how yogurt or buttermilk sitting out all night will do.
Jo
Kimi Harris
Amy,
When I talked to Mrs. Tauscher she said that if the grain had sprouted it should be fine So this makes me feel that grains that sprout very quickly, like my buckwheat should be okay once sprouted. (That’s what I was hoping!)
Jo,
We do actually leave it out on the counter all night. It kind of weirded most of us out as well, at first! Because it is an “alive” and cultured food, it will just culture away happily without any problems. At least, that has been our experiences! But definitely do using your own discretion. ๐
da halls
Wow. This stumps my brain! I wrote a blahg post sharing my “tilt” reaction to this (I don’t want to take over your comment section).
I came across this blog last night after checking out your other one. Thank you so much for this information. I am now in “research mode” and want to soak up (no pun intended but I am smiling nonetheless) as much information as I can.
So, where can I get more information on this. You mentioned a particular book (which I’ll look into getting). What about web resources you might have?
Jo had the same question I did in regards to whether or not to have them soaking in the fridge or on the counter. Thanks, Jo, for asking. 80)
I assume it’s supposed to be the soured stuff (ie: yogurt, buttermilk, etc) and not just regular milk to use (since that would actually go bad?).
Thank you, again, for your info.
80)
Mary Beth
da halls
One more question.
Do you know if I cook my soaked oatmeal in the microwave as opposed to on the stove top if that will cause “problems”? Or am I going to need to start being more patient? 80)
80)
Mary Beth
Anonymous
Hi! Thanks for confirming the plain water soaking -I was thinking the same thing; if it starts sprouting, you’re in good shape.
By all means, post about sourdough. I have been making it for twelve years, and love it. Anything you do with yeast you can do with sourdough, and it is as healthy as you can get with your grains. The best! It is not difficult, and you can control how sour (or not!)you want it to be by adjusting temperature and rising times. It’s so worth while. I always think it’s a shame that sourdough is often presented as something for the “experts” -too difficult for the average Jane. Not true!
Krista
Anonymous
What do you all use for straining the small grains (quinoa, teff, amaranth, millet, etc.) once it’s been soaked? Where do you purchase these things? I’d like to find something that works well enough that I can also rinse these grains after soaking them in an acidic base.
Stephanie@AHighandNobleCalling
This post is very encouraging! I linked to it on my blog today!
Thank you for such a great post!
http://ahighandnoblecalling.blogspot.com/2008/05/ive-been-inspiredfinally.html
Anonymous
I am very confused about this whole discussion of soaking grains. Should I not buy bread from the store anymore? Do I have to soak all the rice and nuts I eat everyday? Thanks for any help on this.
Joe
Anonymous
Joe – most bread at the store is garbage filled w/corn syrup. Look for ezekiel bread or anything organic would be better ‘normal’ store bread.
Do you have to soak your nuts everyday? “P No – but you will be more healthy if you do.
Strata
Hi Lynn,
I’m just reading Nourishing Traditions cookbook and found your marvelous blog. My first attempt at soaked yogurt flour has a serious problem– I didn’t have a warm place, and used the crockpot on ‘warm’, intending to leave it on for only 10 mins or so to heat the crock. I got distracted, and the mixture got to probably about 110F or so.
Out of curiosity, I have left the mixture alone since then, about 48 hours ago. We keep our house at about 67F during the winter, so the mix has been kind of chilly. It does not have a bad smell, just smells like grain, but it doesn’t have the kind of ‘lively’ look that it had– just flattened and inert. Can I make it into porridge or something, or is it no longer good food of any kind? I hate to throw out 3 cups of organic spelt flour and 2 of yogurt, but of course if I screwed up bigtime, that is what I will do!
Thanks for any advice on this. It’s funny how tough it is to find a place for things to sit and be warm in our house (except cats, of course). Where I grew up, we had a gas stove with pilot light- now it’s piezo ignition. Or the top of the fridge– but the modern fridge has its coils on the floor, and is recessed into the cabinetry!
best regards,
Strata
http://mybayareagarden.blogspot.com/
http://relentlessinquiry.wordpress.com/
Kimi Harris
Hi Srata,
Welcome to my site. ๐ If it doesn’t smell bad, it’s probably just fine. We keep our house around 65, but I don’t worry about it too much, but just try to place it in the warmest place I can find. I also usually start with warm water as well. The only thing I would say is that it may be pretty darn sour now! Were you trying to make the cracker recipe or for bread? You could probably still use it for that. If you made it into a hot cereal type thing, it would be very sour! When I make oatmeal, I only use a tablespoon or two of yogurt with water to soak it in, and it’s still sour.
Keep up the experimenting! Before long it will be an old hat to you. ๐
Anonymous
Hi there, Thank you for this site. I am a huge fan of Fallon’s book but full of similar questions about the particularities of soaking grains. For example, I was soaking Teff for the first two times and each time some of the grains floated to the top, some stayed at the bottom. Of the ones that floated, the top layer had several sprouts of mold by morning that freaked me out. I spooned them off and bravely served the rest of the teff porridge to my family (I highly recommend teff; it’s delicious and so good for you). We were all fine, but the mold thing freaked me out!!
Also, I soaked some barley last night but am not using it right away. What do I do? Do you rinse the grains after you soak them? Do you cook them in the water you soaked them in or put them in fresh? I just put it into the fridge instead of letting it sit out another day.
Thanks for any help you can give me.
Susan
jhealthy
I am just starting to mill my own flour and bake bread. I want to have the most nutritious food for my family possible but now I am wondering if I should sprout the wheat first the dry it out some how then use it to bake the bread or mill it into flour then soak it. So much to learn! Thanks for all the GREAT info!
KimiHarris
Susan,
I would avoid anything that has molded (that’s so funny, that’s never happened to me before, I wonder why?). And yes, you can rinse grains off, I like to as it removes some of the sourness. ๐
jhealthy,
You certainly don’t have to sprout the grains, then soak it. It’s one of those either/or situations. ๐ Feel free to pick which ever method you like the best. ๐
Candyce
Hello there! I have recently read Nourishing Traditions and have just found your site. Wonderful site full of great info. A question I have is- is there any benefit to soaking store bought ground flour. I realize this is not ideal and have begun grinding my own flour. However, in the hopes of not wasting all the ingredients that are currently in my cupboard- I was curious if soaking would at least help.
Thank you for the wealth of information- it is much appreciated. Candyce
KimiHarris
Hi Candyce,
Welcome to my site! ๐ Thanks for the kind comment.
And, yes, there is definitely value to soaking store brought flour. ๐
Nina
Kimi = no one has mentioned oats. I have steel cut oats and am wondering if there is some reason they can’t be soaked>
Anna
First time on your site….
I wonder how long is too long to soak something? I have 2 cups quinoa that I kept putting off using and it’s been 6-7 days, no change in water, in a house 68 degrs. The sprouts look happy…. can I rinse and cook or could toxins have developed?
Thanks!!!
Anna
Janet
hi there, does anyone have any suggestions on how to soak almond flour (6 cups) when the recipe doesn’t call for any liquid except coconut oil (1/2 cup) and eggs (7)? thanks a bunch.
jj
Cat
Hi Janet,
Did you ever find out an answer to this question about soaking almond flour? I am trying to find out the same thing. Thanks!
Vicky
Hi Kimi!
I’ve been pouring over your website, soaking up (ha ha!) all the information I can. I just recently got my copy of Nourishing Traditions and I’m thrilled!
Soaking is new to me. I don’t even know where to start. I don’t have a grain mill yet, so can I soak regular unbleached flour? Also, for baked goods, can I use buttermilk from the store? I do not have access to raw milk anymore, as my local source moved back to New Hampshire and the other sources listed on realmilk.org are over an hour away. ๐ What are your thoughts?
Thank you! OH! I tried your Gorgonzola, Grape, Walnut & Rice salad last week – heavenly! Gorgonzola is a weakness of mine anyway, but it was fantastic. Thank you! ๐
Denelle
Regarding the straining of small grains: I’ve recently gotten into regularly making yogurt and yo-chee (yogurt cheese) and found that the best vehicle to drain that product is a jelly-making bag (usually suspended from a frame over a bowl, but works as well set inside a sieve). That seems to me to be the ideal solution to the grain-strain dilemma! And a plus for me is that I’ve now discovered an excellent use for the whey that drains from the yo-chee! I’ve used it in some cooking (e.g., omelettes) and baking, but now I’ve got the perfect acidic medium for grain soaking. Just gotta love the Universality of it all!
Lainie@ Mishmash Maggie
Hi, New here… just found your site.
I have been cooking with the Nourishing Traditions cookbook for about a month and a half now and it’s been great. Every recipe has been delicious. I have a question about the soaking flours part. I have been doing it and it tastes great and the texture has been amazing (I usually use buttermilk). My question is, when I uncover my bowl after the flour has been soaking for close to 24 hours, the top portion (that is exposed to air) is dark. Much, much darker than the flour underneath. Does this happen to anyone else? Am I doing something incorrectly?
I have been using it as is and it’s all turned out fine. I just didn’t know if I should be scrapping the dark part off or if it shouldn’t turn dark at all.
Thank you!
Renee
Can I soak large amounts of grain in stainless steal containers overnight?
Can I keep this in a refrigerator or does it have to be in a warm place?
Andrea
Can I soak buckwheat flour in water with an acid like lemon juice instead of using buttermilk?
Catherine
Hi there! I have Celiac and bake with blanched almond flour frequently. I do have some trouble with digesting it though and wanted to ask you 1) if soaking almond flour would help with digesting it and 2) how? Would I measure out the amount of almond flour I will need to bake with, put it in a bowl with water and a couple Tbs of vinegar (I am also lactose intolerant) for 12-24 hours then use the wet almond flour in the recipe? Would the main benefit from soaking flour be for digesting? Does it do anything else? Thanks so much! ๐
Teresa
How do you soak the grains when there is no liquid called for in the recipe?
I want to convert a Swedish Apple Pie recipe to use whole grain rice as the Sue Gregg recipe does for pancakes/waffles. The pie recipe calls for lemon juice, apples, whole-wheat flour, sugar, baking powder, egg whites, vanilla, and walnuts. Thank you so much for your help.
kara bagley
Thank you for this post, it makes good sense. I was wondering if I should be soaking my steel cut oats with wheat flour. I have heard that oats do not contain phytase, which is need in breaking down the phytic acid. What do you think?
Camila
Hello! Can you please tell me if you can soak almond flour before baking with it to make it easier to digest? I don’t have the option of soaking the almonds as I have already bought a huge bag of almond flour. Can you please tell me if you can soak it and how? (The recipe doesn’t have liquids to use for soaking). Thanks!
LindaGR
Hi Kimi,
Great website! Thanks for sharing all your experiences.
I tried soaked flour wheat bread a couple of times, but each time when I eat it, I get indigestion.
Here are the 2 areas I’m guessing could be the reason … Appreciate any advice you may have.
– Soak in ceramic bowl 5 cups flour(white pastry whole wheat) with 1.5 cup warm water + 0.5 cup yogurt, overnight or up to 24hrs. Covered with a plate on top. After soaking, the top of dough is sort of greyish compared to the yellow dough below. Is this mold growing?
– Add yeast mixture and some flour(same as above) and start kneading. Is it better to use white unbleached flour instead?
Thanks!
Dave
I found out that lemonjuice is about 5% acidic acid. Can a person use just citric acid diluted to this percentage instead of lemonjuice to achieve an acidic medium for soaking grains in?
Anon
I just wanted to say, I think your website is great, you offer some good information, but simply must state that if you are following the “soaked grains method”, and the Sally Fallon/NT method, then you are truly misleading people with your responses and some of your information.
There is simply no debate, the grains MUST be soaked in an acidic medium prior to cooking, and NO, just soaking in water alone simply won’t accomplish the same goal (if your goal is to increase nutritional availability and absorption in the body). That is why your “source” stated:
“…her opinion was that it was just fine to eat grains just
soaked in water, and it was even better if in an acidic
base. She also said that if it was sprouted it should be good.”
I know you *want* to read that soaking in water alone is as effective by this statement, but clearly, even reading your version of her statement, that is not what she is saying. She is saying it’s “fine” meaning, it’s okay to eat, and certainly better than nothing, (and definitely better than store bought processed/bleached/chemical laden junk) but would be “even better…” –meaning she’s trying to be tactful while clearly telling you it’s not nearly as good as soaking in acidic medium, if your main goal is to gain maximum nutrition and not just to make lighter pancakes and reduce cooking time.
Also, it is important to note that depending on your grain, soaking in water alone may be doing absolutely nothing, other than spinning your wheels (wasting your time) if there is no phytase (which inhibits and/or destroys phytic acid) already in your grain to begin with… a perfect example of this would be oatmeal, which has little to no phytase on it’s own… therefore soaking it in water alone effectively accomplishes nothing unless you are somehow adding phytase to the water (which you can purchase, but I’ve never heard of any studies done regarding the outcome of phytic acid levels after such a treatment- and again, would be abandoning tried and true methods).
Soaking in water may “help” reduce a very small amount of phytic acid activity (depending on the grain), but it will not lower it enough for you to begin to get even half of the nutritional benefit that soaking in an acidic medium will gain for you.
It all depends on your goal… just fluffy or fluffy and nutritional. ๐
If people are looking for answers to these types of questions, you really should be directing them to a thoroughly educated source such as the Weston A. Price Foundation/Sally Fallon, President: http://www.westonaprice.org/
or to the “Ask Sally” section of Sally Fallon’s column in NM: http://nourishedmagazine.com.au/blog/topics/ask-sally-fallon
or alternatively, there are also several websites such as “cheeseslave” or kellythekitchenkop or foodrenegade who truly follow the Sally Fallon recommendations.
BTW, I’m a nurse, and I have noticed (and measured) a huge change in my family’s health (esp our teeth!!!) since making the change to soak and incorporate most of Sally Fallon’s other guidelines into our lives.
AZNurse
BTW, your articles are fantastic!!! It’s just the responses here that I had a hard time reading. I still love your website, and certainly hope I haven’t offended anyone, but it truly breaks my heart to think of other Moms like myself putting the time and energy I do, into milling and soaking our grains, and then later find out that I was cheating my family out of gainful nutrition and possibly even wasting my time by not using an effective method of soaking (ie: not using an acidic medium).
KimiHarris
AZNurse,
The comments you noticed were quite old and a bit misleading. I’ve edited them. If your grains have actually sprouted, however, then my understanding from Sally Fallon is that you are okay. If you read the article, you will notice that I do say that it should be soaked in an acidic medium.
As it seems that you are a reader here, I am surprised that you didn’t notice that I always soak my grains in recipes here with an acidic addition. I think that the vast majority of my recipes would be Sally Fallon approved. ๐
The oatmeal is a hard issue since there is a little controversy over whether you an really effectively reduce the phytic acid. Some people feel that even Sally’s recommendations on oatmeal may not be enough. Rebuild from Depression recommends adding freshly ground wheat flour in with the oatmeal, as it does contain high phytase which may help also reduce the phytic acid in the oatmeal. I now soak my oatmeal in both lemon juice and use whole wheat flour.
We are all learning more and more everyday, and I don’t claim to have all the answers.
I hope that clarifies the issues.
AZNurse
Kimi,
Thanks for responding to my post. That tells me that you care about your readers concerns and I appreciate you making edits to your older comments, so that new readers get the full advantage of your knowledge. ๐
I agree on the oatmeal “debate”… I also personally add the 10% wheat flour along with whey to introduce phytase, but I know that doesn’t mean I’m sure that I’m doing a better job of reducing the phytic acid than someone who is just soaking in the medium… it’s still up for debate, and I’m eagerly awaiting definitive results, wherever they may come from. In the mean time, I figure adding it can’t do any harm, so why not go the extra step, lol!
I do have a question for you since you said you do soak with the wheat and lemon mixture… do you still rinse in the morning, or are you now cooking it with the soak water? And was there any particular reason you decided on one method (other than the obvious taste) over the other?
I seem to keep going back and forth on this, and I usually add a little water swish it around to “fluff” so to speak, then do a quick “drain” of the excess before I cook, so even though I don’t fully “rinse and drain”, I’m concerned about how much nutrient I’m losing in the water I do drain.
Thanks again for the response, I really do enjoy your site.
Erin
hi kimi,
i just read this post to put some words to why i do what i do, and came up with a question for you. you said in this post that you can soak flour for baked goods with yogurt, kefir, buttermilk… well, i always have an abundance of whey. does it usually work to use water and whey? and as far as the buttermilk goes, are you referring to the buttermilk left over from turning cream into butter or the buttermilk that you buy at the store or that is sold dry-just-add-water?
i look forward to hearing back from you! thanks! ๐
erin
Amy @ Simply Sugar & Gluten-Free
I am new to this whole soaking concept. I’ve soaked buckwheat groats but have never tried soaking rice or any other grain. I am definitely going to give it a try and see if I notice a change in my body. It seems like such a simple way to get more nutrients into our bodies – and I agree that it takes little effort.
I’d like to know if you can soak a large quantity of grains and keep them for a few days after you’ve soaked them. For example, could I soak a big quantity of buckwheat groats, cook what I need, then put the rest in the refrigerator until I need them?
KimiHarris
definitely!
Brenna
Do I need to rinse the grains after soaking them? Other than possibly an acidic taste is there a negative effect to having the acidic medium left? Essentially, there would be a neutralization in the liquid, correct? I was cooking buckwheat in a base of coconut milk and water and decided to soak the buckwheat in the coconut milk and mainly didn’t want to waste the milk!
Thank you for your thoughts,
Brenna
Vanessa
Hi, this may seem like a silly question….I am just starting to explore the concept of soaking, and I am also dairy-free like you. Do you think it would work to soak in unsweetened orange juice instead of water and lemon juice/vinegar? I’m mainly thinking in terms of soaking oats for breakfast/dessert type dishes.
Lucas
would you say that soaking grains in an acidic medium totally neutralizes and eliminates phytase or just helps to significantly reduce it?