What is different about "sprouted barley"?

What is different about "sprouted barley"? - From above of bunch of tomatoes with raw asparagus put into transparent plastic bags on white table near citrus fruits and garlic bulbs

I have two bags of barley in my pantry. One is labeled "hulless barley," which I take to be regular barley, and the other is labeled "sprouted barley." But they appear identical. My idea of "sprouted barley" would be a grain that opens up with a shoot coming out. I've encountered the same thing with rice - so-called "sprouted rice" appears identical to regular rice. So what is the difference between sprouted and non-sprouted barley, rice, etc.?



Best Answer

What does "sprouted" mean?

germination is the process by which an organism grows from a seed or similar structure while sprouting is the process by which seeds are induced to sprout or germinate for commercial purposes.

In the case of sprouted food grains such as barley and rice the seeds are allowed to start the growing process (germination). It won't have a shoot because the process is usually stopped early, but it's enough to change the nutritional value of the seeds.

As explained here,

Recent studies have shown that if we actually allow those seeds to begin their growing process and then bring that to a halt before eating, their nutritional punch is multiplied significantly.

So sprouted or germinated grains will be easier to digest, therefore higher nutritional value than the regular (non-sprouted) variety.




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