Bean Sprouts

Posted on 24. Jan, 2010 by admin in Ingredients

Bean Sprouts, oh bean sprouts, how I love you now that I have my own kidlets to pinch the tails off! (Mom used to make me do this chore). Of course, you don’t have to pinch the tails off, the tails are certainly edible, and most restaurants and cooks will cook the bean sprouts with tail-on. Bean sprouts are the sprout of the mung bean and are one of the quickest vegetables to cook! Just a minute in the wok or blanched and it’s ready to eat. Look for white stems that snap! Here’s a tip to keep them fresh in the refrigerator. Wash the bean sprouts, discarding any that look a little soft or sad. Use a salad spinner to spin dry, or lay them out on a towel and gently pat to absorb the water. Store them in a plastic bag and also put a dry piece of paper towel inside the bag with them. Close bag. This is the best way to store bean sprouts…keep them as dry as possible! If you don’t have bean sprouts, you can just omit them from the recipe or sometimes what I do is take a long celery stalk, peel the stringy outer layer with a vegetable peeler and julienne into thin strips. The crisp-crunchy texture is very similar.