Using whole grains in your cooking/baking is the first and one the most significant step you can take towards improving your nutrition. Whole grains include: whole wheat, kamut, spelt, brown rice, oats, any many others. Unlike white flour, whole grains keep the bran & germ together and in tact, which supplies you with all the nutrients. It is important to note that making the switch to whole grains is easier than you think. In fact, many recipes can be switched white flour with whole wheat flour without any difficulty. But, just because you have or are in the process of switching to healthier grains does not mean you are getting all the nutritional value. Have you ever considered that whole wheat and other whole grains might be very difficult for your body to digest?
Grinding Your Own Flour
Fresh flour contains all the vitamins and minerals missing in commercial flours. It includes the bran which is vital for a healthy colon and weight control. It is economical. Within 24 hours up to 40% of the nutrients have oxidized. In three days up to 80% of nutrients have oxidized, so using freshly grained flours preserves all the wonderful nutrients. Read more benefits here.
I personally use a NutriMill grinder. You can read more about this particular grinder at Pleasant Hill Grain Company online (www.pleasanthillgrain.com). It has worked splendidly for me! They have wonderful customer service as well. This is the one of the best investments you can make towards becoming more healthy and nutritious in your cooking. Check out this article to compare different mills. I store mine on my kitchen counter, because it is small and convenient for easy access. I have ground everything from beans, to grains, to corn in it.
Phytic Acid Prevents Digestion
Unfortunately, whole grains contain phytic acid in the bran of the grain which combines with key minerals, especially calcium, magnesium, copper, iron, and zinc and prevents their absorption in the intestinal tract. This makes it more difficult to digest properly. Soaking, fermenting, or sprouting the grain before cooking or baking will neutralize the phytic acid, releasing these nutrients for absorption.
This process allows enzymes, lactobacilli and other helpful organisms to not only neutralize the phytic acid, but also to break down complex starches, irritating tannins and difficult-to-digest proteins, including gluten. For many, this may lessen their sensitivity or allergic reactions to particular grains. Everyone will benefit, nevertheless, from the release of nutrients and greater ease of digestion.
How to Soak
1. The first stage of preparation is to soak the whole grain flour in an acid medium and liquid. The basic idea is to soak all the flour with the liquid ingredients and 1 Tbsp of an acid medium per cup of water called for in the recipe.
- If the substance is too dry to mix well (i.e. more flour than can mix evenly with the liquids), you can also add the liquid oil and sweetener (honey, maple syrup or agave) called for in the recipe to the mixture. This will help maintain a moist consistency that is easy to combine with the other ingredients after soaking.
- Acid mediums options include: cultured buttermilk, milk kefir, coconut kefir, water kefir, cultured yogurt, whey, lemon juice or apple cider vinegar. Dairy product acid mediums must be cultured!
- Make sure to use warm filtered water/liquids for soaking. Warm water is necessary for the soaking process to be effective. Warm the water/liquids until they are bath water temperature before adding to the grain/flour.
- Brown rice, buckwheat, and millet do not have as high of phytate content and thus need only be soaked for 7 hours (these are great last minute grains if you forget to soak, won’t be a big problem – also recommend purchasing brown rice pasta for this reason as well)
-All other grains (whole wheat, spelt, kamut, oats, etc) should be soaked from 12-24 hours, with oats have the highest level and best soaked for 24 hours.
2. Leave your grains soaking at room temperature on your counter. Cover tightly with plastic wrap, or with a plate to prevent it from drying out (especially in the case of a dough). After soaking, you add the remaining ingredients, if required, and proceed with recipe!
Sue Gregg shares two other benefits to soaking: “There are two other advantages of the two-stage process. Several hours of soaking serves to soften the grain, resulting in baked goods lighter in texture, closer to the texture of white flour. The longer the soaking, the less necessary is baking powder. Baking soda, alone, will give enough rise. Secondly, this is a great step in convenience, dividing the task into two shorter time periods, cutting the time needed to prepare the recipe right before cooking and baking when you feel
rushed to get food on the table.”
Another benefit I have found to soaking is that it absorbs the liquids and expands the grains, making a larger quantity in the end. This is very true especially with my soaking oatmeal. If I forget to soak, it results in a smaller batch, but if I soak it increases the quantity and is more satisfying and filling as well. Soaked baked goods and cereals are always lighter in texture as well, and not dense as their unsoaked wheat counterparts. Don’t quite know why this happens, but it extends the food budget further! Whole grains overall are much more satisfying and fill you up longer than white products…so once again, more value for your money!
Soaking Cereals
Simply soak your cereals in half the quantity of water called for in the recipe with the 1 Tbsp acid medium per cup of water for 12-24 hours. When you are ready to cook, boil the other half of the water before adding the soaked grain. It will be ready in 5 minutes!
For our regular twice a week breakfast of oatmeal, I soak 1 cup of rolled oats with 1 cup of water and 1-2 Tbls of kefir. I let it sit covered overnight. In the morning I put 1 cup of water to boil on the stove. When it is rolling, I add the soaked oats and let it simmer for 5 minutes or so. We then add ground flax seeds, dried cranberries, chopped apples and sometimes a little mashed bananas and there you have an excellent high fiber breakfast.
Soaking Quick Breads
For quick breads (waffles, pancakes, muffins, etc) add 1 Tbsp of an acid medium (best with cultured buttermilk or kefir) for every cup of water called for in the recipe, cover and soak as recommended above. If the recipe calls for buttermilk already, soak in the buttermilk or replace with kefir (which is my favorite!).
I replace buttermilk with kefir completely most of the time without problem. If desired, you can also add all the other liquid ingredients besides the egg, leavenings, and salt in the soaking mixture as well. This helps maintain a moist dough. After soaking, I simply add the egg, leavenings and salt called for in the recipe. Sue Gregg incorporates this idea in all her breakfast recipes. See recipe below. She has other sample recipes on her website.
Whole Grain Pancake/Waffle Recipe – includes instructions on soaking! This is simply delicious!
Soaking Beans
Beans should be rinsed then soaked with 1 Tbsp whey or lemon juice per cup of beans. After soaking, drain, rinse and start with fresh water. Follow the recommended quantities as you would normally.
Soaking Yeast Breads
Soak flour, and 1 Tbsp vinegar or kefir for every cup of water called for in the recipe (leave 1/2 cup of water for activating yeast later). I like to also add the oil and sweeteners to maintain moist dough, otherwise cover tightly with plastic wrap. After soaking, active the yeast in the remaining water with a tsp of honey. Proceed with the recipe.
My Homemade Bread Recipe – with soaking instructions!
Soaking Brown Rice
Combine your rice and all the water called for in the recipe with 1-2 Tbsp of acid medium and let soak for 7 hours. I combine these ingredients in the pot I will cook it in. When ready, simply turn it on and cook as usual. My recipe is to soak 1 cup brown rice to 2 1/4 cup water, with 2 Tbsp of kefir. Heat to boiling and then turn to low heat and simmer for 45 minutes.
For more recipes, view the recipe index. Most of my recipes include soaking instructions.
Soaking is actually quite simple. The key: thinking ahead! Write it in your schedule! Each morning after breakfast and making dinner preparations, I also ask myself if I need to soak anything for the next day. I quickly combine it and let it sit on my counter.
Further Reading
Urban Homemaker articles on Soaking here & here
How I use kefir and the wonderful benefits
Tammy’s Kefir Making Instructions
Two Stage Process - introduction to soaking by Sue Gregg – I drew much of the above information from this article
Sue Gregg’s Breakfast cookbook is my favorite intro to different whole grains and how to include them in your diet. This book shows you how to grind grains in your blender for many morning breakfasts. Works wonderfully!
Be Kind to Your Grains – article by Sally Fallon, author of Nourishing Traditions on why we should soak our grains
Two other good options that accomplish the same benefits as soaking, include using sprouted flour or sourdough methods.
How do you know if your yogurt is cultured?
It should say on the container if it has “active cultures”.
I had a question on soaking the brown rice: I usually mix brown rice with white rice…Do I just soak the brown rice by it self overnight and then add to the white rice when i cook it? Also I notice you cook it on the stove, boiling, then simmering it; can I use a rice cooker or will it affect it? Thanks so much for all the great info, I just told my hubby we are going to slowly switch our diets and eat more whole foods!
Brown rice needs more cooking time then white, so I am not sure how well it would be to mix them. You might try preparing them separately and then mixing them together before serving. Yes, you can use a rice cooker. I used one previously. Just soak it overnight and then cook it as usual with fresh water in your rice cooker.
When I soak and cook my brown rice in a rice cooker, I soak 1 cup rice and 2 cups water with 1-2 Tbsp lemon juice in a glass bowl on the counter. After soaking for 7+ hours, I just pour the mixture into the rice cooker, not adding any additional liquid. Works great!
Hi Lindsay,
I make my own kefir with kefir grains, and I have been experimenting with bread recipes that I make by soaking equal parts kefir with whole wheat (which I grind). My kefir is so active, that just an overnight soaking produces bubbles in my mixture, so I am trying half the yeast that a recipe calls for. I also through my years of baking bread have discovered that my breads always taste better if I leave them the dough in the fridge after the first rising overnight. (or even a couple of days for that matter)…I form the loaves and let them do the second rise in the fridge.
My question is,…I have added half the flour that hasn’t been soaked to the flour that I have soaked in 50% kefir to 50% whole wheat, and I was wondering if the refrigerated time for the final dough will break down the remaining phytic acid in the flour I did not soak?? (if that makes sense!) I’m not sure if the proper method of soaking has to be more hydrated, and if my process qualifies as proper Phytic acid breakdown. Oh, my recipe is for a 1 lb loaf , so the percentages of soaked to non soaked flour is about 50/50, …if that makes any difference. I may be way off my rocker but it’s fun experimenting! Thanks…love your site!!
I cannot say for sure. I would suggest emailing this question to Weston A Price Foundation. They will help you out and are more thoroughly educated in this area than myself.
Your bread sounds like a delicious “sourdough”!
I have been mulling this over and it seems logical, at the point where you add unsoaked grain to a soaked grain mixture, if the total amount of acid added (counted from the beginning of soaking the first batch of grain) is an amount equal to one Tablespoon per Cup of grain, you would want to then soak for the combined grains for the appropriate amount of time. Otherwise, you would want to add additional acid medium to the liquid to equal that 1T to 1C ratio, then soak.
There is also the question if the temperature is an issue, i.e. whether refrigerated or room temperature makes a difference in length of time needed to break down the phytic acid.
I would guess it would take longer at cooler temperatures, (and not at all if frozen!), primarily due to the basic need for the acid liquid to reach inside the grain. I vaguely remember something from science class about osmosis…
Thanks Susan. What you say makes sense! I will see what Weston Price says….
I’m new at this soaking thing, and a bit confused as to which recipes actually qualify for the proposed health benefits of soaking, such as this recipe for pizza dough that I made the other day: http://just-making-noise.blogspot.com/2009/04/kefir-sourdough-pizza.html I’m wondering if the 8 hour final rise of the dough in that recipe would be enough time handle the phytic acid in the wheat. I made the dough exactly as stated, and put my own toppings on in the end. (fabulous- one of the best, easiest pizzas I have made) The other question I have is that if wheat is already ground, wouldn’t it take less time to soak then if it were whole grain. Geez,..I always complicate things!
That is what I find, the science of food is complicated!
I am making the assumption that the actual grinding of the grain doesn’t neutralize the p-acid. THerefore, it must still be there, in the same amount.
Please share what you learn, I am very interested to learn.
Best to you and your adventures.
S
most of what I make needs to be dairy-free. does using lemon juice or vinegar work as well as using kefir or yogurt? would raw apple cider vinegar be the best non-dairy choice?
You can use lemon juice, vinegar, or apple cider vinegar. They all work well in breaking down the phytates for the dairy intolerant.
This is so informative! I hope you don’t mind if I put a link to your blog from my blog. I have just adopted some of the NT ways of eating and am doing some posts on it.
Please tell me, what is “NT ways of eating”? Thank you.
Nourishing Traditions, a book by Sally Fallon
Hi Lindsay! Great website! I have a question about soaking soaking grain flours. I’ve been told it is good to grind your own flour, put it into a wide-mouth thermos, add hot water, and let it sit in the thermos and “cook” overnight. Is this a good thing to do? Also, I am confused on how to cook quinoa (or any grain for that matter)–after soaking, doesn’t the grain need to be rinsed with clean water? Also, is it OK to soak grain flours? Don’t they go bad quickly?
-Ashley
NO, I wouldn’t recommend cooking the flour in hot water overnight because you are not allowing it to sit with an acid medium necessary to break down the phytates. If you want to do it that way, I would recommend soaking first and then adding fresh hot water (probably half as much as the recipe calls for) and then cook it overnight. Yes, quinoa needs to be rinsed with fresh clean water after soaking because of the bitter lining on the grain…but this is the only grain that has that, so you don’t have to do it with other grains. Ideally, it is best to soak flours that have been freshly ground. Soaking preserves the nutrients. Flour only goes rancid on its own, but when it is soaked the deterioration process is stopped. Hope that helps!
Thanks Lindsay. You are so helpful
. I cannot eat solid food right now so I am trying to learn how to soak and prepare grain porridges. Is the ratio 1:4? (ex. 1/4 cup grain to 1 cup water)? To prepare, would I then first grind the grain into a powder, soak overnight in 1/2 cup water with an acid medium (how much?), and then, in the morning, bring an additional 1/2 cup water to a boil and add the soaked grain? My other questions is, does the water that the grain was soaked in need to be poured out?
Thanks so much
If you are making a porridge, check out the super baby food porridge recipe where I describe soaking and preparing rice cereal. Same idea! Basically, I soak 1/2 cup ground rice in 2 cups water and 1-2 Tbsp acid medium. Then in the morning, I simply place all the contents into a pan and cook. You don’t have to drain any water or anything. I just bring the contents to a boil and then simmer till it is thickened. Hope that helps!
Your blog is so helpful, and inspiring! Today I tried soaking my brown rice during the day…it was the BEST rice I’ve ever cooked. Usually it ends up too hard or too soggy, but this time it was perfect. Not to mention easy. Thank you so much!
Hi-
I just tried your soaked bread recipe, and it came out pretty good. I thought I’d modify my old bread recipe for soaking using your guideline of 1 tablespoon of acidic medium per cup of water in the recipe. It dawned on me that in your soaked bread recipe, you add much more acidic medium. Is there a reason? Should I add more to my bread recipe?
I only added more kefir because I love all the health benefits it provides. It also seems to provide a more moist final product. You can experiment with however much you desire. 1 Tbsp is the minimum requirement.
Thanks for the response!
Soaking beans…. in the past I have soaked beans before cooking, as the bag suggests, but after soaking and cooking them (I’ve tried soaking up to 24hrs+ and cooking 12hrs) the bean still has never been perfectly soft- still almost gritty-like. Is this because there is I haven’t added an acid medium, like whey or lemon juice as you suggest? If I added this, would I actually have a soft bean? When I’ve asked others how the cook there dry beans, they all said they just cook it for a long amount of time 8-10 hrs without soaking, just cooking. I haven’t tried it yet because I just got frustrated with trying to cook dry beans. What are your thoughts?
I would imagine this is due to using old beans. I have heard others having this problem and this is usually the case. The acid medium does not really affect the texture only makes it more digestible and eliminates the gases in the beans.
To avoid tough old beans, it is good to date your beans at time of purchase and get no more than you will use in 6 months. Big batches of cooked beans can be measured and frozen with very good results and convenience.
Also, just before cooking, add a 3″ piece of Kombu seaweed (helps break down the gas producing aspect of the beans). When I started using Kombu, my husband no longer produces bad gas from beans!
What if a recipe doesn’t call for any water? How do you soak??
Thanks!
That is the problem that I have not solved yet. Does the recipe have any liquids at all?
If so, you can convert those into a soaking agent, but if it does not have liquids it is a little impossible to soak.
I must admit, I made the assumption “water=any liquid” at the beginning, (including applesauce, etc). Plus, I take the total volume and ADD the appropriate TBLS of acid liquid to the total. There is only one time, when I wasn’t accurate in my measuring, that the end result was a little soggy.
Also, all my baking is gluten, soy, dairy and egg free.
I have been grinding and making my own bread for the past months. Three months ago I can across you web sight and thats were I learned to soak wheat I never herd of it before. So I gave it a try WOW what a difference, before my bread was dense and very crumble now light and fluffy and not crumbly at all. both good but defiantly like it light a fluffy and so dose my family. I use apple cider vinegar with milk. I put 3 TBS with 1/2 cup of mike then add anther 1/2 cup of filtered water then I let it sit for about 5min and then add my wheat. So for a day then I precede on with the rest of the recipe and my bread turns out great.
Hi! I really like your site
Can I ask though – is yogurt the same as kefir?
No, definitely not. They are both very valuable soaking agents but completely different. You can find out more about kefir here.
This might be in the wrong section, feel free to move!
Hi Lindsay, I was in the grocery store yesterday in the organic aisle. As I walked down the aisle, I found organic spices. Then I laughed! Why you ask? All the ingredients said organic this or that (parsley, etc). Are spices “regulated” so that the ingredients are truly organic?
Another thing, at the end of the aisle, I assumed they had organic candy, ok, only because it was in those plastic bulk bins like candy in other aisle. I found quinoa and other grains, I tried looking thru you site to see exactly what that is, and I couldn’t. I know you have used it in recipes etc, but I still wonder what it is, now that I’ve seen it! They also had flax seeds, there were others that i recognized, but those are the two that stuck out.
Now I found these in the organic aisle, does it make it as good as buying it from a whole foods whole seller?
Another question, what is a reasonable price to pay? From what I saw all were around $3 (some a little more, and some a little less) I’m assuming a pound?
I love buying things in the bulk section of a natural foods store. Fred Meyers has a great nutrition center and bulk section. I like to buy my spices in this section because I can purchase small quantities at a time, saving money and preserving freshness. Quinoa is one of the most nutritious of whole grains. It has the highest protein content. Unfortunately, it is also the most expensive. It has a rather nutty flavor and you have to rinse it thoroughly before use to remove the bitter coating. Buying bulk like this is a good option if you don’t have access to a food co-op, such as Azure Standard. I can often get better prices from Azure, but this is a good alternative and would be better prices than a store like Whole Foods, I believe. I think I pay around $2 per pound for quinoa. I hope that answers your questions.
Thanks Lindsay, you did answer some questions, much appreciated!
I’m on the Northeast coast (central PA), and we don’t have a Fred Meyers, or a Whole Foods near (that I’m aware of lol). Even living in a state’s capitol doesn’t afford the luxury of some of the big name grocery stores. The organic spices in our grocery store, looked limited, but did have the small containers.
I’ll have to try the quinoa the next time I go to the store. I’m going to start small. Old habits are hard to break. I’ll be 34 in Aug and a lifetime of eating white flour/sugar etc will be a change to whole grains. I was excited, since I did see a lot of the flours Lindsay talks about in the organic aisle. Now it’s already ground and all, but I do have access to it.
Ok I went back to the grocery store to get some quinoa. and I bought some of that and flax seeds. I only got 2 scoops of the quinoa, and a scoop of the flax seeds. I paid 66 cents for the quinoa and 24 cents for the flax seeds.
Oh, the quinoa is 1.89/lb! I noticed it had a “woody”/grassy smell to it? Is it suppose to have a “different” smell to it?
I was looking at all the grains and stuff in the organic aisle. And I saw steel oats, and all those grains that you speak of. I even saw Stevia. I never realized how expensive it was. Almost $10 for a jar of it. And there was a concentrated Stevia there.
Any chance you’ll be taking emails soon? I have so many questions!
That is a good price for quinoa. I don’t really know what it smells like though. As to the email thing, I can’t really take emails right now because I don’t have a computer. I can only use my hubby’s computer on ocassion, so it is making it difficult to reply and write posts at the same time.
Sorry!
I have some bread mixes my mother gave me from a stand at her county fair. The yeast is separate. Do you think soaking the mix would have any benefit? I know mixes aren’t ideal, but since I already have them I might as well use them…
Thanks!
Yes, I would definitely try soaking your mix. Any bit of soaking, whether the flour is freshly ground or not, is valuable.
Lindsay, thank you so much for your blog. It has been very helpful to me. I am not a homemaker, but a 27 year old single guy who loves to keep healthy. I own Nourishing Traditions and The Maker’s Diet and try to stick to their philosophy on food. I have a sort of theoretical question for you. Correct me if I’m wrong on any of this because I’ve never made bread before and I’m relatively new to the subject. The way I understand bread making, there is a “rising” stage wherein the yeast is added to the dough and allowed to rise. In this stage the dough is actually fermenting correct? If that is the case, why doesn’t that help to neutralize phytic acid and enzyme inhibitors? Is it simply because the rise stage isn’t long enough? It seems this stage is usually an hour. Where as soaking is usually 12-24 hours. If it is an issue of time, then can traditional bread recipes say for sourdough or ciabatta, which I understand have a much longer rising phase, actually neutralize anti-nutrients in whole grains without any pre-soaking? Just curious……I’m interested in making my own bread but I’m trying to gain a fuller understanding of the different stages. Thank you again and God bless!
Brad, thanks for visiting! I appreciate your kind regards. I am no expert in the world of bread making…I actually have only a limited understanding of all the science behind it. I believe that when the yeast is added to the dough it is no longer fermenting but only rising. The soaking process (also could be called fermenting) must be done apart from the yeast. The yeast will get in the way of allowing the acid medium to break down the phytates. I do believe as you described that the length of time is a big factor. Sourdough breads do not need to be soaked because that is accomplished in the fermenting process (the long periods of time that it sits out), along with the sourdough starter which is the acid medium. A better understanding of the bread making process is detailed thoroughly in Peter Reinhert’s Whole Grain Breads.
WOW! This is just what I needed! Not only this, but your whole blog site- I am so encouraged to find you. I recently discovered Weston Price Foundation website, and then googled “how to soak grains”. Your blog entry was the first on the list. I am so blessed to find a health conscious Christian, and and you just happen to be at the same stage of life as me! Keep up the good work.
The Lord bless you and keep you! …Lori
I am just starting to learn about soaking my grains and found your site VERY helpful! Thank you so much!
Little help please…after reading all your posts on soaking I’m wanting to give it a try, but I have a question: You say for quick breads to use a Tbsp of kefir for every cup of flour. I’m wanting to make doughnuts (out of freshly ground soft white (summer) wheat. My whole grain doughnut recipe calls for milk, not water. My thought was that to leave all the milk out with the kefir in it for only 12 hours (I’m thinking the soft white would not need the full 24…I might be wrong though) would turn all the milk in the recipe sour, but not sour enough to be kefir. Do you have any suggestions?
strike that…meant to say 1 T of kefir for every cup of water.
Just thought I’d let you know..I did just do it with the milk, and they turned out great!
I would recommend replacing the quantity of milk called for in the recipe with an equal portion of your acid medium, such as kefir, whey, yogurt, etc. and allow to soak. I have also heard that you can soak with just milk as it will culture somewhat while it soaks. Not sure exactly about that though.
Thanks, that’s very helpful.
Do you make cookies often, and do you soak the flour for those? If so, how do you do it? No hurry on this one, it’s just a “for future reference” question.
hi..
the rice will be fine….put in fridge and cook tomorrow….
regards ingrid
Hi! I have a question — can you soak the rice “too long”? I’m asking because I set some rice on to soak yesterday morning intending to have it for dinner – but got home too late to have the dinner I had planned on. I’d like to have the rice for dinner tonight – but that will be about 36 hours total soak time in water and apple cider vinegar. What do you think? And I don’t mean taste – I mean safety, lol.
I am not familiar with any health risks for soaking it too long. I have done that very same thing myself! It definitely makes it taste more sour though. If I don’t have it for dinner, I try to cook it anyway and stick it in the fridge or freezer for later use. This will help avoid the sour taste. Blessings!
I have been wondering about soaking my grains for some time. Just found your website and looking forward to trying out what I am learning! I do have a few questions.
I am curious why it is necessary to boil the water before adding it to soaked whole grains. I have been using my counter top steamer to cook my teff, quinoa, amaranth, millet, etc. My family enjoys them better this way than when cooked on the stove top. I just add the grain and water in the rice bowl and steam for the stated time. (A common breakfast dish in our home.)
I’m wondering if I could just soak a grain in my rice bowl in the total amount of cooking liquid the night before (which would be quite handy as I have a 12-hr timer on my steamer)… or do I still need to boil water and add before steaming. Also, would I steam for the same amount of time or would the soaking reduce cooking time? Blessings!
I only boil the water in preparation for my oatmeal. It just speeds up the process on the stove top. If you have a different method of preparing your breakfast cereals, go for it! I have never used a counter top steamer, but if you are simply combining the ingredients in there without any advance boiling, then I am sure you could just combine the same ingredients the night before with the acid medium and allow it to soak. You will just have to experiment with the cooking time. It is usually less after soaking because the grains absorb some of the liquids and thus become softer. Hope that helps!
I soak my rice, millet and quinoa in my rice bowl with water and kephir or lemon juice and it turns out fabulous!
i am wondering how to soak whole wheat flour? is it before it’s ground or after? if it is after it is ground then doesn’t it make a paste or stickiness? sorry i’m so clueless!
You soak the flour after it is ground. It will definitely be a moist/wet dough, but you simply have to cover it and allow it to sit overnight. It dries out a bit and then after you add any remaining ingredients it will be fine.
I tried soaking flour and it was a disaster. When they say “soak”, does it mean to add the liquid to the flour and mix it up? That is what I did, but most recipes have less liquid than flour and I simply could NOT incorporate all the flour into the liquid. The result was half lumps and half dry flour. The next day, I still tried to make the muffins, but it was a lumpy mess. What am I doing wrong??
I have the same problem! Lindsay, if you have a minute I’d love to hear any advice you have. It was difficult to incorporate the flour into the liquid. My dough wasn’t very wet after soaking – more the consistency of playdough that’s been sitting out a little too long. The resulting loaf was okay, but my heavy duty kitchen aid mixer struggled this morning to mix up the dough! I didn’t make a large batch, just one loaf – I couldn’t imagine what it would’ve done with 11 cups of flour! Thanks for any help you can give – I’d love to continue soaking my grains.
I really recommend starting with a recipe that already includes the soaking steps, as you can find in my recipe section. This helps get into the grove of what the texture is supposed to be like before adapting your own recipes. But don’t give up! It is a learning process! I have gone through many odd textures and disasters before figuring it out. Yes, all recipes will have less liquid than flour, so sometimes you have to add a bit more additional liquids to maintain a moist dough. You do not want dry flour, you want to mix it all together until it is well incorporated and have a moist/but not completely wet dough. It will dry out more as it sits to soak.
It is good to first make a recipe in the regular methods so you can observe the texture that it must be at to bake properly. Once you learn this, you can start soaking and adjust the liquids/flour till it resembles that same texture.
Julie, as to the bread recipe. Did you try soaking my bread recipe? If so, you should be able to just divide the soaking ingredients by 4 in order to make one loaf. If your mixer doesn’t do it well, try incorporating it by hand.
Above all, make sure you cover your ingredients while soaking, so it doesn’t dry out too much.
Again, learning to soak your own recipes is an art! Don’t give up too quickly. You learn as you go and that is all part of the fun!
Hope that helps you both!
hi….
you add enough liquid so that your flour is all moistened..
start with recommended amount of liquid, add slowly till you find you either had too much liquid or, if needed you add more..
regards ingrid
Just came across your site. I have learned about soaking techniques in breadmaking from Peter Reinhart’s Whole Grain breads. It has great recipes – all pre-soaked, for everything from pita bread, gram crackers, to a whole variety of breads. I got it for Christmas and it has been an excellent resource.
Wow! That sounds like an excellent resource that I will have to check out. Thank you for the recommendation!
lindsay i have been seeing “soaked grains” in a lot of articles on internet but i didnt really understand what they were talking about until i saw your website. Thanks for taking the time to explain things so clearly.I have been making my own bread for years now and this was the first time i soaked my flour….i used whole wheat flour, whole grain spelt flour and then lemon juice as an acid medium ( i live in the caribbean and i have never seen real milk much less kefir).It turned out well….the bread loaves were much lighter and fluffier!
So thank you very much.My husband was delighted with the results.I have started soaking oatmeal too….so thanks again…stay blessed.
http://www.scienceblog.com/community/older/2000/A/200000373.html
I think you might find this interesting…
Thanks for the tips.
S
Hello, I have been trying to find an answer to whether soaking will alter the structure of the nutrition the way sprouting does? I know sprouting makes flours more protein than carbohydrate and I was wondering if soaking does the same? My 3 year old has a metabolic disorder that causes liver dysfunction and she needs to restrict her intake of protein. I use whole grains and would like to soak them to make it easier on her body to digest them but I worry about the increased protein. Thanks for any information. Kara
Kara, soaking and sprouting both complete the same function of breaking down the phytates, releasing the nutrients, and thus allowing your body to be able to digest them properly. You can read more about the comparison of the two practices here.
hello….soaking flour is to break down the gluten in the enzymes the body needs doe digestion….
Adding gluten AFTER soaking flour will defeat the purpose….
regards ingrid
I’m so glad I found your website. Very encouraging! Good job!!!
~Anne
So have you ever tried soaking the actual wheat grains/berries like suggested and then putting them in the blender? I cannot find my wheat grinder and cannot afford to buy another one.
I use my blender all the time for grinding grains for pancakes and waffles and the like. I grind in the blender and then soak. You can see my recipes in the recipe index.
Thank you for replying–I guess I need to clarify my question, though. I mean, have you tried soaking the wheat without grinding it, and then putting it in the blender? My blender is not very strong.
No, I have not tried that…but it would be worth a shot.
Steffanie, I did try this before I got my Nutrimill, and I blew the motor out on my blender. So, if yours isn’t very strong, I wouldn’t recommend it. I blew my blender and coffee grinder before finally convincing dh to get the mill. Luckily I had bought the coffee grinder just for this purpose (from walmart) and was able to exchange it no problem for a new one when I did finally get the grinder.
Well, I tried soaking it for 1/2 the time, first (12 hrs) before I noticed mrssmif replied. Then I soaked it some more. It turned out somewhat like cracked wheat, and wasn’t too bad. I used it for a smoothie. I didn’t try blending it a second time, after 24 hours, but think I would be fantasizing to expect it to be perfectly blended.
You should be able to blend them down really well if you include the liquid you’ll be using in the recipe. That will make it easier on your blender. This is what I do. You could also add all the liquid, the grain and kefir, then blend it up and let it sit, as in the blender pancake recipe.
Stephanie,
I have been successful soaking my grains first and then blending. Lately, I’ve even been using my hand blender and that’s working fine. I do soak them for 24 hours though. Perhaps I do not overload the motor because I blend the soaked grains with all the liquid items in the recipe. This seems to make it easier on the blender. Hope this helps.
Mary
I tried your recipe today. Soaked whole wheat flour in 1 cup of vinegar water and oatmeal in 1/2 C. vinegar water. My bread tastes wonderful, but it is not light as I expected. I baked it to 180 degrees. It was too damp for me. What do you suggest I do next time.
Pat
I am not sure which recipe you are referring to Pat. If it is the bread recipe, you will want to bake it at 325 or 350 and not 180 degrees. Whole wheat will not be as light as white bread, but you can add a little unbleached white flour if you desire a lighter texture or a Tablespoon or two of dough enhancer. This has been working for me!
Love your site, read it many times & learned so much even though I’m a grandma!
I’m confused again (and maybe over thinking) but under soaking you say this :
” I like to also add the oil and sweeteners to maintain moist dough, ”
Under your homemade wheat bread tab it doesn’t list adding oil & sweeteners when soaking.
so I’m not sure which is correct. I was also wondering if I should add the salt & gluten before soaking if we are supposed to add the sweetener and oil. My favorite recipe is a little different than yours and I use a bread machine. It has some white flour in it and I’m soaking that too. Thank you so much for sharing all of your information.
Lynnette, either way works fine. I have done it both ways, sometimes including the oil and sweetener, sometimes not. It is an optional thing. You definitely do not want to add the salt, leavenings or gluten until after it has soaked. They will hinder the soaking process and will not rise effectively.
hi…
I am following nourishing traditions and weston pricce site…
You say, as sally does, to soak the flour with a fermented product. This in just one instace breaks down the gluten into digestible enzymes needed by the digestive system. Fermenting bread for minimum 15hrs or cake dough for 24 hrs, makes a product that most so-called people with gluten allergies, able to eat…..Soaking also reduces pytates…
By adding more flour after the soaking process, you are defeating the purpose of why you soak grains…
Regards Ingrid
That’s why it is best to use a sprouted flour if you need to add additional flour, but all in all it will not harm it very much to just add a cup or two as needed as long as the majority is soaked. I read recently that Sue Gregg even recommends using unbleached white flour if you need to add some more flour as she also thinks that would be better than more whole wheat. Interesting…
I’m interested. Can you soak flour you want to use in cakes, or are these considered too unhealthy? I really want to try cutting out white flour completely from my diet, and would like to try a chocolate brownie recipe, replacing the white flour with wholemeal/ground almonds. Can I soak the flour first, or is this just not possible?
I rarely make cakes at my house, and if I do it is for a special occasion, so I would use unbleached white flour in this case or half and half with whole wheat, but I don’t worry about soaking. I don’t know of any recipes for soaking cakes personally, but I do have a healthy brownie recipe using whole wheat flour. It is delicious!
If you can get a hold of soft white wheat (or summer wheat) it is great for cakes, quick breads, and such. Nutritionally it is almost exactly the same as the more commonly used hard red or hard white (winter wheats), the only real difference being a very small degree less protein than that hard wheat varieties. If I’m making baked goods for an event where I know a lot of people are not used to the freshly ground wheat, I usually go half and half hard red and soft white. Soft white is not good for yeast breads, though. It does, however, make a terrific cake.
This a great grainless brownie recipe (that’s also dairy-free):
http://www.elanaspantry.com/brownies/
I tried it once, as written, and everyone LOVED them. I do, however, want to experiment substituting honey for the agave. These are EXTREMELY filling/hearty due to the eggs and almond butter, but the texture is really good (ie, normal).
Firstly thank you so much for the time you take to share your knowledge, it’s a wonderful thing. My question if you have time is, I have some whole grain bread mix in the cupboard and was wondering if I could soak this and get the same results AND continue to do this until I purchase a grinder? Are there any do’s and don’t for successful bread making this way? I understand it will have lost a lot of it’s nutrition but do you think it would be a healthy alternative until fresh grinding can be achieved? Thanks again! Samantha
Sure. Go ahead and use what you have. You might have to make some slight adjustments, but combine the flour, sweetener, oil, water/liquids and acid medium and let it soak. I have not experimented using a mix personally, so I don’t have specific tips.
I have a question. When using buttermilk as your acid for soaking, can you use buttermilk powder made up instead of fresh buttermilk? Or will that not work?
Unfortunately powdered buttermilk is not cultured and thus will not break down the phytates as the fresh cultured product. I had to go through this same thing myself…it was a bummer as powdered buttermilk is so easy to have on hand.
I found some powdered buttermilk that says it is Cultured. Do you think it can therefore be used for soaking? My breads, muffins and quick breads seem lighter and tastier with soaking. I had never heard of soaking until I was blessed to find your site. Thank you so much.
I do not know for sure, but I would imagine the key is also the buttermilk being fresh. The drying process can definitely affect the nutrient contents and such and could have potentially destroyed its ability to break down phytates. If you desire to use this powdered buttermilk, I would play it on the safe side by adding a bit of a different acid medium (lemon juice, whey, kefir, etc) to the mix.
Hi Lindsay – I have been referring to your blog a lot lately as I am trying to incorporate soaked grains into our diet. I really appreciate all the time and energy that you put into your posts, I have learned so much! I do have a couple of questions about soaking though –
1.) Is it unhealthy to eat grains that haven’t been soaked or just not as good as eating soaked grains? I noticed that a number of times you have mentioned adding additional flour to the soaked grains just before baking. I was wondering if this has a negative effect on the nutritional benefit of soaking the grains in the first place?
2.) How to you prepare pasta? Do you soak it as well?
Thanks in advance for you help
I am glad to hear that I can be of service.
To answer your questions:
1. It is not necessarily unhealthy to eat unsoaked grains, it is just very difficult to digest and absorb all the nutrients.
As Sally Fallon says: Eating whole grains is important because they provide vitamin E, B vitamins, many important minerals and fiber. But the phytic acid in the grain combines with the iron, calcium, magnesium, copper and zinc in the intestinal tract, blocking their absorption. They also contain enzyme inhibitors that can interfere with digestion.
Adding additional flour is just out of necessity when it comes to some baked goods. It would be best to use a sprouted flour for these times, but I don’t believe a little bit of additional flour will cause more difficulty in digesting since the majority is already soaked.
2. I understand it to be impossible to soak pasta, thus I mentioned above that I purchase brown rice pastas for my use. These contain the least amount of phytates and thus are the best choice when it comes to pasta. A low amount of pasta content in the diet is best due to this. I cook as the package instructs.
I’m trying to get my head around the science behind all this. I’m confused why you don’t need to get rid of the soaking agent (by rinsing or straining) before cooking. Doesn’t it contain all the stuff you were just trying to get rid of?
No, there is nothing harmful in the soaking liquids. They help us digest the grains and break down the phytates. It’s not like the grains give off a bad substance, the soaking just enables us to digest them more effectively. In many things that you soak, you will find that much of the liquid is absorbed into the grain, and thus you don’t have very much remaining liquid anyway. The only things I rinse and replace the water is with beans, lentils and quinoa, as that is standard in most recipes (we are just adding the acid medium).
Why do you rinse and replace the quinoa? I thought it was a grain and not a legume.
Quinoa has some bitter soapy type substance on it. I wash mine REALLY well, about 4 times, before I even soak. Then toss the liquid again. This takes away that bitter taste.
How long do you soak the lentils for? I know that most beans need to be soaked (even according to “conventional” guidelines), whereas lentils and split peas are typically not soaked. Thanks!
I just soak them overnight same as everything else.
Hi! I just clicked through to your blog through several others. I love to click around others’ blogrolls and see who’s out there. I LOVE your blog. I had heard of soaking grains before, but never saw such an inclusive instruction on it. I may give it a try the next time we have rice or oatmeal to see how it works. One quick question, do you do this with all grains, such as cornmeal (is that a grain?) or barley? I am such a novice at this, we have been white grain eaters for, well, since I am born! I am trying to cook healthier (and cheaper
for my family and want to give this a try. THANKS!!!
Yes, I usually soak all my grains, including corn/cornmeal (which although is not really a grain, as far as I understand, it still has phytates that need to be removed through soaking), and barley. I don’t use those on their own, but normally in combination with other grains to make cornbread, or homemade bread.
First of all, I love your blog and I just found it!
Second, I have a quick question:
When soaking the rice do you let it sit out on the counter? And do you drain it?
Thanks in advance!
Yes, I allow everything to soak covered on the countertop or in a cupboard. After soaking, I normally just cook the rice in the water, because some of the water has soaked into the rice, so the remaining amount works perfectly to cook it. With rice you are soaking in the amount that you would normally cook in (1 cup brown rice to 2 1/4 cups water), just soaking in advance.
Hi Lindsay,
Am I correct that the soaked rice uses a lower concentration of acidic medium than other whole grains? Also, does the brown rice not taste weird/acidic after using the soaking water for cooking? I plan to use a rice cooker, if that matters.
The first – and only – grain I’ve ever soaked was quinoa. I rinsed the quinoa, soaked in water and ACV (unfortunately in the fridge), and then rinsed and cooked in fresh water…but this turned out great with your help and expert posts. So now I want to try it for other grains.
Also, do you soak your nuts? I do for certain recipes (the ones that call for it, ha), but would like a tutorial on soaking nuts in general. I don’t think you use an acidic medium for nuts, just water. My favorite soaked nut recipe is Elana’s grain-free granola from Elana’s Pantry!
Thanks so much!
Rice doesn’t need to be soaked as long because it doesn’t have as high a level of phytates as the other grains. 7 hours is the recommended time. Yes, I try to soak my nuts when time allows, but I don’t have a dyhrdator so I am not sure if it really helps. My oven does not go below 170 degrees for drying when the recommendation is 150. I think too high of a heat will kill some of the nutrients. I soak nuts for my candied pecans. It is basically the same idea with all your nuts.
Your blog is so informative, I’ve been searching for info on soaking grains, and am having a hard time. I’ve had sucess with Sue Gregg’s coffeecake recipe (w/some tweaking), and that’s about it. I’m having trouble figuring how to incorporate this method into my family’s favorite recipes. One big question I have is, what do you do when the recipe does not have a liquid for you to add the acid to, or soak the grains w/? Here’s an example of one of our favorite muffins ingredients:
1 1/4 cups halved strawberries
3 tablespoons butter or stick margarine, melted
2 teaspoons grated orange rind
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Thanks for such a great website, I’m going to try your whole wheat bread recipe and see how it works out for me.
In this case, I normally don’t worry about soaking. You could try just soaking the flour in a small amount of liquids (maybe 1/2 cup) and 1 Tbsp acid medium. The flour will absorb the liquid. You want a moist dough. When you get ready to bake, you could add a small amount of additional flour to get the texture you need.
Lindsay, I DO love your site and have been trying to change years of ‘traditional cooking’ with the Nourishing Traditions way. However, I noticed you said to soak grains, flour in CULTURED buttermilk NOT what you get from making butter. I have access to raw milk and have used the ‘regular’ buttermilk I’ve made and thought it was great. Can you tell me the reason to use the cultured?
Blessings,
Sunny
Sunny, I understand your confusion, as I was in the same boat a little while back wanting to use the buttermilk in the butter making process. The reason, to the best of my understanding, is that the buttermilk has not been cultured (gleaned the healthy bacteria in the air from sitting out), and thus will not be able to break down the phytates, as it must be a cultured source. Buttermilk that comes fr making butter is just a run off from the cream.
You can culture your cream before making it into butter and thus solve that problem. Simply let the cream sit for 8 hours before whipping into butter. It does change the flavor though, so you will have to just give it a try.
Hope that helps!
You women truly inspired me to attempt healthy breads again. Yesterday I ground amaranth and quinoa and then soaked them in the liquid with the kefir. When I got up this morning to make my bread, the soaking flour was already beginning to mold! Has anyone else had this problem??? Do I soak them in the refrigerator? I’m used to soaking and sprouting legumes, nuts and seeds; but am unfamiliar with soaking flour, so I appreciate your helpful hints!
Also, has anyone tried to sprout their grains first and then make bread out of them? Just curious as this is supposed to be even healthier?
I linked to this post on my blog today! Thanks for the inspiration!
http://ahighandnoblecalling.blogspot.com/2008/05/ive-been-inspiredfinally.html
This is exciting. Thanks for maping out grain soaking step-by-step. I have just recently received news on a trusted local raw milk source (we live in Alaska, so this is a miracle) and am excited about making kefir and such. Actually, I have a whole slew of questions about how you “schedule” turning your raw milk into kefir, yogurt, sour cream, cream cheese, butter, and cheese over a month’s time. But anyway, back to the subject of grains.
1. If I don’t have raw milk yet, can I use another acid agent on the flour for bread baking?
2. In reference to your bread recipe what do you make your one cup of gluten flour out of if you never buy flour and the rest is whole wheat?
3. Do you ever have any kefir left over, or does it all soak into the flour?
Thank you. I am humbled by how much good healthy home keeping information you have. Thank you for sharing it.
Glad you found a raw milk source!
In answer to your questions:
1. You can use lemon juice or white vinegar as mentioned above.
2. I do purchase gluten flour (its more of a dough enhancer, than an actual flour) from Azure Standard. I am sure you can get it from other sources as well.
3. Whatever I use to soak with remains in the flour/dough. It definitely soaks in.
Hope that answers your questions fully.
Lindsay
Great tips! I’ve been grinding my own flour since I got my nutrimill for Christmas, but haven’t tried soaking yet, largely due to the “how”. I will give your methods a try!
Do you find that soaked quick breads take longer to bake? I tried doing muffins once but they were a terrible flop! They turned out like nutmeggy cakes of gluey grain! I did use ground grains for part of the recipe (they were “seven-grain muffins”), but they still turned out horribly!
Kathleen, that is something I forgot to mention. I have discovered that with baked goods you usually have to add more flour than the recipe calls for, but you follow the standard baking time. I usually add maybe 1-2 more cups of flour after soaking. My tip is to try your recipe normally, learn what texture it should be, then experiment with soaking and adding more flour to get that same texture.
Lindsay are you saying if you soak brown rice it won’t be as chewy? I eat brown rice, but it’s more or less choking it down lol because of the chewiness of the rice. And I got away from white rice, sugar, flour, and white potatoes a few years back.
Hmm…I am not sure I would quite say that it makes it less chewy. I think brown rice is naturally more chewy than white, but I love it that way. It all depends on how much water you use as well. If you use more water, the rice will be more wet and I assume less chewy, if you prefer that way. Of course, we very rarely just eat rice by itself. I always serve it under Parmesan chicken or thrown in a stir fry or something.
Yeah we eat it w/something too. I’m the big rice eater. My dh is more of a bread person. I can take or leave bread.
I usually serve it w/chicken or fish, stir fry definitely. And w/tofu!
Gee maybe I’ve been cooking it wrong all this time! I’ll add more water to it next time. I like my pasta al dente, but I like my rice soft! (not mushy)
That was a great post.
I have soaked flour and cracked grains before.
My question is- how can I easily modify my favorite recipes to include soaking?
Candace, as described above, take the flour called for in the recipe and the liquids, and add 1 Tbsp of an acid medium per cup of the liquids (unless recipe calls for buttermilk, then that is the acid medium, and you don’t need to add anything else). Cover and soak as described. After soaking, add the remaining ingredients. I have done this on all my favorite recipes with great success. Does that make sense? It might be easiest to start with a few of the recipes I have completed and you will get the hang of it, and be able to incorporate it in your favorite recipes.
Also, you are free to send me one of your favorite recipes and I will map it out for you.
Does soaking the brown rice change the taste? I really like brown rice. I prefer it to white, but my husband really dislikes the taste of brown rice. He says it is too strong and prefers the rice to taste plain so that you are tasting what goes on the rice. If soaking the brown rice makes it less mild maybe I should try it.
I have not noticed any change in the taste due to soaking. If anything, soaking usually makes a more moist and lighter overall texture, including brown rice. I would recommend you try it and see.
Try soaking and/or cooking your brown rice with coconut milk or stock of some kind. It makes the rice far more flavorful.