How To Make A Rejuvelac Drink with Recipes and Health Benefits
While Ann Wigmore is rightly credited for popularizing the Rejuvelac drink drink that so many are drinking now, it has evolved and people are making the drink in all sorts of different ways now.
According to Wikipedia:
Rejuvelac is a general term for a fermented liquid purported to improve digestion of food. Rejuvelac is prepared using whole wheat, rye, quinoa, oats, barley, millet, buckwheat, rice and other types of grain. Rejuvelac can be consumed as a digestive aid and used as a ‘starter’ for other fermented foods such as raw nut and seed sauces, cheeses, and Essene Breads. Rejuvelac contains eight of the B vitamins, vitamins E and K, and a variety of proteins, dextrines, carbohydrates, phosphates and amylases. During the fermentation lactic acid is also produced.
Rejuvelac is a raw food made by sprouting a grain and then soaking the sprouted grain in water for about two days at room temperature and then drinking the liquid. A second batch can be made from the same sprouts, this time requiring only about one day. A third batch is possible but the flavor may be disagreeable.
Pick your Rejuvelac recipe. Rye seed is pretty tasty and probably my favorite. Ann Wigmore originally used soft wheat berries. Don’t use the hard wheat berries typically used for wheatgrass juice production.
For the purpose of this article, we’re using 2 cups of washed rye seed in a sprouting jar. You can use a colander but if you have a mason jar with some cheesecloth as a lid or sprouting jar it will be much easier. When making this it’s important that everything be super clean and well sterilized. Your life is in your hands. 🙂 Pathogenic organisms to people can grow in this if it’s made wrong.
Pour the seed in a 1/2 gallon jar, then wash and rinse it 3 times. On the 4th time leave the water in the seed jar with the seeds. Put the jar in a cool dark place (60 – 70 degrees Fahrenheit) for 8 – 12 hours.
After 8 – 12 hours drain the water and rinse off the seeds again. This time, turn the jar upside down over a bowl or plate and keep it at a 45 degree angle so it constantly drains. Make sure to completely drain all water from the mason jar. Do this at least 2 times a day (3 times is better) for 2 to 3 days. Do not drink any of this water.
Rejuvelac Drink - Seeds have sprouted and the jar is ready to be filled with water for 2 days
Once the seeds have sprouted, fill the jar back up with about 10 cups of water (more or less depending on how strong you like it) and leave it in a cool dark place (60 – 70 degrees Fahrenheit) for roughly 48 hours.
If you see some white frothy stuff on top after the 48 hours, simply remove it with a spoon.
Next, pour the water from the jar into a container that you can put in the fridge, being sure to leave the seeds in the sprouting jar. Again fill the sprouting jar with 10 cups of water and put in your cool dark place for another 24 hours.
When the 24 hours has passed, pour the water from the jar into your refrigerated container. If desired, do this last step one more time (with a 24 hour wait time).
Your Rejuvelac drink will last roughly 7 days in the fridge.
Don’t be surprised if you don’t like the taste of your Rejuvelac drink right away. It’s an acquired taste, so give it a chance.
The seeds that you have left over, by the way, can be composted or thrown outside; the birds will love them.
This fermentation should not smell bad. It should have a slight lemony yeasty smell and taste. If it tastes or smells bad throw it out. It should have a PH of about 3.9. At no point during or after the fermentation should the PH ever go above 4.6 – that greatly increases risk of contamination. It should not be below 2.5 as that would not be safe either. You can put a little lemon in the water to keep the PH low and make sure bad organisms don’t have a chance to grow. Keep in mind that if it’s really hot where you are, the fermentation process may complete much sooner, sometimes in less then 24 hours, and go bad/rancid just as quickly. If in doubt throw it out!
