In Nourishing Traditions, Sally Fallon and Mary Enig claim that brown rice is low in phytates and therefore does not need a very long soak time; seven hours is sufficient for increased digestibility, or even just a long, slow cook time of an hour and a half. Unfortunately, rice is also dismally low in phytase, the enzyme that is the most efficient proven way to neutralize phytic acid and truly release the nutrients contained in the bran of the grain.
Look how low the phytase, the enzyme that neutralizes phytates and phytic acid, is in rice compared to wheat! It doesn’t get significantly better as you look across the chart at soaked or germinated rice, either.
Luckily for us, white rice isn’t the only other choice.
During this “Get out the Gluten!” week, it’s only appropriate to discuss proper preparation of a popular gluten-free grain. I spoke with Rebecca Wood, the Julia Child award-winning author of The Splendid Grain and The New Whole Foods Encyclopedia, and she clued me into GBR, or germinated brown rice, a preparation method that the U.N. is recommending for its much increased vitamin and mineral content.
What is Germinated Brown Rice (GBR)?
Germinated brown rice has been soaked long enough for the process of germination (growing a seed) to begin. According to Japanese Food Economist Ito Shoichi in his 2004 presentation for the Rice Conference held by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, it is likely that ancient peoples in Japan ate their brown rice soaked. GBR is easy to prepare at home and allows the nutrients in the rice to be more assimilated in the body.
What Nutrients are Increased in GBR?
The most highly touted nutrient that is doubled or even magnified ten times in germinated brown rice is an amino acid called gamma-aminobutyric acid or GABA for short. Other remarkable improvements are shown in the amounts of dietary fiber, magnesium, potassium, zinc, Vitamin E and many B vitamins.
The Health Benefits of Germinated Brown Rice
Researchers Kayahara and Tukahara concluded in 2000 that “continuous intake of GBR” can lower blood pressure, improve brain function, and relieve some symptoms of menopause. It also may prevent headaches, relieve constipation, regulate blood sugar, and even prevent Alzheimer’s disease and some cancers, including colon cancer and leukemia.
How Do I Make GBR?
Making germinated brown rice is not much different than the NT recommended soaking, but with some key changes.
- Soak brown rice in water at about 85-105 degrees F (30-40 C) for 20 hours.
- Change the water a few times during the process.
- Rinse rice before cooking.
- Cook as usual with a little less water, because rice will have absorbed some of the soaking water.
- No acidic medium is necessary, because your goal is germination, or starting the seed to sprout.
- To keep the water at such a high temperature, you can use a basking light like those sold for reptiles or a cheap hot plate rigged with a thermometer.
- If you choose not to go to such measures for rice (seems complicated to me), you can soak at lower temperatures for longer – perhaps 2-3 days – and achieve nearly the same result. You can tell you’ve had success if you can see the end of the rice changing color, bulging a little, and perhaps even a tiny sprout (see image above).
- Note: It is important to use rice that is as fresh as possible; old rice harvested long ago will not germinate.
Can I Sprout Brown Rice?
Although sprouting brown rice shows positive impacts on reducing phytic acid and increasing mineral bioavailability, it takes many days to achieve the best results. When I sprouted brown rice for 5 days (below), I hated the taste. No one in my family could eat it because it was so sweet, just not appropriate for a stir fry (maybe for a sweet dish like rice pudding? Haven’t tried that yet.)
When you soak your brown rice, be sure to give it at least 20 hours in very warm water, longer if you can, especially at room temperature. This will reduce the binding properties of phytic acid and make the rice more digestible and more nutritious. UPDATE: You can also buy germinated brown rice (called GBR) ready to go, no soaking needed. See details here.
I’m excited to share another, even MORE effective and more simple method for cooking rice tomorrow, along with research into rice and phytates. Stay tuned!
- Catch up on all the soaking grains research.
- If you’re interested in Nourishing Traditions, Jenny at Nourished Kitchen published a must-read article on the man behind the science, Weston A. Price.
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Sources: 1, 2 Chart from The Influence of Soaking and Germination on the Phytase Activity and Phytic Acid Content of Grains and Seeds Potentially
Useful for Complementary Feeding by I. EGLI, L. DAVIDSSON, M.A. JUILLERAT, D. BARCLAY, R.F. HURRELL
Entered in Real Food Wednesday at Kelly the Kitchen Kop and Works for Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family.
We love germinated brown rice! I wrote a post on this a while back and included a link to where you can buy it if you don’t want to make it:
http://kellythekitchenkop.com/2008/07/germinated-rice-organic-chicken.html
Kelly
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I wonder what temp a crockpot is on “keep warm”… maybe with the lid cracked? I’ll have to do a test. :>) And I’ll be linking!
.-= Lenetta @ Nettacow´s last blog ..Yeast Elimination Diet =-.
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great idea Lenetta! I looked in the manual for mine and it says keep warm is programmed to maintain a 102 degree temp- so this will work!!!
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Well, clearly I’ll have to wait until tomorrow!
.-= Cori´s last blog ..Friday night out – Infant formula update #1 =-.
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I was wondering as well if a crockpot would work. Anyone know?
We ALWAYS eat brown rice: I’m open to trying germinating it.
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if you sprouted the brown rice and then dehydrated it could you then make brown rice flour? I’ve never cooked with rice flour but it seems that with such a low phytate count perhaps I should think about it!
Where did you find that interesting chart with all the grains and their phytate/phytase counts? I couldn’t really read it on the screen but would love to be able to look and compare.
Thanks for such great info!!
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Katie Reply:
April 2nd, 2010 at 12:09 am
Elaine,
Great questions! I assume that method would work for brown rice flour, but I haven’t opened my grain mill yet, so…
The chart is cited at the very bottom of the post, and if you click on the chart it gets a little bigger for you. I didn’t realize it had gotten QUITE so small – it looked better in my interface!
Katie
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This sounds like a great way to handle rice–although I do think the soaking in warm water sounds kind of annoying. Can’t wait to hear the easier method.
.-= Simple in France´s last blog ..Confessions of a Coffee Addict =-.
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We just made pancakes this morning with sprouted brown rice flour. I bought it through our co-op, Azure Standard. But here’s the link to the company.
http://kgflour.com/order.html
It is a wonderful GF flour to use. The baked goods come out much more light, fluffy, and less gritty than regular brown rice flour. I’m ordering a bag of the rice next month. Thanks for sharing how to do it yourself as it is a bit pricy.
.-= christina´s last blog ..My Dad’s Favorite Applesauce Cake – Now Gluten Free =-.
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This article is good food for thought:
http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.com/2009/04/new-way-to-soak-brown-rice.html
.-= Julie´s last blog ..Dumpster Diving =-.
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Could putting it in the oven with the light on work to keep it warm enough?
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Katie Reply:
April 2nd, 2010 at 12:16 am
Sonia,
Katie
Check your oven temp! I understand there’s a great variance, but it would be a start, for sure.
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I’ll bet a yogurt maker would work. Katie, you say the taste was altered. What about the texture?
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Katie Reply:
April 2nd, 2010 at 12:20 am
Rachel,
Soaked brown rice already has a more creamy, porridge-style texture than standard cooked rice, and this was pretty much the same if I remember right.
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This is great information! We only eat the germinated brown rice in our house. I figure with all the things I have to do every day, I probably won’t be soaking rice as I already soak grains when I do eat them (which is fairly rare). I have definitely noticed a huge difference in how my body reacts to the germinated brown rice as opposed to the regular rice that I had to soak before cooking, as I’m really sensitive to many carbs. This tells me I still have some detoxing to do, and I’m starting a liver/gallballer detox here in the next week or two.
.-= Raine Saunders´s last blog ..Produce and Pestcides: The Dirty Dozen and Protecting Your Children =-.
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I guess that must be why brown rice is always wreaking havoc on me – I am not soaking it this long!!! Thanks for the tip, this is so helpful!
.-= Jenn AKA The Leftover Queen´s last blog ..Recipe: Scottish Oat Cakes =-.
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Katie Reply:
April 5th, 2010 at 1:48 pm
Jenn,
Katie
You need to read the next installment: http://www.kitchenstewardship.com/2010/04/01/phytic-acid-in-rice-reduced-96-with-accelerated-fermentation/ on how to utilize the little phytase brown rice has – an even better soaking method!
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Linked. :>)
.-= Lenetta @ Nettacow´s last blog ..No More Plastic Food Storage Containers? =-.
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Hi, i came across your wonderful sight looking for sprouted brown rice recipe. I am doing low carb and wonder if anyone knows how much carbohydrates are left once sprouted.Protein info would be useful too. Any size serving with ounces or grams would be so helpful. Thanks you! Darlene
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Katie Reply:
June 10th, 2010 at 4:01 pm
Darlene,
Katie
I checked NutritionData.com and they didn’t have it, sadly. I’m not sure! It will be less than regular brown rice, but I’m not sure how much. Sorry!
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Budget Lunch: Pizza Rice « Local Nourishment // Jun 14, 2010 at 1:39 am
[...] Rice serves 6 2 cups germinated brown rice 2 cups homemade chicken stock 3 tablespoons tomato paste Italian herbs such as basil, oregano, [...]
I planned on soaking brown rice the other day. To remind myself to start it that evening (it was morning when I did this), I put the rice only in a pot and put the lid on.
I still managed to forget about it. :p So when it came time to make rice the next evening, I just made it like normal using chicken stock.
Lo and behold, it germinated!!! Maybe there was moisture in the pot when I initially set it out? Dunno! But so it was germinated AND cooked in chicken stock.
Obviously, more testing is needed.
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The, “I Want to Eat Like I’ve Been in the Garden All Day”, Dish | // Mar 8, 2011 at 3:37 pm
[...] 2 cups of Germinated Rice…why use Germinated Rice? Read here [...]
sooo…If I soak the rice on my counter for three days at room temp (trying to conserve on energy usage:) will it germinate or sprout? I noticed you said the sprouted was too sweet but the germinated is not then I imagine?
confused in Colorado!!
thanks!
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Katie Reply:
April 28th, 2011 at 1:39 am
Jen,
Katie
You shouldn’t need to soak for 3 days. Just soak about 12 hours, then drain and rinse a few times for about a day. That should be germinated without the sprouts getting too long, I would imagine. You’ll also want to read the next post about “accelerated fermentation” which is really easy as well, just soaking and saving the soak water for the next time. Let me know if you have any more questions!
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How long can I leave rice and it still be healthy to eat? I put 2 cups rice and 2 cups water and 1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar on the counter (recipe from one of Jordan Rubin’s books), and it has been there about 3 days. I never rinsed. Is this okay? Or dangerous to eat or just not healthy? (The recipe says to soak 7 hrs. ) Is rinsing an important thing to do?
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Katie Reply:
June 9th, 2011 at 11:07 pm
Kristie,
Katie
I’ve never left it quite that long, so I’m not sure I could say! I doubt it would be “unhealthy”…unless it’s molded or something, in which case “dangerous” might be more accurate. If you’re following a recipe from a book, just go with it. I don’t think rinsing is a vital step, no.
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I’ve recently begun investigating all these things [after a long break of some 12 years in which I just got lazy] and actually came across Stephan’s site with the accelerated fermentation method some time ago.
But I’m still kinda lazy. I wd rather soak a whole kilo at once, or more.
So the question becomes: can I drain it well and package in small amounts and freeze to use later, or is it better to cook it all first and then freeze in meal-size amounts?
tnx
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Katie Reply:
August 15th, 2011 at 2:38 pm
Doyle,
katie
I’m not really sure how freezing drained rice would do, but I rely on already cooked, frozen rice for quick meals. It reheats fine, so that would be my suggestion for you!
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doyle Reply:
August 16th, 2011 at 12:04 am
sounds good to me. tnx.
btw, I see you find the sprouted rice to be sweet. why would it taste sweet? what happens chemically to make it so? any clue?
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Katie Reply:
August 17th, 2011 at 1:29 am
My guess was always that as a grain sprouts, it goes from being a seed to a plant. I don’t know what happens chemically there, but is there a transfer of sugar? The sprout would start eating some of the starch in the cotyledon, maybe making it sweeter.
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doyle Reply:
August 17th, 2011 at 1:44 am
oh, interesting, um, seed of an idea, Katie. hmmm. definitely worth some followup. tnx for getting back to me on it.
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Jesse Reply:
December 6th, 2011 at 8:50 am
If your rice seems sweeter after sprouting the only explaination would be the conversion of carbohydrates from complex starches broken down into simple sugars.
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Sprouting rise is very simple. Do not make it harder than it is. First, some rice depending on how it is harvested and/or grown will give it better sproutability. the organic varieties seem to sprout best for me but try some different brands and see what works best for you. Temperature is not a concern for sprouting rice but warmer water up to 100 degrees may spout the rice faster. Simply leave the rice in a jar submerged in filtered water for 8-12 hours(up to 20 hours) and keep on kitchen counter or warm place if you prefer. Drain the water and you have germination. I like to sprout it by rinsing and draining after the soak for 8-12 more hours. repeat rinse and drain once more if you want. You will see the tails coming out if it is sprouting. Good luck.
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I got my inspiration partly from this web page, but developed my own easy technique for GBR. I soak at room temperature for four days. Supermarket grade brown rice seems to do fine with this, looking more or less like the top picture. No need for a heat source this way. After all, rice germinates in paddies where the water is not artificially warm.
Just change the water at least every twelve hours, otherwise it seems to ferment, and fermented brown rice was not tasty the first time when I left the water unchanged for a few days.
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Fermenting or ”souring” rice would be done using 2 tablespoons of liquid whey, a biproduct yogurt. Its called lactofermentation. You could also use plain whole yogurt
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