Your Grains Need a Bath, Too

Sarah Britton is a Toronto-born, Copenhagen-based holistic nutritionist. Her blog, My New Roots, has earned her the title of Quinoa Queen, but as we learned when talking to her for our new year’s health series, Britton’s knowledge goes way beyond ancient grains. And no, we’re not going to talk about kale, either.

Remember how we told you (well, nutritionist Sarah Britton told you) that soaking almonds helps bring out their nutritive power? Well, same goes for grains.

You could just trust us on this one, but in case you’re not that type, read this excerpt from Sally Fallon’s Nourishing Traditions:

All grains contain phytic acid (an organic acid in which phosphorous is bound) in the outer layer or bran. Untreated phytic acid can combine with calcium, magnesium, copper, iron especially zinc in the intestinal track and block their absorption. This is why a diet high in unfermented whole grains may led to serious mineral deficiencies and bone loss. The modern misguided practice of consuming large amounts of unprocessed bran often improves colon transit time at first but may lead to irritable bowel syndrome and, in the long term, many other adverse effects. Soaking allows enzymes, lactobacilli and other helpful organisms to break down and neutralize phytic acid. As little as seven hours of soaking in acidulated water will neutralize a large portion of phytic acid in grains. The simple practice of soaking cracked or rolled cereal grains overnight will vastly improve their nutritional benefits.

You just skipped over that, didn’t you? Thought so.

The basic idea is that all the good-for-you organisms and enzymes in whole grains are more easily absorbed by your body when they’ve hung out in a bath for a bit.

So yeah! Soak those oats overnight in water, milk, or yogurt, and in the morning you have super-nutritive muesli. Get Britton’s recipe, which includes a spiced strawberry sauce, at My New Roots.