Teff - eragrostis teff

[Guest guest]

Hello all

I've been looking at the seeds that I can buy here in the UK, those that would

be viable to sprout and are cheap. UK suppliers tend to hike the prices a bit!

I've come across a seed called Teff, eragrostis teff. It's a very interesting

seed. From one source:

This naturally gluten free grain is now grown in Europe, and its gluten free

status is protected from cross contamination in the growing and harvesting

phase. This is the grain from which our prescription approved Teff flour is

produced by very fine milling in a gluten free environment. A single grain of

wheat weighs the same as 150 teff grains! Because they are so tiny, it is not

possible to remove parts of the grain and it will therefore not lose any of it's

fibre when processed. Teff is well known by Ethiopians and Eritreans for its

superior nutritional quality. It contains 11% protein, 80% complex carbohydrate

and 3% fat. It is an excellent source of essential amino acids, especially

lysine, the amino acid that is most often deficient in grain foods. Teff

contains more lysine than barley, millet, and wheat and slightly less than rice

or oats. Teff is also an excellent source of fiber and iron, and has many times

the amount of calcium, potassium and other essential minerals found in an equal

amount of other grains.Teff is well known by Ethiopians and Eritreans for its

superior nutritional quality. It contains 11% protein, 80% complex carbohydrate

and 3% fat. It is an excellent source of essential amino acids, especially

lysine, the amino acid that is most often deficient in grain foods. Teff

contains more lysine than barley, millet, and wheat and slightly less than rice

or oats. Teff is also an excellent source of fibre and iron, and has many times

the amount of calcium, potassium and other essential minerals found in an equal

amount of other grains.

It is considered a complete protein because it contains all 8 essential amino

acids. It's high calcium content is a great plus for coeliacs, but phosphorus,

iron, copper, aluminium, barium and thiamin are also present in high levels.

Also lysine levels in teff can beat wheat or barley, hands down and it's iron

content is four times greater than that of wheat flour -another great boon for

coeliac sufferers! If you have the misfortune to also suffer from diabetes, then

teff can be doubly useful as it can assist with controlling blood sugar levels.

WHAT CAN YOU USE IT FOR?

~These seeds can be added to baking or sprinkled on top of bread

~or used in salads to obtain the full nutritional benefit of this amazing crop.

Teff can be sprouted too! See below for details

~add grains to soups and stews to thicken them and add nutrients, either cook

them first or just add to soup for the last 10 minutes of cooking time.

~allow it to ferment for three days to make injera bread

~make porridge with it

~mix it with onion, garlic, herbs, seeds etc, to make a lovely tasting

vegetarian burger

~throw it in with the vegetables in a stir fry to increase the protein content

~cooked it can be used as an accompaniment to a meal in place of rice in a pilaf

~cooked you can make into patties or sausage shapes after being mixed with meat

(or bean curd for a veggie option)

~prepare home brewed gluten free beer/alcohol

The same web vendor states that they germinate at around 4 days. They're very

cheap here (at £3.90 or about $9 a kilo).

I quite fancy trying these little seeds out to sprout and wondered if anyone

else had tried them? If so, how did they taste?

Thanks!

Charlotte