6 Delicious Ideas To Consume Sunflower Seeds

Sunflower seeds are not just the seeds of that beautiful and radiant flower with yellow petals that tickles our soul every time we see it dance with the sun. They are also a superfood, very rich in fat, protein and carbohydrates, as well as minerals such as iron and magnesium.

In the kitchen, these pipes also lend themselves to a multitude of preparations. That is why it is always good to have a full jar at home, because you can add them even in the recipe that you least imagine.

Peeled or with the shell

You can buy sunflower seeds in the market with skin or without skin. The most practical way to use the recipes is to get pipes that are already skinless. They are very easy to find. Of course, it is important that they are not fried or toasted, but raw.

If you are going to eat them as is, soak them in water for a few hours before, then strain them and wash them. This is how they are activated and the water takes away the antinutrients. They also go soft.

How to sprout sunflower seeds

Those that have skin, you can make them sprout. In fact, that’s my first recommendation for these seeds: make sunflower sprouts. To do this, the ideal is to use those with a black shell.

You just have to soak them overnight. The next day, rinse them and put them in a thin layer of soil or coconut fiber.

Over the days, thanks to the water with which you will water them every day, they will take root and begin to grow until they release the shell. At that time you can harvest and eat them.

For me, in addition to being beautiful little plants, they are a delicacy, the best fresh shoots that exist.

6 different ways to consume sunflower seeds

With skinless pipes, in raw cooking we can do all this and even more:

• Salads: add whole or chopped pipes. They will provide nutrients and texture.
• Dehydrated with flavors: activate, wash and season them with whatever you want: curry, tomato, pesto, wasabi, cinnamon .. They will be crispy, to take as a snack or add to another preparation.
• Raw-Parmesan: crush one part of the pipes with another part of nutritional yeast and a little salt. It is ideal for salads, pasta, …
• Patés: once soaked, mash them with beets, carrots, celery or whatever vegetable you want, until they are creamy. You can add seasonings, oils, lemon … They are ideal patés for spreading or filling.
• Milks: soak them, crush them with water, pass them through a cloth bag and use this milk in smoothies, sauces, creams … With the leftover pulp you can make cake bases, or dehydrate it and make flour.
• Crackers or cookies: like other seeds or nuts, they can serve as a base for dehydrated ones. For example, combined with flax and some condiment, fruit, green leaf or vegetable. Spread the mixture on the dehydrator trays and dehydrate until crisp.