Lentils come in a range of beautiful, earthy hues. Chickens will eat them dry but absolutely devour them when sprouted! Lentils pack a lot of nutrition in a single seed and birds benefit from the additional nutrients that are unlocked when sprouting. Here’s my EASY mason jar method for making sprouted lentils for your chickens:
Making Sprouted Lentils for Chickens and Quail
Sprouting lentils is ridiculously easy. Red, yellow, and brown lentils will all sprout into delicious greens packed with phytonutrients in about 5 days. Brown lentils sprout the fastest and are the least expensive, making them incredibly beginner-friendly.
Mason Jar Method
There are a multitude of sprouting trays on the market but my favorite way is to use a quart size glass mason jar with a sprouting lid. Clear glass exposes the lentil sprouts to kitchen sunlight so they green up nicely without needing any type of humidity dome. Plus the mason jar sprouting lids are flat and easy to store, since I use the mason jars for so many other things in my kitchen. You can find sprouting lids on Amazon but my favorite white sprouting lids are currently only offered on eBay. (Amazon afflink)
Lentil Sprouting Directions
I place 1 Tablespoon of dry lentils in a quart mason jar and fill it halfway full with 2 cups of clean water. Each jar is set aside for a 12 hour soak. Once the 12 hours are up, I screw on the white sprouting lid then tip the jar upside down over the sink to drain the water. Next I add fresh water, swish the lentils around in the jar to rinse them, and again drain the jar over the sink. From there each jar is set on my kitchen counter, lid side down, to drip dry while exposed to kitchen sunlight.
Rinse Every Day
Twice per day I will fill the jar with about a cup of water, swish the lentils to rinse them, drain, and return the jar to the counter with the lid facing down. Repeat this twice a day rinsing for 5 to 7 days until the lentil sprouts begin to green up.
Which Lentils Are the Best?
The red lentils available at my local grocery store were 1/3 smaller than the brown lentils but 33% more expensive. The brown lentils sprouted more quickly and grew larger greens faster. They will be my choice for inexpensive sprouts going forward. (But since my candy corn scratch and autumn harvest chicken scratch recipes call for red lentils, it was fun to experiment with sprouting them!)
Chickens and Coturnix Quail Eat Sprouted Lentils!
My hens and quail both devoured the lentil sprouts! There was not a single scrap left in the quail coop. Even the large, long brown lentil sprouts had been entirely eaten. I give sprouted lentils to the chickens in a Behren’s metal feed pan inside their coop. The quail get their lentil sprouts served on a dishwasher safe pie pan, which I remove in the evening and wash. (Afflinks)
Sprouting Split Peas
Split green and yellow peas can be sprouted, too! They need an 8 to 12 hour (or overnight) soak in clean water and then regular rinsing twice a day. Split peas are ready when they develop a small root “tail” that is 1/4 to 1/2 inch. They might become smelly if you try to get them to sprout beyond this. Chickens are happy to eat them dry, soaked & softened, or at any stage of sprouting.
Remember: Dry Lentils & Peas are Fine, But Not Dry Beans
Please be aware that it is safe to feed your flock dried lentils and dried peas but do NOT feed chickens dry beans. Beans need to be soaked, cooked, or sprouted in order for them to be safely consumed by poultry. Dry beans contain phytohaemagglutinin, a lectin that is toxic to birds. Beans must be cooked to destroy these lectins. Canned beans, cooked beans, and sprouted beans are SAFE for chickens to eat, but dry beans are not.
Dry Lentils and Peas are Safe for Chickens
Lentils and peas do not contain any toxic lectins and can safely be fed dry, soaked, sprouted, and/or cooked to chickens, quail, and all poultry. Chicken feed blends and scratch mixes that call for dried peas or dried lentils are perfectly safe to give! Coturnix quail, which are smaller, do not usually eat brown lentils or split peas whole (unless they are starving and have no choice). Quail prefer to eat sprouted lentil greens, which they LOVE! If your chicken feed recipe calls for split peas or lentils, you CAN safely feed these dry legumes to your flock.
Sprouted Lentils are a Healthy Natural Fodder
Your chicken and quail flocks are going to LOVE fresh lentil sprouts! Investing in a single sprouting lid is worth it to regularly offer these greens to your livestock. The vitamins and minerals in healthy, whole foods like sprouted lentils are believed to be more bio-available than synthetic vitamins added to commercial feeds. Bright eyes, smooth feathers, and regular laying are all signs your flock is reaping the best benefits from sprouted lentil greens!
You Might Also Enjoy Reading:
Sprouts to Feed Coturnix Quail (including how to easily sprout bird seed blends!)
Homemade Chicken Scratch Feed Recipe for Orange Egg Yolks
Layer Pellet + Scratch Recipes: Easy DIY Chicken Feed Mixes
Leave a Reply