What Are Mung bean sprouts and How Can I Use Them?

Here's everything worth knowing about mung bean sprouts and how to pick them, what they are, how to store them, and what to use instead, plus 247 recipes to cook tonight.

What are mung bean sprouts?

A popular Asian vegetable are the pale tender shoots of the soya, mung or curd bean is an important, if not essential, ingredient in chop suey, chow mein, egg rolls, Chinese and Asian dishes.

Westerners also enjoy their texture and bland flavor in salads, stews, and soups.

They are available canned and may be found fresh in oriental markets, many health food stores, and supermarkets.

They are also easy to sprout at home.

Sprouts from the mung bean are the most familiar, but adzuki beans, chick-peas, lentils, soybeans, and all the familiar dried beans such as navy, kidney, lima, and even whole dried beans can be sprouted.

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 1/2 cup (35g)

Amount per Serving

Calories 42Calories from Fat 21

% Daily Value *

Total Fat 2.3g 4%

Saturated Fat 0.3g 2%

Trans Fat ~

Cholesterol 0mg 0%

Sodium 4mg 0%

Total Carbohydrate 3.3g 1%

Dietary Fiber 0g 2%

Sugars ~

Protein 4.6g

Vitamin A 0% Vitamin C 9%

Calcium 2% • Iron 4%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your caloric needs.

recipeland.com/nutrition

Quick facts

Where to find mung bean sprouts: Mung bean sprouts are usually found in the produce section or aisle of the grocery store or supermarket.

Food group: Mung bean sprouts are a member of the Vegetables and Vegetable Products US Department of Agriculture nutritional food group.

In Chinese: 绿豆芽
British (UK) term: Mung bean sprouts
en français: germes de haricot mungo
en español: mung brotes de soja

How much do mung bean sprouts weigh?

Amount	Weight
½ cup	35 grams
10 sprouts	10 grams

Vegetables and Vegetable Products

Alfalfa sprouts 47 Artichoke hearts 250 Artichokes 82 Asparagus 449 Bamboo shoots 144 Lima beans 129 Green beans 543 Beets 204 Broccoli, frozen 129 Cabbage 684

Recipes using mung bean sprouts

There are 247 recipes that contain this ingredient.

Loaded Vegetable & Quinoa Salad with Miso Orange Dressing

A wide variety of fresh vegetables and quinoa are tossed with a salty and sweet miso orange dressing. Serve it as a refreshingly nutritious side dish or a vegetarian/vegan main course.

Star Anise Beef-Rice Noodle Soup

A star anise beef and rice noodle soup in the style of Vietnamese pho: a long-simmered oxtail and shank broth scented with charred ginger, star anise, and cinnamon, over rice noodles, beef, and fresh herbs.

Vegetable Smoked Tofu Salad with Soy-Maple Dressing

Lots of fresh veggies and smoked tofu are tossed with a flavorful yet light soy-maple dressing.

Pad Thai Pseudo

An easy homemade pad Thai that skips hard-to-find tamarind, leaning on fish sauce, vinegar, and paprika for that sweet-sour-salty tang. Chewy rice noodles tossed with tofu, shrimp, egg, bean sprouts, and crushed peanuts.

Bibimbap2 (Korean Seasoned Vegetables & Rice with Spicy Sauce)

Bibimbap is my all-time favorite Korean dish, I have no problem to make it and eat it everyday :) I made this recipe a few days ago, this time I added homemade bean sprouts as well, and served it with three different kinds of homemade kimchi (cucumber, daikon and cabbage kimchi) and a fried egg as always. Delicious, that's the only word I can say every time :)

Tofu Fried Rice

This easy fried rice is also very versatile to make. You can use any other vegetables that you have on hand. Feel free to add some scrambled eggs if you want extra protein boost. The leftover can be kept in the fridge for at least two days.

Jasmin's Pad Thai

Authentic Thai street-style pad thai with chewy rice noodles, shrimp, tamarind, and fish sauce. Quick wok-tossed noodles with cashews and lime in 20 minutes.

Phat Thai (Pad Thai)

Authentic shrimp pad thai: rice noodles stir-fried fast over high heat with garlic, shrimp, egg, and fish sauce, finished with bean sprouts, peanuts, and a squeeze of lime. Thai street food made at home.

Pad Thai Stir-Fried Rice Ribbon Noodles

Authentic Pad Thai with shrimp, chicken, and rice ribbon noodles in a dry-coat sauce of yellow bean, fish sauce, and tomato paste. Finished with peanuts, bean sprouts, lime, and cilantro the way a Bangkok street stall would.

Tangy Cucumber & Mung Bean Sprout Salad

I think homemade foods are generally healthier and better taste than store-bought. I sprouted some mung bean sprouts at home for the second time. Made this salad the first thing this morning after I got up...

Pho Bac (Hanoi Beef & Rice-Noodle Soup)

A savory and hearty soup made with succulent beef, hot chili sauce and bean sprouts.

Chinese Veggie Salad with Soy Dressing

This light yet tasty Chinese veggie salad is made with bean sprouts, lotus root, carrot, cucumber, black mushrooms, and tofu sheet, then tossed with a soy-rice vinegar-sesame oil dressing. A refreshing side dish that goes well with most of the main dishes, or just serve it with some steamed rice to complete a delicious meal.

Shantung Chicken

Superb dish. I added Chinese veggies mix which contained bean sprouts, sherry was Spanish. Noodles were originally Chinese. Thanks very much, a photo is attached.

Pad Thai - Midsummer Thai Dinner

I ALWAYS add tons of seasonal veggies!!! This one had snow peas, carrots, eggplant, and asian prickly zucchini!

Pad Thai - Midsummer Thai Dinner

I ALWAYS add tons of seasonal veggies!!! This one had snow peas, carrots, eggplant, and asian prickly zucchini!

Lisa's Chicken Chow Mein

Lisa's chicken chow mein: marinated chicken stir-fried in a smoking-hot wok with bok choy, shiitakes, bean sprouts, and noodles in a soy-oyster-black bean sauce. Restaurant-style in 40 minutes.

Hanoi Beef & Rice-Noodle Soup (Pho Bac)

Authentic Hanoi-style pho bo with slow-simmered oxtail and beef bone broth, star anise, charred ginger, rice noodles, and paper-thin sirloin. This traditional Vietnamese beef noodle soup recipe takes 5 hours but rewards you with deeply aromatic, soul-warming bowls.

Asian Beef Tacos

The idea of Korean Tacos trucks and the delicious tacos they produce intrigued me. I developed this as my own version of an Asian flavored taco.

Pork Fried Rice

Excellent! Very easy to put together. Would be good with shrimp, also!

Restaurant-Style Chicken Fried Rice

Master authentic wok-fried rice with velveted chicken, crisp bean sprouts, and earthy mushrooms. This restaurant technique delivers separate grains with smoky wok flavor and tender, silky chicken.

Wok-Seared Mahi Mahi with Stir-Fried Vegetables

Wok-Seared Mahi Mahi with Stir-Fried Vegetables recipe

Spicy Thai Noodles with Chicken & Shrimp

Glass noodles with chicken and shrimp lightly coated in a mildly spicy refreshing thai inspired sauce.

Chicken Pad Thai

Pad Thai Tip: For even more flavor, I'll often make a double batch of the pad Thai sauce. Then, as I'm stir-frying the noodles, I'll add more sauce until I'm happy with the taste (I also add extra fish sauce). Any leftover sauce can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.

Cafe Kati's Mango Spring Rolls

Fresh no-cook mango spring rolls wrapped in rice paper with vermicelli, basil, mint, bean sprouts, and shredded carrots. Light, vibrant Thai-inspired rolls with spicy vinaigrette for dipping.

Chicken Stir Fry

Nothing is quicker and easier than a Chinese stir-fry, agreed?! This dish took me less than half an hour to make, and it tasted wonderfully delicious. Served it over a bed of rice, and our dinner was served with tons of goodness and yumminess.

Cabbage Cucumber Salad with Tamarind Dressing

A quick, easy and delicious salad. Cucumber, mang bean sprouts and cabbage were crunchy and juicy. lemon, yogurt and tamarind dressing was creamy and refreshing. A delicious dish.

Easy Beef Stir Fry (Low Fat)

Turn on the wok and try this scrumptious recipe that you will want to make every single week.

Stir Fry Beef & Bok Choy with Noodles

Why ordering take-out, if you can make a delicious beef and bok-choy stir-fry within no time.

Tofu, Bean Sprouts & Bell Pepper Stir-Fry

Sprouted some bean sprouts last week, meanwhile I had some colorful bell peppers needed to be used up, then this was the quick-easy stir-fry I put together.

Bean Sprouts Stir-Fry with Bell Pepper & Carrot

Bean sprouts are stir fried with bell peppers and carrots, seasoned with soy sauce, rice vinegar and a bit shaoxing wine. Serve it with steamed rice or wrap it into warm crepes or tortilla wraps.

Brown Jasmine Rice Salad

A vibrant chilled rice salad tossing wild and basmati rice with snow peas, green beans, cucumber, oranges, and Granny Smith apples in a ginger-soy-honey-lime sauce. Fresh, crunchy, and full of contrast.

Vegetable Sausage Appetizer

More like a spring roll, this vegetarian appetizer wraps veggies in beancurd sheets ending up crispy on the outside and loaded on the inside.

Eastern Dragon Salad

A very healthy take on pad-thai, full of antioxidants and healthy fats.

Kwitiaow Phad Thai (Thai-Fried Noodles & Sauce)

Authentic Pad Thai with rice noodles, prawns, tofu, eggs, tamarind-palm sugar sauce, bean sprouts, and peanuts. Served with traditional condiment saucers.

Satay Vegetable & Sprout Pancakes

Savory whole wheat pancakes wrapped around snow peas, sprouts, mushrooms and carrots, drizzled with peanut-butter satay dressing. Vegetarian Asian-style fusion lunch.

Stir Fried Island Chicken/Peanut Garlic Sauce

Island-style chicken stir-fry in a creamy peanut-curry sauce with garlic, ginger, fish sauce, and red curry paste. Loaded with carrots, zucchini, squash, bean sprouts, and crunchy chopped peanuts.

Stuffed Squid with Vinegar/Soy Dip

Korean-style squid stuffed with ground beef, cabbage, bean sprouts, and mushrooms, steamed or deep-fried and served with a tangy vinegar soy dipping sauce.

Oriental Pork

Pork shoulder strips cook in the microwave with orange juice and soy sauce, then get tossed with water chestnuts, bean sprouts, and Napa cabbage in a cornstarch-thickened sauce. Serve over rice.

Papaya Lamb Salad

Papaya lamb salad pairs stir-fried lamb chops with sweet ripe papaya, roma tomatoes, bean sprouts, and warm rice for a tropical-meets-Asian main-course salad. Served with lemon wedges and crusty bread.

Spicy Chicken or Nutty Noodles.

Curried chicken noodle stir-fry with fresh ginger, garlic, bean sprouts, soy sauce, and dried red chili. A 30-minute wok dinner that turns leftover chicken into something crave-worthy.

Trout Stuffed Japanese Style

Whole trout stuffed with stir-fried mushrooms, bean sprouts, and egg, then wrapped in bacon and baked until the skin crackles. A bold Japanese-fusion fish dinner in 40 minutes.

Leftover Turkey Salad with Chili Lime Dressing

Adding some fresh vegetables with some chili lime dressing makes this leftover turkey salad taste so flavorful and refreshing.

Moo Shu Vegetables

Moo shu vegetables is a fast, meatless take on the takeout classic: shredded vegetables and bean sprouts stir-fried with ginger, garlic, scrambled egg, and hoisin. Light, quick, and great wrapped in pancakes.

Prawn Laksa

Laksa gets a bad rap in Singapore because of the addition of coconut cream. However, coconut oil is actually a superfood, containing important compounds that enhance immunity and protect against digestive system disorders. In particular, coconuts are rich in lauric acid, which is known for being antiviral, antibacterial and antifungal, and boosts the immune system. Choose virgin coconut oil and coconut products that have no questionable ingredients added to them.

Breakfast Bee Hoon

When preparing this popular breakfast dish at home you can control the type and quantity of oil being used, the type of bee hoon (organic brown rice bee hoon is widely available now and not expensive) and use as many different green vegetables as you have on hand to increase its nutritional profile.

Quinoa fried ‘rice’

The stalk of the broccoli is actually the most nutritious part of the vegetable so make sure to use it in dishes that call for the florets. Chop the stalk into smaller pieces and incorporate into your dish with the rest of the broccoli. 1 serving of broccoli (a large stalk) provides 46% of the recommended daily intake of vitamin A and 206% of the daily recommended amount of vitamin C!