Microgreens

The 8 Microgreens You Should Grow in an Indian Kitchen

Radish, mustard, methi, broccoli, sunflower, peas, basil, alfalfa. Yield per tray, days to harvest, and what each one actually tastes like.

Some microgreens are easier than others. Some give you a lot per tray. Some taste boring. Here are the eight worth your tray space, in the order we would recommend a beginner try them.

1. Radish Microgreens (Mooli)

Harvest: 7 to 9 days. Yield per 9-inch tray: around 80 grams. Taste: peppery, like a younger radish. Why first: fastest to germinate, hardest to fail. New growers should start here.

2. Mustard Microgreens (Sarson)

Harvest: 8 to 10 days. Yield: around 70 grams. Taste: sharper than radish, almost wasabi-like in the older leaves. Best use: in sandwiches, mixed into bhindi or aloo gobi just before serving.

3. Methi Microgreens (Fenugreek)

Harvest: 10 to 12 days. Yield: around 60 grams. Taste: exactly like adult methi but sweeter, with the bitterness toned down. Best use: chuck into a methi paratha dough, or top a moong dal khichdi.

4. Broccoli Microgreens

Harvest: 9 to 12 days. Yield: around 50 grams. Taste: nutty, mild. The headline: 40 times the sulforaphane of mature broccoli. This is the one to grow if you are picking microgreens for nutrition over flavour.

5. Sunflower Microgreens

Harvest: 10 to 14 days. Yield: around 120 grams, the most you can squeeze out of a tray. Taste: sweet, crunchy, almost like a tender pea shoot. Best use: top a salad, throw on a sandwich. The seeds need overnight soaking.

6. Pea Microgreens

Harvest: 10 to 14 days. Yield: around 100 grams. Taste: sweet, with twirly tendrils that look beautiful on a plate. Best use: stir-fry briefly, or eat raw. The same matar from your kitchen works as seed if you soak overnight.

7. Basil Microgreens

Harvest: 14 to 21 days, the longest on this list. Yield: around 40 grams. Taste: intense, fragrant, much stronger than full-grown basil. Best use: any dish that wants a hit of basil, especially Italian-leaning ones.

8. Alfalfa Microgreens

Harvest: 7 to 10 days. Yield: around 50 grams. Taste: grassy, neutral, makes a salad without dominating it. Best use: a classic salad base, the one you grow when you want greens but not flavour.

A Beginner Plan

If you are starting out, do this in order:

Week 1: radish. Builds confidence.
Week 2: mustard. Same shape, different flavour.
Week 3: methi. Indian comfort food in microgreen form.
Week 4: broccoli. Switch to the nutrient-density variety once you trust the process.

By the end of a month you have done four batches, eaten about 250 grams of microgreens, and figured out what your kitchen actually wants.

Once you know your favourites, our upcoming Microgreens Kit bundles seeds for the first batch and you buy refills by variety after that.

Where do I buy microgreens seeds in India?

Bigger seeds (radish, mustard, methi, peas, sunflower) are just the kitchen versions. Buy from a regular kirana for these. Broccoli, basil and alfalfa need dedicated microgreen seeds, find them on Amazon, IndiaMART, or our kit when it launches.

Can I mix seeds in the same tray?

Yes, but pick ones with matching harvest days. Radish + mustard works (both 7 to 9 days). Sunflower + basil does not (10 vs 21 days). Mixed harvest dates leave half the tray over-grown.

Which microgreen has the highest nutrient density?

Broccoli, by a wide margin. The sulforaphane content is roughly 40 times mature broccoli. Studies on this go back to the early 2000s.