If you are wondering how to eat buckwheat, read on!
Quinoa, goji berries, flaxseed. What do they have in common? They are the buzzwords circulating in the foodie media/blogosphere, all claiming to be a “miracle food”.
Like many others I get weary and suspicious when the next “cure for all ills” emerges, being of the opinion that variety is key in any diet. That said, I believe buckwheat is something special, and that will soon flood first the health stores then the supermarkets and then pantries everywhere.
As we stand now buckwheat is still fairly unknown outside of Russia, where it’s been a staple for centuries, and a big part of my diet growing up.
Variety of Buckwheat
The most common use of buckwheat in North America is in the flour form. It’s gaining popularity for it’s unique earthy taste and the fact that despite the name it is not related to wheat or any other grain and is gluten-free.
People want to incorporate more buckwheat into their diets for its health benefits-high amount of protein, fibre, potassium and over 80 minerals! However, I am not going to go into details as I am not a nutritionist but merely a buckwheat lover. You can research it yourself if you are interested!
How to use it in cooking
One of the greatest qualities of buckwheat is its versatility. The groats could be ground up and made into pancakes, waffles , cakes, or even bread! You could enjoy a bowlful of morning “kasha” (Russian for porridge) with a bit of milk.
For lunch toss it with some fresh veggies in a salad or sit down to a plate of savoury buckwheat with caramelised onions and sautéed mushrooms for dinner.
Reheat the leftovers in the morning, top it up with an egg and voila a new breakfast dish is born! The only two things you need to know are what type of buckwheat is suitable for these recipes and how to cook it.
Roasted buckwheat groats
When I first moved to North America 15 years ago the only place I could find buckwheat was a health food store but although I could recognise the familiar triangular shape of the groats, the colour was anaemic grey instead of rich brown I was used to.
I learned that buckwheat sold in Russia is pre-roasted, and it is this process that prevents the groats from turning into a mushy mess during cooking as well as provides that lusciously nutty flavour I’ve come to expect.
It seems that many stores have the pre-roasted variety of buckwheat groats, however, the best buckwheat comes from Russian stores so if you have one nearby check it out. It’s worth it!
Buckwheat recipes
What I would like to share with you is the basic method of cooking buckwheat and one simple recipe which happens to be my family’s favourite way of eating it. Have I mentioned that my kids are crazy about buckwheat?
Buckwheat with Caramelised Onions and Cremini Mushrooms {Breakfast Edition}
Ingredients:
- Buckwheat-2 cups
- Water-4 cups
- Salt- a pinch
- Cremini/Chestnut Mushrooms-8-10
- Red Onions-1 large
- Pepper- to taste
- Egg-1 (per person)
- Butter- 2 tbsp.
Method:
- Rinse your buckwheat and dry fry it in a non-stick frying pan (i.e. in a dry pan, without oil) over medium heat for a 2-3 minutes. Transfer the buckwheat to a pot, add water and salt and cook for 15 minutes until the groats are soft and the water is evaporated.
- Take it off the heat, cover the pot with a lid and let it stand for additional 10-15 minutes. Alternatively, you can cook buckwheat in your rice cooker, just follow the instructions for grain to water ratio for your particular rice cooker.
- While waiting for your buckwheat dice your onions and mushrooms. Feel free to slice them if you prefer a chunkier look. I am still in the stage of “hiding” the healthy things from my kids so I usually dice.
- Put a large frying pan on high-medium heat and when it’s hot add butter, onions and a pinch of salt.
- Salt will draw moisture out of the onions which will help with caramelising process.
- Fry them slowly, stirring once in a while and not letting them burn. Once your onions look wilted and darker in colour, add mushrooms and sauté them for 5 minutes adding salt and pepper to taste.
- Now add your buckwheat and mix everything together, cook for 2 more minutes to bring all the ingredients to the same temperature and allow for the flavours to blend, taste to make sure it has enough seasoning.
This meal could be enjoyed as a main course or as a side dish to any type of meat or fish. What you see here is leftovers that were served a couple of days later for breakfast.
Fry your eggs in a frying pan and top each portion with an egg. By all accounts-Breakfast of Champions.
Note: I use water to cook buckwheat when I want it to be versatile-sweet or savoury.
If you are preparing buckwheat for dinner in a savoury dish I would suggest using broth instead of water- a quick and simple way to infuse your dish with much flavour.
Karyl says
I learned to cook buckwheat by first mixing it with an egg until all the groats were thoroughly coated, then adding mushrooms (reconstituting the dried ones in water first) and a little seaweed like Hiziki or Arame with lots of chopped garlic. I place it all together in an iron skillet heating and mixing it a few minutes until all the grains are free and unclumped, then I add water to cover the grains, and cook it about 10 minutes on medium heat, checking, adding water if needed, and and stirring it occasionally. When the grains are just softened enough to eat without being mushy I take off the lid and let the remaining water evaporate, then eat. I have done this with both roasted and unroasted buckwheat, I love it both ways, but I prefer to roast the kasha before cooking it.
vikalinka says
This method is new to me. Thank you for sharing your tips, Karyl.
JKC says
Hi there
I’m trying to bake “pastiera napoletana “ which is the traditional wheat-ricotta-egg -candied fruit etc. Cheesecake-like traditional Easter treat. I’m in The Netherlands and can’t find the raw or cooked wheat for the recipe. I decided to substitute buckwheat.
Reading your page I learned that it’s not even a grain! But I’m going to cream it by letting it first stand in water for three days changing the water daily and then following the recipe. What do you think will happen? I’m going to find out. I figure if buckwheat is used as flour like wheat then why not my substitution. Keep you posted.
P.S. since you are based in the UK I’ll share what I learned on an American TV program”best cheesecake” —- It seems that The Queen likes it too! And has it flown in from the pastry shop in Naples. I think they said it’s the oldest one in the city making this recipe. On the program it was highly acclaimed. Go figure!
Also I can’t wait to try your beef stroganoff and chicken Marsala recipe. They look amazing.
vikalinka says
You can use buckwheat flour but it does have a very strong taste. I am not sure about the method of letting it stand in water though. Best wishes, Julia
vera bentley says
oh julia – yes, i lurve buckwheat! my dad used to as well, he said that when he was little he used to have what was left over, cold, with milk & sugar – good memories 🙂
vikalinka says
Oh that sounds delicious, Vera!!
Vita says
Do you think your beef stroganoff recipe would go well with kasha? 🙂 Sounds like it would be really good on buckwheat
vikalinka says
Oh yes, Vita, it would be delicious!!
russianmartini says
I love topping my buckwheat with mushrooms and onions sautéed in coconut oil – sounds strange, but the end result is heavenly!
Vikalinka says
I am intrigued I don’t think I’ve ever used coconut oil!
Carole says
Julia, , thanks for joining the link up for Food on Friday on Carole’s Chatter. I hope you enjoyed looking at some of the other links. I have been reading them all and am blown away by all the great ideas! Cheers
Ps I am signing up to follow your blog. A follow back would be great – or maybe you have already?
Pps If you would like email reminders of future Food on Fridays, just let me know your email address. It will be kept private.
Carole says
Hi there. The current Food on Friday on Carole’s Chatter is collecting links to posts about breakfast dishes. I do hope you link this in. This is the link . Please do check out some of the other links – there are a lot of good ones already. Cheers
umair0811 says
thanks this dish is soooooo gooooood
Vikalinka says
Thank you Shannon! This dish is such a comfort food for me! It’s great with portobello mushrooms as well or any other mushrooms for that matter.
Mushrooms Canada says
Love everything about this breakfast recipe!! The Crimini’s add such great texture. Thanks for sharing…
-Shannon
IRENA & dots says
Simple but looks delish!
Vikalinka says
Thank you! This dish is a true gem 🙂