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Buckwheat is a superfood that you may not know about. It’s definitely under-appreciated and under-utilized in the US, but everyone should know how healthy and scrumptious it is! I love it more than rice or quinoa. It’s also completely gluten free!
It’s name is a little deceiving because it’s called buckwheat but there is no relation to wheat – none whatsoever! It’s also just as simple to make as white rice. My son loves buckwheat with this mushroom gravy on it and I love it plain with butter (pickle on the side of course).
We’ll be rolling out some really yummy buckwheat recipes like this buckwheat with mushrooms so be sure to pin this one for later! Also, read on to learn why buckwheat is so good for you! 🙂
Ingredients for Basic Buckwheat:
1 cup toasted buckwheat groats
1 3/4 cups filtered water
1-2 Tbsp butter, to taste (I used unsalted butter)
1/2 tsp salt, or to taste (I used sea salt)
Note:
I love this buckwheat sold at the Russian store because it usually comes pre-toasted and is golden brown in color. If the buckwheat you buy is not toasted, you can quickly toast it on a dry skillet over medium heat 4-5 min until it is golden brown in color then remove from heat and proceed with the recipe.
How to Cook Buckwheat (Stove-top Method):
1. Rinse and drain buckwheat well.
2. In a medium sauce pan, combine buckwheat groats with 1 3/4 cups water, 1 Tbsp butter and 1/2 tsp salt. Bring to a simmer then cover with a tight fitting lid and simmer on low for 18-20 minutes. Just like with rice, you should hear hissing while it’s cooking and it will get quiet when it’s done. Stir in additional 1 Tbsp butter if desired.
How to Cook Buckwheat (Rice Cooker Method):
Transfer all ingredients to the rice cooker and set on the white rice setting. When it’s done, add an extra Tablespoon of butter if desired and stir in 1-2 tsp water to moisten up the kernels if they seem a little dry. Serve hot.
Buckwheat Nutrition info:
Buckwheat is a great source of Potassium, Fiber, Protein, Iron, and Vitamin B6. It is also a good source of manganese, magnesium, copper, and zinc, which are great for the immune system. Yeah it’s definitely good for you and much healthier than white rice. 🙂
How to Cook Buckwheat Kasha
Ingredients
- 1 cup toasted buckwheat groats
- 1 3/4 cups filtered water
- 1-2 Tbsp unsalted butter, to taste (I used unsalted butter)
- 1/2 tsp salt, or to taste (I used sea salt)
Instructions
Stove-top Method:
- Rinse and drain buckwheat well.
- In a medium sauce pan, combine buckwheat with 1 3/4 cups water, 1 Tbsp butter and 1/2 tsp salt. Bring to a simmer then cover with a tight fitting lid and simmer on low for 18-20 min. Just like with rice, you should hear hissing while cooking and it will get quiet when done. Stir in additional 1 Tbsp butter if desired.
Rice Cooker Method:
- Transfer all ingredients to the rice cooker and set on the white rice setting. When done, add an extra Tbsp of butter if desired and stir in 1-2 tsp water to moisten up the kernels if they seem dry. Serve hot.
Notes
Nutrition Info: Buckwheat is a great source of Potassium, Fiber, Protein, Iron, Vitamin B6 and Magnesium. It is also a good source of manganese, magnesium, copper, and zinc, which are great for the immune system. Yeah it's definitely good for you.
Do you get creative with buckwheat (grechka)? I’d love to hear how you prepare and serve it. Are you a gravy lover too? Let me know in a comment below. I’m always looking for new ways to cook this stuff up.
I make Paella with buckwheat. Everyone likes it much better than rice. My father baked ground liver and buckwheat.
Andie Zajaceskowski
That’s just awesome!!
Hi Andie, do you take same ammount of rice and replace it with buckwheat?
I come from a Jewish background
and my family has cooked Kasha
I was a small child. I’m 77. I have
always used it as a breakfast cereal.
1 cup Kasha, 1 egg scrambled and mixed with the Kasha in a sauce pan until well coated. Add
2 cups of boiling water and stir
until liquid is absorbed. Serve in cereal bowl with butter and sugar. Makes great breakfast treat.
.
Thank you so much for sharing that with us Chuck!! I’ll have to try that!!
In my Ashkenazi family, kasha was the stuffing of choice for roast turkey. I still make it in a method similar to Chuck’s. I add the kasha to the egg and then fry in schmaltz until the kernels are separate from each other. Then I add a good stock (usually turkey) and toss in a handful of raisins. Cover and cook on low heat for 7-9 minutes until the liquid is absorbed. Delicious smothered in gravy.
Hi Natasha,
Thanks for the recipe!
Can I also cook buckwheat in a rice cooker? Would the measurements and directions be the same?
Hi Grace! You sure can! I have a few notes in the recipe on how to. “Transfer all ingredients to the rice cooker and set on the white rice setting. When it’s done, add an extra Tablespoon of butter if desired and stir in 1-2 tsp water to moisten up the kernels if they seem a little dry. Serve hot.” Hope this helps.
Irene Epsenhart
I had the mushy problem until my almost 90myear old mother straightened me out. Her side of the family is Russian.
I was bringing it to a full boil and lowering the heat. This is the problem.
She boils the water in a teapot, adds it to the pot with kasha, covers, stirs, and brings it to a simmer. Stir occasionally.
Leave a little of water to be absorbed. Remove from heat and let stand until all of the water is absorbed. Fluff it up with a fork anfd bon appétit!
Thank you for sharing your mother’s version with us Gary!
Have you tried making it in instant pot yet? i just got an instant pot and was looking for a recipe. Still new to it so I am not sure how long I would cook it for.
Not this specifically But here is one of our Instapot recipes! 🙂
thanks. Can’t wait to make this plov recipe.
You’re welcome!
How to make the buckwheat more softer, should I ad more water, or longer cooking?
Hi, for a softer buckwheat, add a little more water and increase the cooktime.
I eat roasted buckwheat Kasha every day or at least 5 times a week!
I love it!
Thanks for the info and the recipe!
You’re welcome! I hope you love this recipe, please let me know what you think when you decide to make it!
My Ukrainian boys love it with condensed milk drizzled over the top. : )
Oh yum, that sounds delicious Kristin! Thanks for sharing!
Can I soak buckwheat overnight with almond milk and yogurt to have it for breakfast?
Hi Kim, I honestly have never tried that or seen it done. We always cook the buckwheat. Have you seen it done that way online? I would suggest a google search for that one.
Kim, I just made my overnight oatmeal (oat groats) and included buckwheat groats as well as wheat berries, all cooked in a crock pot overnight on low.
Measurements — 1 cup of grains to 4 cups of water, 1 tsp salt. Cook on low in a crock pot.
I love buckwheat groats with butter, salt and pepper. But I was wondering how much water would you use to make a single serving?
HI Javonni, you could pretty easily cut the recipe in half using a small sauce pan with a tight fitting lid.
Add crumbled bacon, green onion and chopped and sautéed mushrooms. It is amazing.
My mother used to make Buckwheat Golombki on Fridays because we couldn’t eat back then. I’m checking out your recipe because I forgot how to cook the buckwheat that I got in the Russian store. I’m making the Golombki tomorrow. Can’t wait because its been years.
I hope you find it helpful Helen! Please let me know what you think!
The buckwheat gloom ki came out great. Nostalgia going on today. Love all your recipes!
I’m happy to hear that Helen! Thanks for sharing!
I also have leaky gut syndrome so I have been enjoying buckwheat every morning cooked in unsweetened coconut milk topped with berries, more coconut milk, shredded coconut and honey. So far I prefer my buckwheat not toasted but I’d like to try roasting it myself to see if that makes a difference.
Hi Salena, thanks for sharing that! My sister Anna is CNS, RN and she also has leaky gut and just started a blog about the healing benefits of leaky gut. It’s incredible for me to start learning about it and how it affects people and causes various problems and disease processes. I hope you have a chance to check out her blog!
I like to make it and then add olive oil, salted Roma tomatoes, as well as chopped fresh parsely.
Yum, great suggestion Flo!
Is delious as an alternative for rice in cabbage rolls. Can be used as a combination of mashed potatoes dill kasha, bacon bits sauted onions in a crust similar to pot pies.
I love your ideas! Thank you for sharing! 🙂
I use the stove top method with 1 water to 1 3/4 buckwheat tsp of butter and at the end I mix it with fresh celery and parsley. I love the nutty flacor of the wheat and the crunch celery !
Yum, that sounds delish! Thanks for sharing Paul!
Do I have to add butter? can I add a little olive oil instead?
Hi Charlotte, the butter really amplifies the flavor I haven’t tried this recipe without it yet.
Thanks for the instructions on how to cook it. I have leaky gut and supposed to avoid grain, but feel deprived without it (I also have adrenal fatigue and need some for energy). I am going to cook it and add coconut oil, unsweetened coconut, cinnamon, nutmeg, blueberries and chopped walnuts (when I have them). This is how I liked my oatmeal when I had it.
Please let me know how it turns out Sandy!
My late grandmother was from Russia and has evidenced the poorer years in her youth. She made buckwheat oven porridge with loads of butter. I mean a LOADS of butter. And it was best served the next day, when it was heated in a pan with a butter and when put on a plate, you added another good chunk of butter on top of it. No wonder I had all that energy growing up! 😀 Yet, I must mention, not she on none of us surprisingly never gained extra weight. But now Iḿ looking for different ways of cooking buckwheat and as I write, there is some boiling on the stove.
Ha! That is common in the slavic world. My Mother always made the best pasta and rice because of the butter! Same thing in our family – we didn’t go out to eat much at all growing up and there weren’t really any serious weight problems. I suspect that eating homecooked meals (even with all the extra yummy butter), is what kept us healthy growing up 🙂 Thank you for sharing your story with us!
Was in a Russian project in UAE. learned only two russian word. and that I ate that for over a month regular at noon, partly as I never new any other words and also partly coz I loved the dish
“Grechikha and svinina”
Never could get the love for Grechikha out of me. so started cooking it at home now my son is also big fan of it
That is so great! It’s such a healthy grain 🙂
I am gluten free so I brought some of my own food while visiting friends.
I invented a new breakfast while there.
Buckwheat eggs florentine!
I used some spinach as the first layer, then the buckwheat and topped it with a fried egg.
YUM! Thanks for sharing your great review Amy!
In India buckwheat is cooked by women during religious fasting. Obviously very healthy and easily digestible. I have just started cooking it as I am not comfortable with wheat,rice or quinoa. So far I feel good eating it. I got the porridge buckwheat first and then the groats and have been looking at various ways of cooking it and came upon your site. In India flat breads called chapaties and fried ones called pooris are also made with buckwheat flour.
Thanks for sharing your insights with other readers! 🙂