Hello everybody!

Today’s recipe is a super easy and healthy dish that takes no time to make! Lately I have been looking into different healthy grains and carbs that I could use instead of the usual rice or pasta and came across buckwheat. I have never eaten buckwheat in its whole form but only as a flour to make the savoury crêpes.

Buckwheat is a very healthy  grain that has many benefits for you! First of all it is high in protein so perfect for vegetarians and vegans and its really good to lower cholesterol, improve digestion and to fight diabetes. These were all excellent reasons for me to try and I decided to create a recipe with it.

This recipe is actually inspired from a Russian dish. Buckwheat is a staple food in Russia and is often eaten as a sweet porridge for breakfast, but also as savory porridge with mushrooms. I wanted to create something similar but a little bit more flavorful and hearty so I took my own take on this popular dish.

I used a blend of dried mushrooms including porcini, chanterelles, shiitake and portobello, and instead of cooking the buckwheat in water, I cooked it in a vegetable broth. This turned into a very flavorful risotto. As I said earlier this recipe is quite easy to make and is a sort of all in one pot kind of dish, so it is perfect for when you are in a hurry!

Let’s start cooking!

Ingredients:

• 14 g of dry mushrooms ( any dried mushrooms will work or you can use fresh mushrooms instead)
• 1 onion
• 1 garlic clove
• 100 ml/ 4 oz white wine
• 1 + 1/2 cup of buckwheat
• 2 + 1/3 cup water
• 1 vegetable broth cube
• 2 tbsp chopped parsley
• 2 bay leaves
• salt + pepper to taste
• 1 tbsp of butter (optional)
• 1 tbsp olive oil

Preparation:

1- If you are using dried mushrooms, place them in a bowl and cover them with warm water. Let them re-hydrate for about 10 to 20 min. Once they are re hydrated, rinse them , squeeze the excess water and chop them. As always, I will be using the soaking water of the mushrooms as they will bring a lot of flavor to the broth. Filter the soaking water with a coffee filter to remove the remaining dirt and reserve on the side. If you are using fresh mushrooms instead, clean the mushrooms and slice them.

2- Chop the onion and garlic thinly. In a large pot, heat up a tablespoon of olive oil on medium heat. Add in the chopped onion and garlic and cook until it becomes softer. Once the onion starts to get soft, add in the dry or fresh mushrooms (depending on what you are using). Let cook for about 5 min.

3- After 5 min, add in the buckwheat and stir it with the onion and mushrooms. Cook for 5 more minutes to toast the buckwheat, then deglaze with white wine.

4- Bring the white wine to boil and let it reduce. In the mean time, pour the mushroom’s soaking water in a measuring cup. To cook the buckwheat, you will need 2 +1/3 cups of water, so if you don’t have enough mushroom’s soaking water, simply add water until you reach the right measurement. If you are using fresh mushrooms, just measure water. Add the mushroom’s soaking water + water (or just water) to a pot and add the vegetable broth cube. Let the liquid boil and the broth cube dissolve and mix well.

5- Add the broth to the pot with buckwheat and mushrooms. Add in the bay leaves, season with salt and pepper and cover with a lid. Cook the buckwheat for about 20 to 30 min. There should be no more liquid in the pot. Add in the chopped parsley and the tablespoon of butter (if you want). Mix well and it’s ready to serve!

As you can see this recipe is very easy to make and even if you can’t find dried mushrooms, you can always use them fresh instead and enjoy this dish just the same. This can be you main dish if you are vegan or vegetarian or a side dish if you prefer.

I hope you will enjoy this recipe! Let me know in the comment section what you think about this recipe and if you liked it.

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