Suggested uses

Basic prep

Storage & handling

Store in a dry, cool place.

Ingredients

Buckwheat Groats.

Buckwheat Groats (Fagopyrum esculentum) are the small angular seeds of the buckwheat plant. Often mistaken for a cereal grain, this gluten-free cousin of rhubarb is actually not related to wheat. The word “groats” refers to seeds that have been freed from their hulls; typically groats are more easily digested than whole seeds.

Native to Asia and later introduced to Europe, the buckwheat plant has been an important food source since the 6th century B.C. when it took hold in Southeast Asia before spreading to Central Asia, the Middle East and finally Europe. Buckwheat found its way to the New World via European explorers and colonists, and now this hardy plant grows on just about every continent, with Russia and China leading in production.

Buckwheat Groats are the whole, hulled form of buckwheat. They are excellent for use in salads, stuffings and pilafs. Perhaps the best-known method of preparing Buckwheat Groats is in porridge form. The dish, called "kasha" by the Russian and Polish peasants who brought it to the United States, was served with pasta or used as filling for knishes and blintzes.

Buckwheat boasts higher levels of the essential minerals copper, iron, zinc, potassium and manganese than other cereal grains. It is also rich in protein and amino acids including lysine, as well as soluble fiber, which helps slow the rate of glucose absorption and can thus help regulate blood sugar levels. Buckwheat also contains a phytochemical called rutin, which strengthens capillaries.