Ashy's vegetarian recipes ©2005
It took me a long time to get used to buckwheat. I remember having a jar in the cupboard for ages but I don't know what happened to it. I didn't eat it. I bought it in a whole food shop in Aberdeen called Ambrosia, after the owner recommended it. He also recommended pot barley which, when I took it home and tried it, I found quite unpalatable. After that I was a little wary of strange grains and decided to give the buckwheat a miss. I tasted it for the first time many years later in the ex-Soviet Union, where it is very popular. It is usually cooked like a thick porridge and served as a garnish, often with chicken. I didn't like it much at first. It has a strong taste and smell which I wasn't used to and I didn't like the porridgy consistency.
Recently, I came across this recipe and realised that buckwheat is not bad at all. In fact it's really quite tasty and goes very well with mushrooms and cabbage. This recipe calls for the buckwheat to be cooked to a firmer consistency than I had previously encountered and I find this much more agreeable.
500g mushrooms
1 cup of dry buckwheat
1 cabbage
2 cloves of garlic
1 onion
Black pepper
Salt
Vegetable oil
Rinse the buckwheat then put it in a pan and add water until it covers the buckwheat by about two fingers depth. Add a little salt then bring to the boil and cook uncovered for about 7 minutes. Stir at the end of cooking time to evaporate the last of the water then switch off the heat and lay the buckwheat aside to cool.
Carefully separate the cabbage leaves and put them in a large pot with a few centimetres of water. Cover the pot tightly and bring to the boil. Steam the cabbage for a few minutes then rinse the leaves in cold water. Drain and leave aside until required.
Chop the mushrooms, onion and garlic. Fry the onions until they soften then add the mushrooms garlic and a little salt. Cook until all the water has evaporated then add the black pepper. Mix the cooked mushrooms with the buckwheat.
Lay a cabbage leaf on a flat surface and cut out the thickest part of the mid-rib. Put a little stuffing mix on the thin end of the leaf and roll up into a little parcel. This might take a little practice but after a couple, you'll have figured out the quantities and technique that suit you.
Switch the oven on high and as you make the parcels, lay them side by side in a baking tray. When they're all done put the tray in the oven and cook for about twenty five minutes, turning the heat down a little after fifteen minutes.
Serve with your choice of salad.