Grechnevaya kasha - our food

Grechka = buckwheat
Kasha = porridge
Grechnevaya kasha = buckwheat kasha (buckwheat porridge) 

There is an old saying along the lines of "Shchi da Kasha, Pisha Nasha", which roughly translates to "Cabbage soup and buckwheat porridge are our food".  

There is an old Russian proverb that I not overly familiar with but am told goes along the lines of "Kasha - matushka nasha, a khlebets rzhanoy otets nash rodnoy", which roughly translates to "Kasha is our mother, rye bread is our dear father".  

There seems to be solid logic behind this saying and this proverb that goes beyond the fact that these were among the few foods that were almost always available in the old days.  

Raw buckwheat 

For some time my body weight was too low (I know, right), even though I am thin my cholesterol levels were too high, and I had too much fat around my organs.  This is not a great combination for health.  People's advice that I need to 'fatten up' strangely wouldn't help my situation health wise.  

Over the past few years there have been supply chain issues and supermarkets had been unable to get staple foods.  Since I was a child I had eaten Wheatbix for breakfast every morning.  Then for several months the shops were unable to get wheatbix.  You know the theme song, 'Aussie kids are wheatbix kids' - not any more.  

My son would only ear wheatbix for breakfast, so I decided not to eat wheatbix again, and I would let my son eat what we had left in the hopes that we could buy wheatbix again before he ran out.  

While this worked well for my son, it posed a problem for me as I wasn't sure what to eat for breakfast without wheatbix.  I don't know what other people eat, this isn't a thing I have ever had to think about before.  

Other breakfast cereals are too sugary for me, and they leave me feeling hungry early in the day.  I would need to eat an awful lot of toast to not be hungry by the time I get to work.  Eggs or oily foods on an empty stomach make me feel bad all day.  Half a dozen muesli bars each morning would fill me up and become expensive quickly.  

I started making kasha from steel cut oats.  This was ok, but left me feeling hungry pretty early in the day and my stomach felt weird.  I started to seriously consider skipping breakfast but wasn't sure how to cope with the blood sugar issues that would cause.  Even though I am thin, my blood sugars tend to be a little erratic. 

Then I made kasha using buckwheat.  This left me feeling full for a lot longer, and I like the taste.  After a little research, it appears that buckwheat kasha is extremely nutritious and healthy to eat.  That link is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to buckwheat nutrition, it contains a lot of minerals, flavonoids, rutin, fiber, and other things that are good for your body.  

For over a year I ate grechnevaya kasha for breakfast each day.  During that time I also recorded my weight, and my Body Mass Index, by chance I also had blood tests before and after.  I weighed in at the same day each week, roughly the same time, and wearing the same thing (ie before getting in the shower).  

Over that year my fat visually reduced and my weight increased (meaning I was gaining muscle).  During that time my cholesterol levels dropped, and my HDL:LDL cholesterol ratio went into the ideal range.  During this time I also stopped having blood sugar issues.  I gained strength, and I started to feel almost younger.  The only thing that changed during this time was that I stopped eating wheatbix and started eating buckwheat.  

You should eat grechnevaya kasha every morning for a month or so and see if you become stronger and healthier too.  Eating for a few days will do nothing, this is not magic.  Eating it a few times per week probably won't do a lot either.  You need to give it at least a month of eating it every day to see if it makes a difference to your health.  

If it doesn't work for you, then go back to eating...whatever it is people eat for breakfast (I can't work it out).  

Buckwheat after being soaked overnight in milk

There are a lot of ways to make kasha, and many people make kasha differently to me.  Below is how I make it.  I am not suggesting that this is the right way to make it, or even the best way to make it, but is is fast and simple and it works for me.  

1. I scoop 1/3 cup (50g) raw buckwheat into a bowl.  
2. I add a little under 1/3 cup of milk or water (some days I have milk, others I have water)
3. I leave it in the fridge overnight if possible 
4. In the morning I put the bowl in the microwave for 50 seconds
5. Sometimes I put honey on after microwaving, sometimes I don't
6. That's all, it's good to go.  

You can toast the buckwheat first, which changes the taste.  While I prefer toasted buckwheat to raw, I have only done this a few times.  It is faster/easier/cheaper to just use raw buckwheat.  Overseas they sell toasted buckwheat, here in Australia it is easiest to buy raw buckwheat that has the hull removed.  

Sometimes I soak buckwheat for two nights instead of one night.  I have only done this using milk, and I have it soaking in the fridge.  The extra night of soaking changes things, and it tastes creamier.  

Sometimes I forget to soak it.  That's ok, it still tastes good even without being soaked.

Many people add butter and salt, or egg, or onion, or fat.  All of this is good, but I think more suited to dinner meals.  For breakfast I eat a simple kasha made from buckwheat and either water or milk.  You could also add yogurt or fruit to your kasha, this is also very good.  Sometimes I add yoghurt on weekends when I have more time.

Some people cook kasha in a rice cooker, or boil on the stove top, this is also good and it needs slightly different ratios of buckwheat to water.  I don't have heaps of time in the mornings before work, plus I am sometimes half asleep, so I just put it in the microwave for 50 seconds.  It is so simple and so fast.  

Image from: https://www.goodness.com.au/organic-buckwheat-hulled-25kg/

Easily avoided problems

Some people complain about their kasha.  Most, if not all, of the problems people complain about are easily avoided.  

Gluggly or disgusting kasha is something people complain about.  The reason behind this is most people suggest using far too much water/milk, which makes it gluggy and gross.  I have seen people suggest ratios of 2:1, 3:1, or even 4:1 with more water than buckwheat.  Not surprisingly too much liquid makes it gluggy.  

I originally used a 1:1 ratio, then realised if I used less liquid it would all be absorbed and I much prefer the texture.  I now add liquid in a ratio of 1 buckwheat to about 0.8 liquid, and this works well for me.  If you prefer more liquid, then add more liquid, it won't hurt you, I just prefer the texture when there is far less liquid.  

Some people complain about a mysterious bitter taste.  Buckwheat reacts to the oxygen in the air, and the taste changes after a while unless it has been stored in an air tight container.  This is easily remedied by storing buckwheat in an air tight container.  We have issues with pantry moth if it is not in an airtight container, so I prefer to always store it in something reasonably air tight.  

Somehow, soaking overnight in too much water results in slightly bitter kasha.  I never taste any bitterness when I make kasha using milk, when I make it using water (and older buckwheat) I can sometimes taste bitter.  This is easily fixed by using slightly less water or adding a little honey.  

Other people complain that their kasha has too much liquid.  Easy fix - use less liquid.  Seriously, I don't see why this is a problem for so many people.  It seems like common sense to add less liquid if your kasha has too much liquid for your liking.  While it may not be the traditional way to use less liquid, if too much liquid bothers you then add less liquid and the problem is solved.

As I said before, eat buckwheat every day for a month and see if you notice a difference to your health.  If you become healthier and stronger then keep eating it.  If you don't like it, or you don't notice any improvement, then eat something else.  Just make sure you eat it consistently every day for a month or more if you hope to notice any difference.