How to cook buckwheat in a pot or in a multicooker

It would seem that what can be easier than cooking buckwheat? Pour water over buckwheat, add salt and wait for a delicious and healthy side dish to be cooked. However, often the dish turns into a viscous, unappetizing porridge in the process of cooking. This article will reveal all the secrets of cooking buckwheat groats and will be especially useful for young housewives.

Why Buckwheat Sticks to the Buckwheat

Buckwheat grains stick together during cooking due to several reasons:

1. The use of groats of poor quality or crushed (cut) - to prepare a crumbly side dish, you need to take the kernels (whole grains).
2. Long cooking time.
3. Not overcooked groats, which have a lot of vegetable debris, will not allow you to get a crumbly dish in the end.
4. A larger amount of water than necessary.
5. Frequent stirring of buckwheat during cooking will turn it into mush.

To prevent the grains from sticking together when boiling, it is best to pre-fry them on high heat for 5 minutes in a dry frying pan. This method will provide an unusually flavorful, delicious side dish, with grains separate from each other. But also the use of quality groats, the right amount of water, the use of the right cooking technology make it possible to get a crumbly buckwheat.

How long to cook buckwheat

Boil buckwheat in the traditional way for no more than 15 minutes. During this time the grains will absorb all the water. If a little liquid remains, it is better to leave the porridge to infuse in a warm place. To check - whether the buckwheat is ready, it is enough to spend a spoon on the bottom of the pot. If there is no water at all, then the dish is ready. The cooking time of the side dish also depends on the way it is cooked. So, in the oven, it will be cooked longer - at least half an hour. And the cooking process in the microwave will take no more than 13 minutes. But, then the dish should be allowed to infuse, without taking it out of the oven.

What to do if the buckwheat has become mushy

Ways to do it:

1. Overcook with milk and sugar - a dish children will love.
2. Use the buckwheat to make meatballs.
3. Add salt and lots of butter, then fry in a pan to evaporate the liquid and make it a little more crumbly.
4. Feed the gruel to the dogs.
5. Throw it away and boil it again according to the rules.

How to boil buckwheat: Recipes

The ideal is considered porridge, cooked from cereal and water, taken in the proportion of 1 to 2. That is, for a glass of buckwheat you need to take two glasses of water. Then you get a crumbly side dish. If you take less water, then the buckwheat will be dry. If you take more water, it will be too watery and viscous. But, in this case, it is necessary to take into account personal preferences. If you want to get just porridge in the end, you can take three cups of water.

You can boil buckwheat you can cook buckwheat not only in the usual, traditional way - in a pot, but also in the microwave oven, multicooker and even in the oven. Culinary experiments will allow each time to enjoy new flavors of such a simple product as buckwheat.

How to cook buckwheat in a pot

To cook buckwheat in the classic way, you will need a pot with a thick bottom. It ensures even heating of the product during cooking and allows it to infuse afterwards. The recipe is very simple - rinsed and overcooked groats are placed in a pot, pour water, add salt and put on high heat. After boiling, turn down the fire to medium, and simmer for 15 minutes. In the ready buckwheat put butter, close the pot with the lid and infuse for 10 minutes.

How to boil buckwheat in a multicooker

Multicooker was created for cooking porridges and crumbly side dishes. Therefore, to cook buckwheat in it will not be difficult even for a child. In the bowl put the prepared cereal, pour cold water and set the mode "Porridge", "Cereal" or "Buckwheat". Cooking time here will be 20-30 minutes.

How to cook cereal in the microwave

To cook crumbly buckwheat in the microwave will require special dishes suitable for this heat treatment. In it poured the prepared groats, pour water, so that it was above the level of buckwheat on two fingers. Put it on full power for 7 minutes. Next, reduce the power and leave the dish for another 5-6 minutes.

Buckwheat in the oven

Properly cooked porridge in the oven will resemble in taste a dish from the Russian oven - appetizing and very fragrant. For cooking, it is better to take a thick-walled, heat-resistant dish and pour into it the prepared groats. Pour water on it and put it in a preheated oven at 190 degrees for half an hour. Then turn off the oven and leave the porridge to infuse for another 15 minutes, preliminarily adding a piece of butter.

In the oven you can cook buckwheat in clay pots. Then it will be even more fragrant and delicious than it would be in a pot. To do this, the prepared groats are poured into pots coated with vegetable oil, add water to a finger and a half above, close the lids. In the preheated oven, bring the dish to readiness for 30 minutes at 200 degrees. Then put a little butter in each pot and leave to infuse for 10 minutes. For a variety, you can add mushrooms sauteed with onions, fried pieces of meat or minced meat, poached vegetables - onions, carrots, peppers - to the pots.

How to cook buckwheat without cooking

The most useful, dietary, perfectly suitable for proper nutrition, turns out buckwheat, cooked without heat treatment. It is best to cook such a dish in the evening to enjoy it in the morning. Need a thermos or glass dish with a lid. In it pour the prepared groats, pour boiling water and leave to infuse. For more flavor, you can wrap the bowl with something warm.

In a couple of hours you will get the most delicate side dish. But, the infusion will allow buckwheat to give all its flavor qualities in full. You can also pour cold water over the groats. Then it should infuse it for at least 8 hours. You can put it in the fridge.

Independent dishes with buckwheat

Buckwheat can be prepared as a side dish to goulash, cutlets, steaks. You can also serve it as porridge - in water, with the addition of butter or milk. Or you can cook buckwheat with mushrooms, meat or vegetables, which makes a complete dinner or a second course quickly and easily.

Buckwheat with meat

For each cup of dry groats take 200-250 grams of meat. In a bowl with a thick bottom fry the meat in vegetable oil, add the onion. Grated carrots can also be added. Fry until brown and add buckwheat. Add hot water and simmer over low heat for half an hour. Allow to stand for a while. If desired, you can add fresh herbs.

Buckwheat with mushrooms

One of the most delicious combinations of products is buckwheat with mushrooms. Any ceps or mushrooms are fried until golden, add onions. No broth of mushrooms should remain at the bottom of the pan. Pour the buckwheat and hot water in it. Cook over medium heat for half an hour. Add chopped green onions, parsley.

Buckwheat with vegetables

Buckwheat with vegetables can be cooked in a similar way. Any vegetables - carrots, onions, bell peppers, tomatoes are cut up finely and fried in vegetable oil. Cereal is poured in and poured boiling water, cook for about 20 minutes.

Question-answer on boiling buckwheat

The following answers to topical questions about boiling buckwheat will allow you to prepare a delicious, crumbly side dish or tender porridge.

How much buckwheat for 1 serving

From one cup of cereal gets 3-4 servings of porridge. Buckwheat cooks a lot and absorbs all the water. Therefore, half a cup of dry product will be enough to prepare one serving.

How much buckwheat will turn out of 200 grams

The volume of buckwheat doubles after boiling. Therefore, 200 grams of dry product will turn out 400 grams of a ready meal.

Do I have to try buckwheat?

Yes, it is necessary! Even if the product is of high quality. Buckwheat always contains small vegetable debris, which should be discarded to get a tasty porridge. Gathering the groats will remove all foreign elements, which will positively affect the taste of the finished dish.

The easiest way is this - the groats are poured on the table and removing particles, foreign bodies, poured it in parts in a cup.

In what pot is better to cook

For cooking buckwheat, it is better to use a pot with a thick bottom and walls. This will allow it to infuse and maximize its flavor and aroma. Cooking a side dish in the oven involves the use of heat-resistant cookware - ideally cast-iron. Then the dish will simmer, which will improve its taste.

How much water to take for cooking

Water in the process of cooking buckwheat groats to get a crumbly dish should be exactly twice as much as the dry product.

What water to put raw buckwheat in

Pour buckwheat groats with cold water. Of course, you can also use hot water, but then the cooking time should be reduced. It is more difficult to get a crumbly side dish from groats poured with hot water. But, this method is quite suitable for cooking viscous porridge.

When to salt buckwheat at boiling

Add salt when boiling should be added immediately after pouring water on the groats. For one glass of dry product - half a teaspoon of salt.

Do I stir buckwheat while cooking?

There is no need to stir buckwheat during cooking. This will not allow you to get a crumbly side dish. When cooking delicate, viscous porridge, stir the dish often - every two minutes.

Do buckwheat need to infuse after cooking?

To make a crumbly side dish, very appetizing, it is necessary to leave buckwheat to stand after cooking. Before this it is necessary to add a piece of butter to it. In 10-15 minutes the porridge will absorb the oil, and it will become most delicious and tender.

What to do if the buckwheat is too salty

Over-salted buckwheat can be "rehabilitated" in several ways:

1. Prepared porridge is poured with boiling water, let stand for a while and throw it on a colander.
2. If the over-salt is detected during cooking, you can add some dry groats and boiling water.
3. Rinse the over-salted garnish and fry it in a pan, adding sweet butter.
4. Boil the same amount of buckwheat without salt, mixing it with the over-salted gruel.
5. Prepare meat, minced meat, mushrooms or vegetables by frying and mix with buckwheat, slightly simmering the dish.

You can also make cutlets out of over-salted buckwheat by adding minced meat, eggs and chopped onions. There is no need to salt the mass. Next, the cutlets are fried in the traditional way - in a pan or in the oven.

The above methods will make the product edible and even tasty. But, a perfect, crumbly side dish will not work here.

What to add to buckwheat for an appetite

For appetite, you can add freshly squeezed lemon juice to a cooked buckwheat dish. This will vitaminize the side dish, giving it a fresh note and a new taste. Lemon juice can be substituted for lime juice. For those who like spicy dishes, an addition in the form of soy sauce or tomato ketchup is suitable. You can experiment with adding fresh chopped herbs, spices to the buckwheat porridge.

Can I eat uncooked buckwheat?

There are different opinions about undercooked buckwheat, which are directly opposite to each other. Some experts say that uncooked cereals are bad for health and should not be eaten in any case. Others say that, on the contrary, it is useful. In general, crumbly buckwheat is always slightly undercooked. It is delicious and really useful for the whole human body. At the same time, as mentioned above, buckwheat can be not subjected to heat treatment at all, in order to get a delicious, dietary dish.

To feed little children buckwheat should be cooked beforehand. Better yet, overcook it a little by adding a little more water than should be necessary and increasing the cooking time. If the buckwheat is undercooked, it is easy to bring it to the readiness. It's enough to add a little boiling water and finish cooking the porridge on low heat. However, from such groats it will not be possible to get a crumbly side dish.

Nutritional value of boiled buckwheat

Per 100 grams of product:

• Protein - 3.6 g
• Fats - 0.9 g
• Carbohydrates - 16.2 g
• Dietary fiber - 3.2 g
• Water - 75 g
• Calorie content - 87.3 kcal

Important: The glycemic index of buckwheat is 40-45 units.

To cook buckwheat according to all the rules is not difficult. They are easy to remember and as a result, every time please the family with a delicious side dish or appetizing independent dish. Which, in addition, will be very useful for people of any age.

Photo of perfectly cooked buckwheat