A Buckwheat Fable: The Moral of the Story

Moving beyond what’s comfortable and showcasing the versatility of buckwheat to create pancakes, stir-fried pasta, and simply delicious cookies.

I was sitting at my desk two weeks ago, contemplating how I wanted to present my ideas on alternative grains. I have already spent hours sifting through earlier recipes and then more hours thumbing through various cookbooks on my shelf. I was stuck in my cluttered thoughts caused by information overload...but not stuck enough to see if I could supplement the mess in my mind by searching the internet for whatever I thought was missing.

I typed “buckwheat stories” in the search box and hit enter. As I scanned the initial results, I saw nothing new until...until I noticed an entry called The Buckwheat. The description told me this was a relatively unknown fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen. I’ve heard of The Ugly Duckling, Thumbelina, and The Emperor’s New Clothes...but I’ve never heard of The Buckwheat. I clicked the link and fell right into the 681-word fairy tale...and I haven’t stopped thinking of it for two weeks.

The story's premise centers around how a buckwheat plant reacts differently than nearby plants, trees, and animals as a storm approaches. The buckwheat is stubborn and inflexible about accepting advice from everything close by. Predictably, the buckwheat’s pride and refusal to bend in the face of the storm led to its downfall.

The moral lessons about the importance of humility, adaptability, and recognizing one’s own vulnerability seem difficult to grasp for a child. Even adults often struggle with these kinds of moral lessons. I can hear it now, “Nobody is going to tell me what to think...or eat...or how to live my life.” I’ve often heard this kind of argument whenever discussions about diet and lifestyle surface, so I shy away from entering those discussion platforms.

The poor buckwheat plant became utterly incapable of changing its way even as the impending storm approached. And despite the warnings from the heralds who stood at the gates of change, the buckwheat remained steadfast and stood tall in its exaggerated pride...until it was too late.

I wonder if I have the same stubborn mindset as the buckwheat regarding my diet and what I choose to eat and cook. Do I adapt to change or unyieldingly cling to what I know?

Photo by Birgitta Roos on Unsplash

In my last article, I introduced buckwheat as a worthy alternative grain to consider. I wrote about my previous encounters with buckwheat - mostly limited to American-style pancakes or French-style galettes. I wrote about exploring the whole grain and using it to create wonderful pilaf salads or as a delicious filling for stuffed cabbage.

And then it occurred to me I had leftovers on my plate - more ideas about how buckwheat can be applied to simple recipe ideas I often take for granted.

Pancakes are an obvious place for me to begin. I enjoy starting my day with a plate of pancakes about three or four times per year, which is to say, I am not a pancake addict- just an occasional user. Whenever I decide I need a hit of pancakes, I typically whip out a quick version of my American-style Banana Pancakes, or if I’m feeling the urge to get close to half of my culture, it’s Moroccan Pancakes (Beghrir).

While writing about buckwheat, I suddenly became obsessed with making a plate of buckwheat pancakes. It felt like going back in time. I left the frigid Swiss winter and returned to the sun-drenched streets of College Avenue, which merged Oakland with Berkeley. I was 30-something again - a boomer hippie going all mainstream and doing the California brunch thing. The rich flavor and gritty texture of buckwheat felt vaguely healthy, somewhat rustic, and clearly anti-mainstream...in other words, my comfort zone.

I continued thinking about The Buckwheat fable. Could it also be a story about getting too comfortable with familiar surroundings? That question was in my head while I shopped for tofu in a nearby Asian store (and that’s a sentence I would never have written during my 30-something years). As if pre-destined by some unseen force, someone dropped a box of noodles at my feet...buckwheat soba noodles, as it turned out. Hmm...why not have a plate of stir-fried vegetables, tofu, and soba noodles for lunch? That was all the encouragement I needed to head home quickly, invest 30 minutes in preparing the ingredients, and make a tasty plate of yakisoba.

I like to reward myself whenever I finish an article or project. Sometimes, that reward is a cookie, which is precisely what I felt like enjoying when I published my article about buckwheat.

When the idea of cookies enters my mind, I typically beam myself to Italy - the home of the best cookies in the world...in my opinion, of course. I even had the idea, once upon a time, to buy an old VW campervan and drive through every region of Italy to uncover the secrets of each region’s favorite cookie and write a book about it. That project never left the start line, but I have been able to visit nearly every region in Italy multiple times during the past 10-15 years...and I’ve learned a lot about Italian biscotti during that span.

Zaletti has always been one of my favorite cookies. These rustic cookies originate from the Venice region of Italy. They are traditionally made using a combination of finely ground polenta and wheat flour mixed with sugar, eggs, raisins, and butter...and for me, it was a case of love at first bite. Like most Italian cookies, I eventually figured out how to veganize them, which brought me immense satisfaction. At some point - I’m not sure when or why - I changed the recipe and used buckwheat flour instead of the polenta-wheat flour combination. The results surprised me - the cookie was extremely close to the texture of the original but with a slightly different flavor. The buckwheat variation has a more earthy tone...a slight bitterness...and a color that is distinctly non-zaletti-like.

I’m reasonably sure Hans Christian Andersen wasn’t moralizing about healthy diets or environmental concerns when he wrote The Buckwheat. More than likely, his tale conveyed important lessons about humility, adaptability, nature’s wisdom, consequences of pride, or maybe even the power of vulnerability.

But that’s the great thing about fairy tales - they’re open to interpretation...they spark imagination...they help us learn more about the world around us.

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Be sure to join me next week as I move on from buckwheat and begin exploring another alternative grain: Millet.

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This Week’s Recipes…

Anyone can look at the index of my published recipes, but the links are restricted to those who support my work through a paid subscription. Please consider subscribing or updating your current subscription…or contact me if you want to organize a free trial.

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Buckwheat Pancakes with Pumpkin Syrup and Candied Walnuts

Buckwheat Pancakes with Pumpkin Syrup and Candied Walnuts ¦ Photo by Jack McNulty

My love affair with buckwheat pancakes never waned - even after buckwheat went out of style sometime in the 1980s. The rich flavor and gritty texture of buckwheat felt vaguely healthy...somewhat rustic...and clearly anti-mainstream. But most of all, I love the slightly bitter taste and rich, earthy tones coming from buckwheat...it hits me somewhere deep inside... Get the recipe

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Buckwheat Yakisoba with Tofu and Chard

Buckwheat Yakisoba with Tofu and Chard ¦ Photo by Jack McNulty

Yakisoba is a popular Japanese stir-fried noodle dish with a slightly spicy, sweet-savory sauce. Most modern yakisoba recipes are made with steamed Chinese-style noodles, despite the name soba, which literally means buckwheat noodle. Yaki is a Japanese term describing anything cooked over direct heat. I’ve chosen to stick with literal meanings in my recipe and use noodles made from buckwheat flour... Get the recipe

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Buckwheat ‘Zaletti’

Buckwheat ‘Zaletti’ ¦ Photo by Jack McNulty

Zaletti are rustic cookies or biscuits originating from the Venice region of Italy. They are traditionally made using a combination of finely ground polenta (cornmeal) and wheat flour mixed with butter, eggs, and raisins. The buckwheat variation I came up with is practically identical to my original recipe, but with one significant exception - I used 100% buckwheat flour and eliminated all gluten from the recipe... Get the recipe

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Worth Reading...

Substack Chef Talk

• Will Cooper’s A Private Chef

• Wil Reidie’s The Recovering Line Cook

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Italian Vibes

• Domenica Marchetti’s Buona Domenica

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Excellent Writing (mostly food-related)

• Max Brearley’s Between Meals

• Mark Diacono’s Imperfect Umbrella

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Just Plain Interesting

• Ben Green’s The Barracks

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Books I’m Currently Reading

• The Writer’s Journey, Christopher Vogler

• Breaking Together, Jem Bendell

• Small is Beautiful, E.F. Schumacher

• Micro, Michael Crichton, Richard Preston

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I always appreciate hearing from my readers, so feel free to comment and let me know your thoughts.

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