From the Notebook

When Life Hands You Roasted Buckwheat (a.k.a Kasha)….

When Life Hands You Roasted Buckwheat (a.k.a Kasha)….

When life hands you roasted buckwheat… you make meatballs and mushroom gravy to go with it. Continuing the subject of my husband overbuying things — for some very poorly understood reason, he has an enormous fear of running out of roasted buckwheat, a.k.a. kasha. I want to blame it on the COVID-19 situation, but I have to admit that said fear has always accompanied our family. So I went looking for new ways to use up the stockpile and landed on these tender pork-and-beef meatballs smothered in a rich, earthy mushroom gravy, spooned generously over a bed of nutty buckwheat. Comfort food at its most stubbornly Polish.

Ingredients

Kasha (Roasted/Toasted Buckwheat)

  • 1 cups of roasted buckwheat
  • 2 cups of water
  • ½ teaspoon salt

Meatballs

  • 1 Tablespoon neutral-flavored oil
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 1 tablespoon dried thyme
  • 500 grams (1.1 pounds) ground beef or pork
  • 700 grams (1.5 pounds) ground turkey
  • ½ cup bread crumbs
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon pepper
  • 2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 egg, beaten

Mushroom Gravy

  • 3 tablespoons butter
  • 300 grams (10.6 ounces) mushrooms, sliced
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 2 teaspoons dried thyme
  • 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 2 ½  cups of your favorite broth (chicken, beef or vegetable), preferably reduced sodium

Method

  1. Kasha (Roasted/Toasted Buckwheat)

  2. In a medium saucepan, combine buckwheat, water, and salt. Bring it to a boil over medium-high heat.

  3. Reduce heat to low and cover with a lid. Simmer for about 15-20 minutes or until water has been absorbed by the grains.

  4. Fluff it with a fork. Serve it immediately.

  5. Meatballs

  6. In a medium skillet, heat the oil on medium. Add the onion and thyme and sauté until translucent and lightly brown, about 5 minutes. Place it in a large bowl and let it cool down.

  7. Preheat oven to 355-degree Fahrenheit (180-degree Celsius).

  8. In the same large bowl, combine the rest of the ingredients until incorporated. Try not to over-mix or you end up with tough meatballs. With wet hands, form meatballs and place them on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil or a silicone baking mat. Bake for about 20 minutes or until an instant-read thermometer registers 165 Fahrenheit (74-degree Celsius).

  9. Serve with cooked buckwheat and mushroom gravy, or with marinara sauce and pasta.

  10. Mushroom Gravy

  11. In a large saucepan, melt the butter on medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and sauté until all liquid has evaporated and mushrooms are slightly brown, about 10 minutes. Season with salt, pepper, and thyme.

  12. Sprinkle the flour over the mushrooms and cook, stirring, for about 1 minute. Add broth and whisk until flour is incorporated and there are no lumps. Bring it to a boil and cook until thickened, about 5 minutes. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper as needed.

Bon Appétit

Originally published on Daga's Cooking Journal.