If you like pizzoccheri and polenta taragna, you are probably a lover of buckwheat. It is a pseudocereal, which obviously does not contain gluten, very rich in minerals and vegetable proteins. And it’s ideal if you’re trying to eat a healthy, perhaps light diet or reduce animal protein.
Valentina Rorato • 22 April 2021 * Last modified on 15/12/2025
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Properties and benefits of foods
Validated by the Ohga Scientific Committee
Buckwheat is not a cereal, although it is often used in the kitchen as an alternative to the most famous cereals. In reality, its grains are the seeds of a plant typical of Asia, and also widely cultivated in Europe and the United States. It is considered a superfood, simply because of its high content of minerals and antioxidants. And most importantly, it does not contain gluten.
Properties of buckwheat
1.Floor plan
2.Nutritional values
3.Properties and benefits
4.Contraindications
5.Uses in the kitchen
The plant
Common buckwheat is an annual plant (whose scientific name is Fagopyrum esculentum), with reddish stems and white and pink flowers. It is native to western China, Tibet, and eastern India, but is also cultivated in Russia, Central and Southeast Asia, Europe, and the United States. This product is often thought of as a cereal, but in reality, it is simply a seed. The confusion, of course, arises from the name.
This seed, which is gluten-free, is not related to wheat, although it can be used in place of wheat grains such as bulgur, spelt and freekeh (i.e. green wheat), using the same cooking method. Although it costs a little more than its substitutes, it is a relatively inexpensive source of high-quality protein. Triangular grains are considered a “pseudocereal,” the category name for non-grass plant seeds commonly consumed in the same way as grains. And which also includes amaranth and quinoa.
A causa del suo rapido tasso di crescita viene coltivato come coltura di copertura e aiuta a legare i suoli, controllandone così l’erosione durante le stagioni delle piogge. La pianta è particolarmente tollerante ai terreni di scarsa qualità, sabbiosi o acidi. Si tratta di una coltura dai molteplici utilizzi: i teneri germogli vengono consumati come ortaggi a foglia, le foglie verdi utilizzate in medicina per favorire la circolazione e i chicchi per la preparazione della farina di grano saraceno per l’alimentazione umana ma anche per l’alimentazione del bestiame.
What does it taste like? The taste is a bit stronger than wheat, oats, and rice. Sometimes it can feel a bit bitter and of course the intensity depends on the degree of roasting.
Nutritional values
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