Buckwheat with Chicken, Vegetables and Porcini Mushrooms

Name: Buckwheat with Chicken and Mushrooms Recipe
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 1 h 15 min
Total time: 1 h 30 min
Cuisine: European
Ingredients: Chicken (up to 1.5 kg) 0.5 chicken; Buckwheat groats 1 cup (170 g); Water 4 cups (it will boil down to 2 cups of broth) (800 ml); Porcini mushrooms optional (20-25 g if dried); Carrot 1; Onion 2; Parsnip 0.5 chicken; Garlic 1 head; Butter 3 tbsp; Salt, black pepper to taste; Aromatic herbs (thyme, savory, parsley, oregano, etc.) 0.5 tsp dried mix; Butter, parsley, black pepper for serving

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1 h 30 mins

There was a time when buckwheat with chicken was almost a delicacy, though now it is more of an everyday dish. Chicken with grain is very easy to make – it is a bit like pilaf, with buckwheat in place of rice or bulgur. The dish can be considered quick, since chicken needs little time to cook and stew, and the buckwheat needs literally 15 mins to be done.

Besides the chicken and the grain, it is worth adding vegetables. Usually these are root vegetables – carrot, parsnip, parsley root. Onion and unpeeled garlic cloves also fit the dish perfectly, making it fragrant and tasty. Fresh or dried wild mushrooms give a special aroma. If you can, make the buckwheat with porcini mushrooms.

For browning the chicken, use natural butter. Together with the chicken and mushrooms it gives the dish a wonderful, deep aroma. It is important to brown the vegetables well, then add the chopped mushrooms and the chicken, and stew everything together until tender. If possible, remove all the large bones from the chicken once it is cooked. Only then add the buckwheat and stew it until done.

Usually the best buckwheat porridge comes from groats with whole kernels, the so-called “yadrytsia”. With cracked groats, the porridge or pilaf turns out stickier. Roasted groats are usually what you find in stores – brown and pleasantly fragrant. Unroasted green kernels are also sold, but they are popular only with connoisseurs.

By and large, it is important to have plenty of meat – buckwheat with chicken is then at its tastiest and most filling. Chicken breast turns out fibrous and a little tough, while the dark meat of thighs and drumsticks is better suited for cooking.

Ideally, buy a small free-range chicken or a young broiler. If the chicken is fatty, first trim off the large pieces of internal fat. Also, don’t stew the chicken with the skin on – it comes off easily. For convenience, cut a whole chicken into 4-6 large pieces; it is then easier to take the meat off after cooking. Don’t use too many spices, so the dish keeps a delicate flavor.

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Ingredients

4 servings

Chicken (up to 1.5 kg) 0.5 chicken
Buckwheat groats 1 cup (170 g)
Water 4 cups (it will boil down to 2 cups of broth) (800 ml)
Porcini mushrooms optional (20-25 g if dried)
Carrot 1
Onion 2
Parsnip 0.5 chicken
Garlic 1 head
Butter 3 tbsp
Salt, black pepper to taste
Aromatic herbs (thyme, savory, parsley, oregano, etc.) 0.5 tsp dried mix
Butter, parsley, black pepper for serving

Step-by-step recipe

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Preparation

Homemade buckwheat with chicken is a bit like pilaf. It is made on the same principles, though with different ingredients.
Prepare the chicken and mushrooms. If you are cooking a whole chicken, cut it into 4-6 large pieces and, if possible, remove the skin and large pieces of fat. For thighs or fillet, it is enough to take off the skin. Dried porcini should be soaked beforehand until soft – 20-25 grams is enough. Fresh mushrooms should be cut into large pieces and used without boiling first.
Prepare the vegetables: peel the onion, carrot and parsnip and cut them into small cubes of roughly equal size. Separate the garlic into cloves; there is no need to peel them.

Broth with chicken and vegetables

A large skillet with a lid or a cauldron is convenient for cooking.
Fry the vegetables with the mushrooms. Melt the butter in the pan and fry the vegetables and garlic over medium heat until soft and starting to turn golden. Stir the vegetable mixture for even browning, as for buckwheat with vegetables. Add the fresh or soaked porcini and keep frying for another 3-4 mins.
Make the broth with the chicken. Put the chicken pieces into the pan. The chicken doesn’t have to be browned; it is there to make the broth.
Add four cups of water (800 ml) to the pan. Salt and pepper the dish with black pepper, and add 0.5 tsp of the dried herb mix. By the way, to make the buckwheat with chicken aromatic without bits of spices showing in the dish, tie them in a piece of clean cloth or a sachet bag.
Bring the liquid to a boil and cover the pan with a lid. Reduce the heat to low and stew the chicken with the vegetables for up to 1 hour, until the chicken is tender. You want a fragrant, rich broth, with the liquid in the pan reduced by about half. For 1 cup of buckwheat (170 g), 2 cups of liquid (400 ml) is enough.
Take out the chicken and vegetables: when the chicken is done, move the meat pieces and all the vegetables to a plate. If you plan to serve the dish with large pieces of chicken, you can leave them as they are. Or, which is also good, take all the meat off the bones and discard the bones.

Buckwheat

The chicken and vegetables should be mixed with already cooked buckwheat. If you cook the buckwheat together with the vegetables, it won’t come out fluffy.
Cook the buckwheat in the broth. Pour the dry buckwheat into the pan with two cups of rich chicken broth (400 ml). By the way, the groats can be toasted first in a dry hot skillet.
Cook the buckwheat at a very gentle simmer, stirring from time to time. The groats are usually done in 15-20 mins. Once the free liquid is gone, steam the buckwheat under a lid for 10-15 mins, which makes it fluffy.
Combine the buckwheat with the chicken: mix the cooked buckwheat with the vegetables and chicken pieces, cover the pan with a lid and put it on low heat. After 5-10 mins the buckwheat with chicken is ready.

Serving

Put the buckwheat with vegetables on a plate and place the large pieces of chicken on top, if you kept them. When serving, add a small piece of butter and a little black pepper. It is very tasty sprinkled with a little finely chopped parsley.

Calories and macros

550 kcal

Serving ≈ 300 g

Protein24 g18% of kcal
Fat32 g53% of kcal
Carbs38 g29% of kcal

100 g185 kcalProtein 8.1 gFat 10.6 gCarbs 12.9 g

Calculated from the recipe ingredients, excluding salt and spices. Data: USDA and Matvaretabellen.

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