Soaked buckwheat groats

Sprouted buckwheat cereal is a raw foodie standard.  It is soooooo easy.  And it is soooooo economical.  It’s usually called “buckwheaties” or raw granola (RAW-nola) by those in the know.  Usually they’re around $9.00-$10.00 per pound.  Outrageous! Raw hulled buckwheat costs a buck or so for a few pounds.  I’d estimate you can make it yourself for under $5.  And you can have whatever flavor you imagine.

There isn’t really a hard & fast recipe for this because it lends itself to improvisation & variation.  It’s fun to think of new ways to make it.

Step 1 – Soak & sprout hulled buckwheat groats

• Put your buckwheat in 2-3x the amount of water.  This stuff expands a LOT.  Make sure all of the sprouts are under the water.   I usually use 1 cup of groats and 4 cups of H2O.
• Soak 20-60 minutes. Don’t over soak! If you do, they will not sprout.  The water will become very thick, cloudy, and starchy.  This is normal. You’ll know they’re ready when they get to be 2-3 times their original size. You won’t have much extra water in your bowl.
• Put groats in a colander and rinse them thoroughly.  You’ll need to do it 2 or 3 times until the water runs clear.  This is very important.  If you don’t rinse well, your spouts will have a bit of a bitter taste.   Drain the groats thoroughly when done.
• Spread the groats out evenly in your colander
• Set them out away from direct sunlight and let them sprout for 4-8 hours.  Room temperature should be around 70 degrees.  Amount of time you set them out will vary. If it’s hotter, leave them out for less time.  If it’s colder, leave them out for more.
• Rinse and drain again.  Sprout them again for 4-8 hours.  Repeat 2-3 more times.
• You will see tiny tails emerging from the groats.   For buckwheaties, a wee hint of a tail is sufficient.
• You are done with step 1!!!  You will have roughly 3-4 times the volume of what you started with.  For 1 cup raw groats, I get a yield of 3-4 cups sprouted groats.

Step 2 - Flavor your cereal

This is the part where you can get creative.  Put in your flavorings and a sweetener.  Mix thoroughly.  Some combinations I like with my 3-4 cups sprouted groats are:

• Chocolate!! Mix the groats with  1/4 to 1/2 cup of semi- raw chocolate syrup. Sometimes I sprinkle in shredded coconut and make a “Mounds” flavored cereal. You could probably use a nut butter to make a Reese’s Peanut Butter cup type of flavor.  I’ve been meaning to try that!   To make raw chocolate syrup:
  • Blend 1 cup maple syrup and 6 tablespoons raw cacao powder in a high speed blender.  Good on raw ice cream, as a fruit dip, etc.   If you want to make it all raw, use agave, runny honey, or, my personal favorite, soaked dates made into a watery paste/syrup works very well)
• Apple cinnamon – mix groats with 1/4-1/2 cup of raw applesauce and sprinkle with cinnamon.  Add some sweetener if you desire.  Sometimes add diced apple for some more texture.  You can also add raisins, dried berries, cranberries.
• Nuttin’ honey – 1/4 – 1/2 cup almond or other nut butter, 1/4 cup honey.
• Granola – add nuts, fruit, whatever you’d use in granola, plus a sweetener to bind it all together.  I recommend date paste.
• Leave them plain! They’re quite good simply left alone without flavorings.  If you do this, definitely go the Grape-Nuts route.  If I do this, I intend to use them as a textural element in other recipes such as cookies and pie crusts.

Step 3 – Dehydrate!!!

Your batter should be fairly sticky but still spreadable.

• Spread the batter onto dehydrator trays using teflex sheets.
• Decide if you want to make your buckwheaties structured or as a free-running Grape-Nuts type of cereal.   To make it structured, score a grid patter on the batter to make bite-sized squares.   If you want Grape-Nutty cereal, simple spread it out on they tray.
• Flip the sheet of buckwheat over and dry the other side until the whole things is dried out.
• For buckwheat squares, use your spatula to neatly break apart the bite-sized squares.  For Grape-Nutties, use your hands to crumble it all apart into tiny nuggets which will readily pour out of your storage container.  Or leave it kind of chunky like granola.

Step 4 – Store

Put the cereal in an airtight container.  It will keep a few months in a cool dark spot.  It will keep virtually forever if you put it in the fridge or freezer.  If it starts going stale it may get a bit soft/sticky.  You can revive it by throwing it back in the dehydrator to dry it out some more.

Step 5 – Enjoy!

Buckwheaties have so much versatility.  Eat it as is for a snack.  It packs well.   Use it as a breakfast cereal with your favorite nut or seed milk.   Let it soak with other ingredients for a muesli.  Sprinkle it on raw ice cream.  Add it to raw coconut yogurt.  Throw it into a raw cookie recipe.  Use it in a pie crust (grind to a flour or put it together like a graham cracker crust).

I usually have 2 or 3 varieties of buckwheaties on hand as a pantry staple.  I make a batch every 4-5 weeks as part of my monthly food prep.  Having them on-hand allows me to make “fix it fast” recipes.