Name: Buckwheat With Porcini Mushrooms
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: 1 lb fresh porcini mushrooms ((or 1 ½ oz dry porcini)); 1 ¼ cups buckwheat groats; 1 cup heavy cream; 3 ½ tbsp butter; 1 onion; 3 cloves garlic; ½ cup fresh parsley; 2 tsp salt; 1 tsp black pepper; 1 tsp dried marjoram; 1 tsp dried thyme; 4 cups water

Buckwheat with porcini mushrooms is an old Slovenian dish, and you only need a handful of ingredients to make it. Soft, creamy porcini add their umami, and the buckwheat brings its nutty taste. Together they’re just so good!

You can use fresh porcini or dried ones, whatever you have. It’s light, ready in 20 minutes, naturally gluten-free, and works as a main dish or a side dish.

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The good old buckwheat and porcini mushrooms

A wooden spoon with porcini and buckwheat porridge, a Slovenian nationa dish, with fresh, young porcinis and a foraging basket in the background.

When wild mushroom season starts, the race is on. Every forager around is out looking for a good patch of porcini, and nobody’s sharing. Some days you come home with an empty basket and blisters on your feet, but when they finally show up, you can expect a feast. Where there’s one, there are more hiding around.

In Slovenia, the land of bears and bees, almost everyone goes out looking for these little piglets. A good porcini spot is a treasure you only pass on right before you move to the cemetery. As long as you can still walk to the forest, nobody hears a word about it.

Porcini mushroom soup is a Slovenian classic you’ll find in every restaurant here. But buckwheat recipes have a long history too. People across Central and Eastern Europe have cooked buckwheat since ancient times, and buckwheat with porcini is the first dish you must try. This is older than any written recipe.

The porcini obsession around here is pretty wild. Every fall we make new porcini recipes, from a porcini pâté to a crispy porcini pizza, and nothing is more comforting than a creamy porcini sauce. Dried porcini go into porcini pasta year-round.

But buckwheat with porcini mushrooms is always number one on my list. It’s easier and quicker to make than porcini risotto, and if you ask me, it tastes so much better than any rice dish. Sorry, Italians. Nutty, buttery, creamy, and full of porcini umami that blends perfectly with the buckwheat.

The cooking is simple. Boil the buckwheat for less than 15 minutes, then mix it with butter-fried porcini, caramelized onions, cream, and a few spices. Done. Anything else you’d add would only spoil the dish.

Serve buckwheat with mushrooms as a side dish, or let it rock on its own with a glass of wine and a slice of buckwheat bread. And no parmesan, please. It’s so good it doesn’t need it.

Porcini mushrooms with buckwheat groats in a bowl, with long porcini mushrooms that were just foraged in the background.

What goes in the pan (and what you can swap)

PORCINI MUSHROOMS – Fresh foraged porcini or dried ones. If you’re using dried mushrooms, soak them in warm water before cooking. You can toss in other wild mushrooms too, but porcini should be the boss of your basket.

BUCKWHEAT GROATS – We used plain buckwheat groats, but buckwheat kasha (already toasted) works too. Or toast your groats in a dry pan for a few minutes before cooking, and they’ll taste even nuttier. Despite the name, buckwheat isn’t wheat, and it’s not even a true grain. It’s a seed, naturally gluten-free, and full of fiber, protein, and minerals.

HEAVY CREAM – Or half and half. Buckwheat soaks up the juices, so thick cooking cream would turn the dish too heavy and dry. Want more tang? Use sour cream instead when the heat is alredy off.

BUTTER – Unsalted or salted, for frying the onions and porcini. Skip the olive oil in this recipe.

Ingredients needed for buckwheat with porcini: fresh porcini mushrooms, buckwheat groats, onion, garlic, butter, heavy cream, black pepper, salt, marjoram, thyme and fresh parsley.

ONION – One large onion, finely diced. You’ll fry the porcini right in with it.

GARLIC – Three cloves. If you’re in a hurry, garlic powder works too.

THYME & MARJORAM – Fresh or dried, both pair beautifully with porcini. Apart from these two and the parsley, skip other fresh herbs and spices. The porcini umami and buckwheat are the star flavors.

SALT & BLACK PEPPER – A teaspoon of salt and a teaspoon of pepper, or more if you like. White pepper works too.

FRESH PARSLEY – A small handful, chopped. It goes in last for a little freshness. Or swap it for fresh dill, the way they’d make it in Poland.

Creamy porcini and buckwheat on a rustic wooden table, served in a clay bowl for a delicious fall dinner.

How to make buckwheat with porcini mushrooms in 20 minutes

Using dried porcini? Soak them in warm water for 20 to 30 minutes. Save the soaking water, strain out the grit, and top it up with fresh water to cook the buckwheat. Then skip the brushing in step 1.

STEP 1: Clean the porcini with a dry brush. Don’t wash them! They soak up water like sponges. Then cut them into bigger, thicker chunks, so they keep some bite. Finely dice the onion into small pieces, and crush or chop the garlic.

Slicing the porcini, onions and garlic while the buckwheat is boiling.

STEP 2: Fill a medium pot with water and bring it to a boil. While you wait, rinse the buckwheat under cold water. Add the buckwheat to the boiling water and cook for about 12 minutes. It should be cooked but still al dente, because it needs some room to soak up the creamy sauce later. Drain it when it’s done.

Buckwheat groats being cooked in a pot, one part lifted with a wooden spoon to show they are cooked enough.

STEP 3: Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. I use a larger saucepan to fit everything. When it’s hot, add the onions and fry until translucent and starting to turn golden.

Onions being fried in a pan, until golden brown, with a wooden spoon stiring.

STEP 4: Turn the heat up to medium-high and add the porcini chunks together with the garlic. Porcini love to stick to the bottom of the pan, so if they do, add a tablespoon of water or white wine to make stirring easier. Also keep in mind that porcini foraged after rain release much more water than the ones picked in a dry forest, so you may not need any extra liquid at all.

Adding fresh porcini slices to a pan with fried onions.

STEP 5: Cook the porcini for about 5 minutes, just until they soften and shrink. This happens pretty fast, so stay at the stove and keep stirring the whole time. Season with salt and black pepper.

Porcini mushrooms in a pan, just being sauteed with onions.

STEP 6: Once the porcini are soft and cooked, pour in the heavy cream and add marjoram and thyme. Stir until the cream and porcini blend together into a smooth, creamy sauce. If you’re using sour cream, turn off the heat first.

Porcini mushrooms in a sauce pan with heavy cream and added marjoram and thyme.

STEP 7: Next, add the drained buckwheat. Chop the parsley and stir it in too. Mix everything well, cover the skillet with a lid, and let it rest for 1-2 minutes, so the buckwheat can soak up all the creamy porcini goodness.

Buckwheat groats with creamy porcini in a sauce pan, just before being served.

STEP 8: And you’re done! Spoon this mouthwatering buckwheat with porcini into bowls and top it with a little fresh parsley. Oh, and have you opened the white wine yet? No? What are you waiting for?

A close view of a bowl of buckwheat with mushrooms, decorated with a parsley sprig on top.

Tips and twists for buckwheat with porcini mushrooms

Don’t rinse the porcini. Clean them with a brush or a dry towel and pick off any bugs. Porcini soak up water like little sponges, and after a rainfall they turn mushy even faster, so cook them quickly.

Using dried porcini? Save the soaking water. Strain it through a coffee filter or paper towel to catch the grit, then cook the buckwheat in it. It turns into a dark, earthy broth and doubles the porcini flavor.

Mix in other wild mushrooms. Chanterelles or parasol mushrooms can join the pan party, as long as porcini stay the majority.

Toast the buckwheat. Toast the groats in a dry skillet before cooking for homemade kasha with an even nuttier taste. Stir vigorously to prevent burning.

Don’t overcook the buckwheat. Groats usually need about 15 minutes, but here you want them al dente. They’ll finish softening in the pan as they soak up the creamy sauce.

Add chicken or vegetables. Porcini umami stands on its own, but chunks of chicken, pork, or soy are delicious too. So are carrots, parsnip, or kohlrabi. Or skip the cream and use diced tomato instead.

Serve it your way. Pair it with grilled meat, stews, or goulash, or eat it as is. It rocks on its own. Use it warm to stuff chicken, peppers, or sauerkraut leaves for cabbage rolls with buckwheat. Extra groats? Mix them with an egg and some buckwheat flour, and fry them into crispy fritters.

Spoonful of creamy buckhweat with porcini mushrooms, with visible pieces of cooked porcini and buckwheat seeds.

How long does buckwheat with mushrooms keep?

Wild mushroom proteins spoil fast, so this dish doesn’t like hanging around warm. After an hour or two in the pot, move it to the fridge, where it keeps for a day. Yes, you can pack it for tomorrow’s lunch at work, as long as it stays chilled.

The old rule says don’t reheat wild mushrooms, and wise men stick to it, especially those with sensitive stomachs. If you do warm it up, do it only once, and make sure it’s steaming hot all the way through.

What about freezing? Nope, I wouldn’t. Freeze blanched porcini instead. This meal only takes 20 minutes (or less) to cook, so you can whip up a fresh bowl anytime.