Now that halloween is over, we need to get back on track and pack some healthy nutrient rich food in our bodies to balance the candy. Today’s weekend inspiration is one of my favorite salads to make, Buckwheat super salad. This is a great on the go salad, packed with so many nutrients and superfoods. It’s a balance of all the flavors in every bite, I know you will love it. The best part is you can make it ahead of time and keep it ready in the fridge for up to a week.
buckwheat
Let’s start with the main ingredient of this buckwheat super salad, yes you guessed it – Buckwheat. Buckwheat is a pseudocereal. This is the same family as quinoa and amaranth, which are gluten-free. These grains are like the grey area of the non-grain diets as they have so many other health benefits that sometimes they are worth eating. Although they are grains they have many nutrients like manganese, copper, iron, magnesium and phosphorus, and a good amount of protein. They do have carbs, however the carbs in these specific grains are better for you as they are complex and do not spike sugar.
Although the name buckwheat contains the word wheat in it, these grains are not related at all to wheat and are gluten free. Buckwheat also has a high source of indigestible fibre, which is great for the colon and gut feeding the good bacteria similar to prebiotics.
The other Superfoods
Next we have the other goodies in this buckwheat super salad, seaweed. Seaweed is high in many minerals and vitamins. It can also help regulate estrogen levels, and it helps detoxify the body from inside out.
Other super ingredients we are using are cranberries which are high in vitamins and and antioxidants, and Almonds and olive oil which are healthy fats and help reduce inflammation.
Lastly we are using a special ingredient called ume plum vinegar. This is a Japanese condiment used to pickle ume plums. The ume plum vinegar is a brine (yes it is very salty, not sour like vinegar usually is) which adds flavor to food without any calories. It’s also rich in phenols, and very alkalizing for the body. It is typically used in Japanese cooking on steamed vegetable to add flavor, while still eating healthy. You can buy ume plum vinegar in most supermarkets however you can also order it online.
So basically that is my buckwheat super salad in a nutshell. Amazing ingredients thrown together to get a burst of flavor in your mouth and loads of nutrition in your belly. Hope you give it a try and comment below if you like it. Happy Cooking!
Ingredients
2 cups of cooked buckwheat (or quinoa if you prefer)
1/4 chopped parsley
1/2 a red onion chopped
1/4-1/2 cup arame seaweed
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/4 olive oil
Juice of 1/2 a lemon or lime
3 tbsp ume plum vinegar
1/2 cup of slivered almonds
Directions
Cook buckwheat as per directions on bag and let cool, in the meantime soak seaweed in water to hydrate
Chop parsley and onion into very small pieces
Using a small frying pan, place on medium heat and add slivered almonds to toast
Now it’s time to assemble, place cooled buckwheat in a bowl, add onions, parsley,
cranberries, almonds, and seaweed and mix well.
Add olive oil and ume plum vinegar, and a squirt of lime and mix. No need for salt as ume
plum is salty.
