This buckwheat salad makes a great light meal. The earthy flavours of buckwheat are complemented by crunchy celery, mushrooms and asparagus. This is an elegant main dish salad that is vegan and gluten-free. If you marinate the celery the previous night, or in the morning, this dish can come together in under half an hour, making it perfect for weeknights. It also stores really well, making it a great meal prep dish.
Marinating celery
Celery is definitely an underrated vegetable. It can be so much more than just something to serve as a dip carrier. In this recipe, I marinate the celery for a few hours in vinegar and mustard, which lifts the flavour of the celery to the next level. It retains its delicious crunch, and the bits of celery gives wonderful bursts of bright flavour. This pairs so well with the earthy buckwheat, the umami of the mushrooms, and the delicate asparagus flavour.
Why use buckwheat?
I know it may seem that buckwheat is just one more thing to keep in the pantry, but I do think it is a worthwhile addition. Buckwheat can be used in place of rice in most recipes, and it is a pretty good upgrade – it has about 56% more protein than rice by weight (11.7g vs 7.5g per 100g). It is rich in copper, magnesium and manganese. Now, let’s be clear – I’m not saying you should not be eating rice, but it is good to increase the variety of foods in your diet. Not only does it give you a better chance of getting the micronutrients you need, but you are also feeding your gut bacteria a variety of types of fibre.
Ingredients and substitutions
Mushrooms: I used a mix shitake, enoki and king oyster mushrooms in this recipe – that is the mix that my supermarket sells. I think it works really well in this recipe, but most combinations of mushrooms would work. I won’t use brown mushrooms, as it would make the salad look a little dirty.
Asparagus: If it is isn’t asparagus season, broccoli would also work well in this recipe.
Buckwheat: Brown rice or pearl barley would work well as substitutes, but please adjust the cooking times accordingly.
I have opted not to use olive oil in the marinade, but if you are OK with a slightly higher calorie version of the dish, feel free to add some. It will be tasty.
Serving the salad
If you eat it immediately after cooking the buckwheat and asparagus, it will be slightly warm. The celery will hold up to the heat and stay crunchy, but it also tastes great cold if you serve it the next day.
Buckwheat salad with marinated celery, mushrooms and asparagus
Ingredients
- 1 cup chopped celery
- 1 small red onion
- 2 tbsp whole grain mustard
- 1/3 cup sherry vinegar You can substitute another good quality vinegar such as red wine vinegar, raspberry etc
- 300 g Raw buckwheat groats About 1¾ cup
- 2 small punnets Mixed mushrooms (about 300g) About 2 small punnets
- 1 bunch asparagus (170g)
- ¼ cup pomegranate aerils optional
Instructions
Marinade the celery
- Finely chop celery (you will need about 4 sticks to make a cup of chopped celery). Peel the onion, halve it and slice fine half rings.
- Mix the mustard into the vinegar and add a pinch of salt. Add this to the onion and celery and marinate for at least an hour, or up to a day.
Roast the vegetables
- Slice the asparagus into 2.5 cm / 1 inch sections. Slice the mushrooms. Place these on a baking tray lined with a silicone sheet (or lightly oil a baking sheet). Season with salt and black pepper. Roast the vegetables at 220°C (430°F), stirring once.
While the vegetables are roasting, cook the buckwheat
- Bring the buckwheat to a boil with about 3 cups of water and ½tsp salt. Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover, and let it cook for about 20 minutes.
Assemble the salad
- Let the mushrooms and asparagus, as well as the cooked buckwheat, cool slightly. It does not have to be completely cool – just give it a few minutes. Mix the buckwheat, mushrooms, asparagus, and the marinated celery and onions, as well as any leftover marinade. Give it a taste, and season with some more salt and black pepper. Garnish with pomegranate. It is optional, but adds a nice touch.
Nutrition
Fig salad with smoky tofu
I feel it is my duty to make the most of fig season, and this fig salad with smoky tofu is a great way to celebrate figs. I love figs’ taste, texture, and the beauty they bring to any dish. There are of course many desserts that showcase figs, but they are fantastic in main dish salads. There are many classic salads that pair figs with things like mozzarella and ham. Here, I replicate some of those flavours and textures with smoky, marinated tofu. The marinade is sweet, salty and smoky and perfectly compliments the figs and greens.
Key ingredients and substitutions
The marinade: I used chinkiang vinegar, but you can substitute sherry vinegar or balsamic vinegar. You can substitute the coconut aminos with soy sauce.
The salad: I used rocket (arugula) for the greens. Watercress or radicchio or a mix of these would also be great. This is not a salad for a mild lettuce – you need the bitterness to balance the sweet notes. When it is not fig season, you could also use melon, for a different take on this salad.
Fig salad with smokey tofu
Ingredients
For the marinaded tofu
- 3 tbsp Chinkiang vinegar Substitute sherry or balsamic vinegar
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tbsp coconut aminos substitute soy sauce
- 1 tsp hot smoked paprika
- 1 block tofu Use smoked tofu if you have it
For the salad
- 1 packet rocket
- 5 fresh figs
- ½ Red onion
- 1 tbsp pine nuts
- Balsamic reduction to taste, to drizzle
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 190°C/375°F.
- Tear the tofu into rustic pieces. You can, of course, dice it, but I think the tearing it looks more interesting, and the marinade sticks well to the rough surfaces. Add the tofu to a baking tray
- Mix the marinade (vinegar, maple syrup, coconut aminos and smoked paprika) in a small bowl. Our the marinade over the tofu, and toss to coat. If you have time, you can leave this to marinade. It is not essential.
- Bake the tofu for 20-30 minutes, tossing once or twice.
- Meantime, finely slice the red onion. Prepare the figs. You can simply halve them, but I like to open them by cutting a cross in the top of each, and gently pressing the bottom to open the fig.
- When the tofu is done, remove it from the oven and let it cool slightly. Arrange the greens and sliced onion on a platter. Add the figs, and place the tofu between the figs. Sprinkle the pine nuts over the salad, and finally give a drizzle of balsamic reduction