“Are you sure you’re cooking buckwheat correctly?” — this is the question that made millions of housewives reconsider their habits after the scandalous interview with Mikhail Tikhonov, chef of the Uryuk restaurant, in the podcast “Food without Falsity.”
On air, he stated that 90% of people spoil the cereal already at the stage of boiling the water.
“It’s all about one forgotten ingredient that is in every kitchen,” Tikhonov teased, refusing to give details until the article was published in Gastronom magazine.
The secret turned out to be ridiculously simple: add a teaspoon of butter to boiling water before adding the buckwheat.
It might seem like a small thing, but it is this, as Tikhonov later explained in an interview for BBC Good Food , that creates a thin film on the surface of the grains.
This not only prevents overcooking, but also “seals” the aroma, making the taste rich, like in expensive restaurants.
An experiment by culinary blogger Anna Petrova , who conducted a blind test with 50 people, confirmed that 89% of the subjects chose buckwheat prepared using Tikhonov ’s method, calling it “more textured” and “reminiscent of childhood memories.”
"I always thought that butter is added to the cooked porridge. It turns out that the trick is in when to throw it into the pan," wrote Olga Semenova, the author of the channel "Just Cook," on her Instagram.
But how does it work scientifically?
Food chemist Elena Vorobyova explained in an article for Popular Science that fat from butter interacts with starch, slowing down its gelatinization.
The result is that the grains remain crumbly even when slightly overheated.
The main thing is not to overdo it: excess oil will turn a healthy product into a calorie bomb.
Interestingly, a similar technique is used in Georgian cuisine, where buckwheat is replaced with corn grits.
This was mentioned by Giorgi Basilia , chef of the Tbilisi restaurant Shemoikhede Genatsvale , in the documentary film Culinary Secrets of the Caucasus .
“Our grandmothers would add butter or even chicken fat to the boiling water – this would ensure that guests would not leave until the last crumb,” he laughed in an interview.
Skeptics, however, advise not to rush to throw away old recipes.
Cook's Illustrated warns that the method only works with whole kernels and is useless for buckwheat or buckwheat flakes.
"It all depends on the quality of the grain. If the grain is already damaged, no oil will save it," comments technologist Maria Kovaleva.
An unexpected side effect of Tikhonov's discovery was a boom in sales of cast iron pots.
As it turns out, when combined with the oil life hack, they provide the ideal temperature for simmering.
