What-wheat?
Despite having wheat in its name, buckwheat isn’t related to wheat and is 100% gluten-free. Like quinoa and amaranth, it belongs to a group of foods commonly called pseudocereals. In other words, buckwheat is a seed that is consumed as a cereal grain, but it doesn’t grow on grasses.
Buckwheat is also actually full of minerals, vitamins, and amino acids, too. It contains:
- Manganese
- Copper
- Magnesium
- Iron
- Phosphorus
- Niacin
- Vitamin B6
- Folate
- Pantothenic acid
- Zinc
- Quercetin
- Lysine
- Argenine
As with wheat and other glutenous grains, gluten-free grains and seeds also contain the enzyme inhibitor phytic acid. This makes digestion and absorption of the minerals in grains and seeds hard for your body. (Read more about phytic acid here) By soaking, as in the sourdough process, the enzyme phytase is activated. This helps break down, reduce, or even eliminate phytic acid. Not only that, it also increases the vitamin content of the grain, in specific, the B vitamins.
When compared to other grains, the minerals in cooked buckwheat are better absorbed, since it’s low in phytic acid. Souring buckwheat (as in sourdough or soaked pancakes) actually turns buckwheat into a prebiotic food!
Sorghum is lower in phytic acid than wheat, but lacks phytase. Buckwheat contains high levels of phytase, so adding it to the soaking helps break down the sorghum’s phytic acid.
Soaked Buckwheat Sorghum Pancakes
Buckwheat. You can buy buckwheat flour at most grocery stores in the gluten-free section. If you can’t find it in your local store, there are plenty on Amazon. I like Anthony’s products, and they have a nice organic buckwheat flour.
Sorghum. Sorghum flour is my absolute favorite gluten-free flour! It has a nice slightly sweet flavor that helps balance the strong flavor of buckwheat flour. Sorghum also has a perfect, wheat-like texture that most gluten-free bread products lack. It can be found in most grocery stores. Bob’s Red Mill is a pretty good brand for it.
Flax. In this soaked buckwheat sorghum pancakes recipe, the flax acts as the binder. Since there’s no eggs in the recipe (and most pancake batters use eggs), the flax kinda helps keep your pancakes together. You can buy flax meal already ground, or you can buy flax seeds and grind it yourself. I prefer to grind it myself, since it is a seed, grinding it and then letting it sit on a shelf can make it go rancid. Freshly ground is better!
Cinnamon. You can use whatever kind of cinnamon you like in this recipe. I love to use Frontier Coop’s organic cinnamon. Please don’t use McCormick or anything from Sam’s Club, though. Their cinnamon is actually cassia.
Applesauce. Using applesauce in pancakes helps take the place of using any oils. If you don’t like applesauce, you could sub a pear sauce or mashed bananas. You could also try pumpkin or sweet potato puree, though those would change the texture.
More pancake love.
If you’re looking for more delicious, gluten-free pancakes, here are some of my favorites:
In the recipe card I’ve linked to some of the products from my affiliate partners that I like to use. Purchasing through these links won’t cost you anything extra. Thanks!
Soaked Buckwheat Sorghum Pancakes
Free from gluten, eggs, dairy, and sugar.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups buckwheat flour
- 1 cup sorghum flour
- 2 tablespoons flax meal
- 3 cups water
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1/2 cup applesauce
Instructions
The night before, combine buckwheat, sorghum, and flax in a large ceramic or glass bowl (don’t use metal or plastic). Stir in the water and cover with a tea towel or plastic wrap.
The morning of, preheat a lightly greased skillet or frying pan.
To the soaked flours add applesauce and cinnamon and stir until smooth.
Sprinkle with the baking powder and mix until thoroughly combined.
Pour 1/4 cupfuls of batter onto hot skillet (I use my cast iron) and bake until browned on the undersides.
Flip, and repeat with remaining batter.
I made these exactly as directed and they came out very bland….=( Also they would not cook all the way through. Do you do anything else for flavor/sweetening beyond syrup?
This was a nice light version of buckwheat pancakes with the sorghum flour and great for someone with an egg allergy. I thought they definitely needed some salt to make them less bland and maybe some vanilla would help. My husband thought they were great and liked them more than our buckwheat only recipe.
I'm sorry you didn't enjoy them, Nicole! My family does not eat very many sweet things, so I suppose things that taste good to them might be bland to others. :p You could definitely sweeten them up by cutting the applesauce down to 1/4 c. and adding in 1/4 c. honey. :) As for the cooking, sometimes things with flax tend to be a little gooy, as if they didn't cook all the way, but it's ok. You can try cooking them a little longer, or use eggs, if you can tolerate them. :) Thanks for stopping by and letting me know.
How many eggs would you use?
Hmm…. probably 2. I’ve never made them with eggs, though. Hope it works for you!
Can we just add water and vinegar to the Sorghum without the Buckwheat?
I don’t see why you couldn’t, Tyson.
I’m curious why you don’t soak with an acidic medium?
Sometimes I do, Amy, I just didn’t for this recipe. You can totally add that in, if you want. ;)
This was a nice light version of buckwheat pancakes with the sorghum flour and great for someone with an egg allergy. I thought they definitely needed some salt to make them less bland and maybe some vanilla would help. My husband thought they were great and liked them more than our buckwheat only recipe.
I’m so glad to hear you both enjoyed the pancakes, Coral! Feel free to add as much salt and/or vanilla as you’d like. ;)