Frischkornbrei, German Fresh-Grain Porridge
Frischkornbrei belongs to the German whole-food tradition of Vollwertkost, where the point is to eat the grain as close to whole and as freshly opened as possible. There is no stove involved: coarsely cracked raw grain soaks overnight in plain water until it softens into a cold, chewy porridge, and the morning work is only stirring in fruit and nuts. Buckwheat is a good choice because it swells tender without cooking, though the method works with any cracked whole grain. All of the sweetness comes from a whole grated apple and a handful of raisins, the fat and staying power from walnuts and ground flax, and a little lemon keeps it bright. It is close kin to Bircher muesli but coarser and grainier, built on cracked kernels rather than rolled oats.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup Buckwheat groats, raw
- 3 tbsp Raisins
- 1 whole Apples, coarsely grated, skin on
- 2 tsp Lemon juice
- 2 tbsp Ground flaxseed
- 3 tbsp Walnuts, chopped
- 1/2 tsp cassia cinnamon, ground
- 1/2 cup Unsweetened almond milk
Method
- The night before, pulse the buckwheat groats in a blender or grinder just a few times, until they are cracked into coarse pieces rather than powder. Cracking the grain opens it so it drinks water and softens cold; whole groats stay hard, and fully ground meal turns to paste.
- Cover the cracked grain and the raisins with 1 cup (240 ml) cold water in a bowl, stir once, and leave on the counter overnight, at least 8 hours. The long cold soak swells the buckwheat to a tender, chewable porridge with no heat, which is the whole idea of a fresh-grain breakfast, and it plumps the raisins into pockets of sweetness.
- In the morning the grain will have drunk most of the water. Stir in the grated apple and lemon juice right away. Grating the apple straight into the bowl adds sweetness and moisture, and the lemon keeps it from browning while sharpening the whole thing.
- Fold in the ground flaxseed, then loosen to the thickness you like with the almond milk. Flax must be ground to count, since whole seeds pass through you unopened, and here it also thickens the porridge and binds it.
- Top with the walnuts and cinnamon. The nuts are the fat that makes a bowl of soaked grain satisfying rather than austere, so toast them dry first if you have a minute. Eat cold; it keeps two days covered in the fridge.
Nutrition
Estimated per serving: 340 calories, 10 g protein, 9 g fiber, 15 mg sodium. Computed from USDA FoodData Central reference values for the main ingredients. This is an approximation, not a laboratory measurement. How these are computed.
Cost per serving is estimated from US national-average retail prices for cheap staple forms, using BLS dried-bean prices and USDA produce prices. Prices vary by store and season, so treat it as a guide, not a receipt. How this is computed.
