Buckwheat is what??

No doubt some of our visitors have more than a few questions about these pillows.  But YOU know all about buckwheat pillows, right?  Good.  Let's see how you do on this little quiz:

1. Is buckwheat really part of the wheat family?
2. Does buckwheat contain gluten?
3. Why do people use buckwheat pillows?
4. Are buckwheat pillows hypoallergenic?
5. Where did the name buckwheat come from?
6. What is another common name for buckwheat?
7. Which country used to produce the most buckwheat?
8. Which country now produces the most buckwheat?
9. What are other uses for buckwheat?

OK.  That wasn't too difficult, was it?  Let's see how you did.

Answers With A Little Explanation: 

1)  First of all, the buckwheats (yes, there is more than one variety) are NOT part of the wheat family.  Buckwheat is classified as part of the dicot family. Wheat on the other hand, is part of the monocot family.  The monocots are considered grasses. So even though there is some similarity in name and use, these two "wild things" are not related.

2)  No, buckwheat does not contain gluten - as we might have expected from the answer above.  So, for those of us who have some level of gluten intolerance - which by the way, is most of us - this is something to keep in mind.  Read on to learn other ways in which buckwheat can be used.

3)  Now as to why people still use buckwheat pillows:  It is because .. drum roll here, please .. they are cooler!  Yes, that's the biggest reason in modern times. These pillows do not have the same tendency to reflect body heat the way synthetic fillers do.  Also, they are extremely durable.

In earlier times, when buckwheat was a common crop, it made sense to make use of a readily available material.  Today, it is considered more of a specialty item. We stock a couple varieties - just for you hardy and frugal types.

4)  The answer to the hypoallergenic question is .. "Sort of".  What we mean is that buckwheat pillows are much less likely to cause reactions in people who are sensitive to feather pillows.  However, tests indicate that there are some people who may still have an asthma reaction to buckwheat.  Fortunately, the number is small.

Moving Beyond Pillows:

5 & 6)  OK, so where did the English name "buckwheat" come from anyway?  Apparently, the name is derived from the Dutch name "boecweite".  The word "boec" means beech and the word "weite" means wheat.  Put together it says "beech wheat" and apparently was so named because the triangular seeds are not unlike the shape of nuts from the beech tree. Now you know the answer to the next question as well, for buckwheat is often referred to as beech wheat.

7 & 8)  In the early 1900's, Russia was the biggest buckwheat producer. China is now the leader in gross buckwheat production.  But do you know which countries use buckwheat the most in their cuisine?  (If you guessed Japan and northern Italy, you are correct.)

9)  It turns out that buckwheat is quite a versatile crop.  Not only are the husks used to fill pillows and cushions, but the groats and flour from the seeds are commonly used to make pancakes, porridge, farina and other food staples like noodles.  Because buckwheat does not contain gluten, buckwheat flours do not hold together as readily as wheat flour. 

However, enterprising country folk in Italy and Japan have found ingenious ways to get around this problem, making buckwheat noodles or pasta a nutritious food choice for all of us. We have heard - though we haven't yet tried them ourselves - that buckwheat seeds also makes excellent sprouts.

Bottom line:   Why not consider a buckwheat pillow?  Look at it this way:  When the next famine comes along, you can "dig into" your buckwheat pillows!  Be honest, would you really eat your feather pillows?