SC - Buckwheat is Old World

[James F. Johnson]

Philip & Susan Troy wrote:
> 
> "James F. Johnson" wrote:
> >
> > Not a solid reference, but Encyclopaedia Britannica states buckwheat is
> > 'believed to have originated in China' in it's Buckwheat entry. (I just
> > tend to doubt EB would be off by a continent or two...). Tends to like
> > cooler climes, too. And in the same family with rhubarb, sea grape, and
> > common sorrel/dock.
> 
> Quite possible. The trouble is that one can't automatically translate
> "kasha" as buckwheat groats, any more than "frumenty" automatically
> means wheat. It is suggested by the translator and editor (well, one of
> them) of the Domestroi that the kasha in the text is probably barley,
> and not cooked with the whole egg-coated pilaffy thing commonly
> associated with buckwheat kasha. Not directly related points, I know,
> but... .

Are we talking about the botanical buckwheat plant (_Fagopyrum
esculentum_), or the gastronomic dish 'kasha'? 

Yes, kasha is not limited to buckwheat groats, at least not mundanely.
The Russians used the same term to describe rice as well, dispite the
fact they have a word for rice. 
The kasha I ate in Zai-Baikal Siberia was simply boiled buckwheat kasha,
cooked with a little salt. The side of kasha served at restaurants was
the same. One village 'cafe' served it topped with a whole fried egg,
but it wasn't cooking into it. Until now, I never heard of the 'whole
egg-coated pilaffy thing' until now. For me, kasha is boiled buckwheat
groats and nothing else.

Seumas