Buckwheat is a good binding agent and when soaked becomes very gelatinous. For those practicing a raw food diet, raw and soaked can be enjoyed in many recipes like granola, cookies, cakes, and crackers.  Overview Despite its name, buckwheat is not closely related to wheat. It is not a cereal, nor is it even a member of the grass family. And it is known as a pseudocereal because its seed's culinary use is the same as cereal, owing to its composition of complex carbohydrates..