What's your favourite porridge?

[Alan Eardley]

I regard myself as a connoisseur of the noble porridge, and I'm sure there must be others in the Lounge. Usually regarded as a Scottish delicacy, there are equivalent oaten gruels from various parts of the world and numerous ways of making it.

My preference is this recipe:
Ingredients (sufficient for two people):
One pint (half litre) water; some people use half water and half milk
3 ounces (3 rounded tablespoons) of ground oats, soaked in advance
A pinch of salt (optional)

Method:
Bring the water (or water and milk) to a good rolling boil. Slowly pour the oatmeal into the boiling liquid, stirring vigorously with a wooden spoon all the time. Keep stirring until it has returned to the boil again, reduce the heat, cover the pan and simmer very gently for 30 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the salt at this point and simmer and stir for a further 5/10 minutes (time depends on the quality of the oats). It should be a thick but pourable consistency. Serve hot in wooden bowls if you have them.

You can pour good porridge onto a plate, let it cool and then slice it like bread. It should never, ever have sugar or any other sweetener put on it. Also, never use rolled outs. The rougher the oats, the better the porridge.

It is traditionally eaten standing up for breakfast and taken into the hills when cold (it can be wrapped up in a cloth). Just the thing for a day in the Trossachs!

So, what's your favourite porridge? Let's have your recipes.

Alan

 

[scotrace]

Thus secured against surprise, he took off his cravat; put on his dressing-gown and slippers, and his nightcap; and sat down before the fire to take his gruel.

As one of the few grain items permitted me, oatmeal is a Saturday morning ritual. Always McCann's steel cut oats. 1C water to 1/3C oats, pinch of salt. We differ on the sweet/savory: Mine gets a good swig of cream and a tablespoon of real maple syrup, or perhaps apple butter.

 

[Alan Eardley]

Good man! Sound ingredients. I'll forgive you the sweetener...

Alan

Thus secured against surprise, he took off his cravat; put on his dressing-gown and slippers, and his nightcap; and sat down before the fire to take his gruel.

As one of the few grain items permitted me, oatmeal is a Saturday morning ritual. Always McCann's steel cut oats. 1C water to 1/3C oats, pinch of salt. We differ on the sweet/savory: Mine gets a good swig of cream and a tablespoon of real maple syrup, or perhaps apple butter.

 

[Smithy]

Eat it all the time in winter with brown sugar and full cream milk.

It's good with Manuka honey instead of the sugar but you can't buy the stuff here.

Oh and I cheat and use the microwave.

 

[Brad Bowers]

From about November through April, I eat a bowl of Hodgson Mill Oat Bran every morning. I add some brown sugar for sweetening, but that's all. Just finished my bowl while reading this!

Brad

 

[Alan Eardley]

Excellent! This already exceeds my expectations in starting the thread.

A fine bunch of porridge-ophiles.

Alan

 

[dhermann1]

I haven't had this in years, but I used to have it all the time: equal portions of Wheatena, Creme of Wheat and Mother's Oats (Mother's Oats merged with Quaker Otas years ago). Put a little butter and milk and brown sugar, or even better, maple syrup. Yum! A great start on a cold morning. Oh, yes. Put in some raisins, put them in at the beginning instead of at the end, so they get good and boiled up. And cinnamon is also a nice touch.
When I have oatmeal I always have the cooked kind, rather than the quick or instant. The coarser the better, for flavor, tho also, the coarser the more cooking time it requires. It's always worthwhile to have cooked oatmeal tho. I always drenched my hot cereals with sweeteners of various sorts, but I know that the true Son of the South eats his grits with salt and pepper and hot sauce. My brother always used to make corn meal mush, put it in a loaf dish, and fry up a couple of slices for breakfast. That'll stick to your ribs, too.

 

[surely]

yum yum yum

The basic ingredientes and method are the same but I add raisins, protein powder and soy milk (today it was choc. flavored!).

 

[Alan Eardley]

That sounds good. Porridge is a good basic outdoor survival food (possibly the original dehydrated ration) but, while it is high on carbohydrates, it is low on proteins and other nutrients -you can't live on it alone for long. You could carry your recipe as a powder and hydrate it as available.

Alan

The basic ingredientes and method are the same but I add raisins, protein powder and soy milk (today it was choc. flavored!).

 

[dnjan]

help jog my memory ...

Used to eat "hot cereal" as a kid all the time. Alternated between oatmeal, cream-of-wheat and ???

It was a bit darker and coarser than cream of wheat, but not as coarse as oatmeal. For some reason the word Ralston comes to mind, but that may have been the company.

Now it is only (rarely) oatmeal. But always with raisins.

 

[dhermann1]

Wheatena?

 

[dhermann1]

Name change

Now here's a definite example of the impact of a name change. Nobody ever would have started a discussion of favorite porridge in a forum entitled "Vices".

 

[Smithy]

Actually forgot to mention porridge is good if you throw a handful of blueberries in after it has come out of the microwave or the saucepan. Frozen are fine as the heat of the porridge defrosts them. Turns the porridge and milk an interesting purple shade though.

 

[dnjan]

Wheatena?

That name doesn't sound familiar enough, unless (of course) it was made by ralston, and my mother just used the wrong word.

 

[Brad Bowers]

Is this it?

http://www.hotralston.com/

Brad

 

[dnjan]

Yes, I guess that is it. Of course I was eating this in the pre-microwave days, but the company name must have been the biggest printing on the box even back then.

 

[dhermann1]

Ah, yes, Ralston

I seem to recall a commercial for that product where one character is suggesting as a jingle "Instant Ralston on the Rillerah". It was a lot like Wheatena, maybe slightly creamier.

 

[sweetfrancaise]

I love oatmeal (I only eat McCann's too, scotrace!) with all kinds of goodies, usually with dried cranberries and cut up apple, and a bit of brown sugar. And I boil the oatmeal in half milk, half water. Mmm...must go make some now...

 

[Lady Day]

Oatmeal is one of my favorite foods. I eat it all the time. Its more the ritual for me. Water, some salt and Bob's Red Mill Extra Thick Rolled Oats. I cook it till super thick, let it stand for a few min, add some soy milk and some sugar, let it stand, sprinkle a little sugar to caramelize on top, stand, then enjoy.





LD

 

[cooncatbob]

Malt O Meal with brown sugar.I remember when it first came out in the early 60s we got a free sample on our door.
Bob.