How I make my Oatmeal
24 Sep 2024
Over the past few months, I've really come to enjoy oatmeal. I'm from a country where it's not a common food at all and I never knew of it growing up, but now it's become my breakfast of choice most days, and I have experimented with many variations of it which I wanted to share:
Sweet Variations
This is how I like to have oatmeal most of the time, with some sweetener and maybe flavorings and topped with fruit, nuts, and often nut butter. My go-to lately is with vanilla-flavored soy protein powder, a sliced banana, peanut butter, nuts and dark chocolate. I usually add raisins and a sprinkle of cinnamon too.
I cook my oats on the stove-top at a low simmer for 10 to 15 minutes so they soften and absorb a lot of water. As for measurements, I do ½ cup of rolled oats (though lately I've been doing ¼ cup oats + ~10g oat bran) and ½ tsp chia seeds, cooked in initially ~1 cup of liquid (water, plant milk, or a combination) with a pinch of salt. I add more plant milk or yogurt as it thickens because I like it on the looser end. I mix in the protein powder at the end of cooking if I'm adding it, or I'll add some sweetener to taste (maple syrup/honey/stevia/a combination).
I prefer old fashioned rolled oats for texture, as opposed to the quick cooking kind.
Savory Variations
Some days I crave something savory in the morning instead, but it's also a quick & comforting option for dinner. Apparently people in the English-speaking internet find savory oats weird, but I didn't grow up eating oatmeal of any sort, so I don't have that specific association with sweet oats that seems common. To me it's just another cereal grain like rice, so it makes sense for savory dishes too.
Anyway, for savory variations I like creamy and soft oats, similar to congee/rice porridge. Seasoned with salt and some combination of boullion powder, oyster sauce, soy sauce, miso paste... Simple spices like black pepper, maybe turmeric, cumin, smoked paprika.. I love adding spinach and mushrooms, and I often start by sautéeing onions and/or garlic for an aromatic base before adding the rest of the ingredients. Using unsweetened plant milk in addition to water is nice too. Sesame seeds, runny egg, sriracha, nattō, are some great toppings in my rotation.
Other interesting variations I've tried:
- risotto-style with butter, red wine, mushrooms and parmesan
- tomatoey oats (cooked with tomato puree or tomato sauce), which pair especially well with egg.
Unlike sweet oatmeal, my preference with savory oats is to use the quick cooking kind for the softer consistency.
