Steel cut oats: miracle drug?
Top: "bran" & "Steel cut"
Bottom: "Quick" & "Old fashioned"
Last year Gwynie was advised to bring down her blood pressure- no salt, no caffeine, no wine. By adding oats as a breakfast option, she finds she doesn't need to be as stringent with denial. I'm not sure why oats are such a miracle drug, but they sure do taste good! In the interest of warm breakfasts that meet the hi fiber (5-9 fruits/veg) requirement, I'm cooking up a pot of steel cut oats for the week. Easiest breakfast ever! After spending my early childhood in Scotland, and the last year experimenting with different ways of cooking oats/grains, I feel like a connoisseur of oats. We always called it "porridge" in Scotland, which reinforces the feeling that I'm visiting the Three Bears.
After standing in the supermarket aisle last nite discussing the merits of various types, I realized that even Gwynie and I need to define the oats we like and when we use them. Almost everything you ever wanted to know about oats can be found on the web. Any inaccuracies can be attributed to my vague interpretation of those sources. Typically we have 3-4 kinds of oats on hand
Oat bran is the separated outer hull from the inner oat groat, and as you can see cut into a fine (insoluble fiber) powder. I use this in my smoothies and granola. Generally pretty easy to find in the cereal section. The whole oat berries (aka groats) must be stabilized by steam. During this process the groat can be cut into smaller chunks aka "steel cut" and/or rolled flat. As you can see there are significant physical differences between the various types. Here Steel cut has smallish but 3 dimensional pieces where as the rolled oats are uniformly thin. Quick & Old fashioned refers to the flake size of the rolled oats- "Old fashioned" are larger in diameter (and chewier when cooked) than the "minute" oats but still flat. We normally use steel cut oats in our porridge. I like the 3D mouth feel, sort of like a natural "bobba" (tapioca pearl). I use "Quick" oats when baking (for the nutty flavor & crisp snap) and "Old fashioned" when making granola (they are not really interchangeable)
You can find "steel cut oats" at Trader Joe's and other supermarkets. Cook in water (Oats:Water ratio is 1:4) at a rolling boil for 30-45 minutes depending on mouth feel. Optional salt can be added but we omit this. After initial prep time, made up in advance and stored in fridge- you can reconstitute with 1/3 Cup boiling water or heat in the microwave. It's delicious sweet or savory.
Gwynie always wants a recipe, and maybe you do too.
This makes enough for a week (6 servings)
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups steel-cut oats
6 cups water
Directions
1. In a heavy saucepan, heat water to a roiling boil, add oats and stir.
2. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the oatmeal is cooked but still a little bit chewy, about 30 minutes. Texture is creamy from the soluble starch released during cooking (like risotto). Spoon the oatmeal into bowls.
Sweet
Serve with milk or yogurt.
Top with nuts/dried fruit and brown sugar to taste.
Savory
Add 1/2 cup of soy milk or stock, and tofu. Flavor with 1/4 tsp dashi or furikake or green onion. If you're feeling decadent, you can add a poached egg.