I’ve been playing with making savoury oats recently.
I’ve never really been a big fan of oats/porridge - but I’m currently studying anti-ageing beauty nutrition and have learned what a real superfood oats are for beautiful skin.
When I learned how incredibly good they are, well, that was it, I had to see what I could experiment with and what I could do with them.
And so far, I’ve come up with two dishes that I think are delicious - a kind of Thai congee and this South Indian-inspired savoury breakfast. These are both really satisfying and filling as well as being so good for us.
What you’ll need to make enough for one person:
1 teaspoon coconut or olive oil
1/2 teaspoon black mustard seeds
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 small piece of ginger, peeled and grated - perhaps a teaspoon
1 garlic clove, peeled and minced
1/2-1 green chilli, chopped very finely (use enough for your own taste)
250 ml stock (boiling water and a small piece, perhaps 1/3, of a Knorr vegetable or chicken stock cube)
a mixture of vegetables, sliced or chopped into small pieces - carrot, peppers, mushroom, broccoli florets, spring onions … whatever you have and like
a tablespoon or two of cooked green lentils - entirely optional but I had some one day so decided to include them
oats (I use two scoops of this coffee scoop which says 7g on it) plus 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
chopped fresh coriander leaves to serve, if liked
Prepare everything so it’s ready to go as this cooks beautifully fast.
Add the oil to a saucepan and when it’s warmed add the mustard and cumin seeds and stir, cooking for maybe 20-30 seconds until it all starts to sizzle. Then add the ginger, garlic and chilli, stir and add a splash of the stock to keep it all moving and make sure it doesn’t stick.
After another 30 seconds tip in the rest of the stock, the vegetables and the lentils if using and bring to the boil.
Simmer with a lid on - or mostly on - to retain the water and steam - for three-four minutes (I did four minutes because I had broccoli which takes longer to cook, but without broccoli I’d have given it three minutes).
Add the oats and turmeric and simmer on a low heat for four minutes, stirring regularly - and of course add another splash of water if it needs it.
And that’s it!
Top with some chopped fresh coriander if liked.
I found this such a gentle yet satisfying dish, I really hope you like it too.
A spoonful of mango chutney on top would have been delicious - but I devoured it before I thought of it!
Next time …
