Savory Oatmeal
This recipe came from a request by a fellow nomad. It has been incredible to get to know more and more of the nomad community over the past few years, and it makes me so happy to get requests for recipes from other folks on the road. Typically I make dishes that I really want to eat, and while I think that those generally appeal to everyone (the feedback has always been good), it is nice to be able to provide a recipe that I know the community is hungry for.
Oatmeal has historically not been my favorite food. In my experience it is often either a bland mush or overly sweet, leading to a sugar crash and a second meal only an hour or two later. To be fair, I mostly ate it straight from one of those brown paper packets, mostly when camping/hiking, so the 160 calories or so per serving were simply not up to the task of providing a filling breakfast. Being asked to make this recipe got me eating oatmeal again and learning to tailor it to my breakfast desires, and these days we always have some oats in the pantry.
For savory oatmeal, I think the best thing to do is treat it like risotto. Oatmeal is very starchy, creating a thick porridge, so it’s a bit like having a delicious risotto for breakfast, except that it only takes a few minutes to whip up. This creamy, savory porridge is wonderful by itself, but best enjoyed with a couple eggs on top. That is a quick breakfast that won’t leave you starving two miles into a hike.
Savory Oatmeal
Ingredients:
1 cup old fashioned oats
2 cups light broth (chicken, vegetable, etc.)
½ tsp black pepper
½ tsp dried Italian herb mix
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
4 eggs, poached or fried
Chopped parsley, to garnish (optional)
Additional grated Parmesan cheese, to garnish (optional)
Drizzle of olive oil, to garnish (optional)
Crushed red pepper, to garnish (optional)
Directions:
Add the oats, broth, pepper, and herbs to a skillet over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring regularly, until the oats are soft, and the mixture is thick and starchy.
Add the grated parmesan and stir until fully melted. Remove from heat.
Divide the oats between two plates and top with fried or poached eggs and garnish with chopped parsley, crushed red pepper, additional grated parmesan cheese, and a drizzle of olive oil, if desired.