Oats

[Blondie]

Since I moved back from Ireland I had been searching for Macroom Stone-ground oats from West Cork – by far the best I’ve ever had. I finally found them at Zingerman’s. Likely not worth the price for anyone but me and my sentimental attachment , but it is a wonderful product.

[Jensen]

Behold the birth of avenotto...

For a single serving:

1/4 cup steel cut oats cooked in 1 cup of chicken broth. Finished with a couple of tablespoons of Parmesan cheese and seasoned only with cracked pepper.

I'd make it again...

[cakewalk]

Jensen, that is an absolutely stunning PLATE!

I'm sure the avenotto was delicious. It looks delicious. (But it reminds me of ... oatmeal!)

Still, a really nice plate.

[nr706]

Jensen, you're an inspiration - I may try the same for Easter dinner. My only thought is a little sprinkling of chives or parsley for color ...

[slkinsey]

Behold the birth of avenotto...

Did you hold it up in the air and shout: "avenoooooooooooooooooottooooooooooooo!" (For the perplexed: see Roots.)

It might be interesting to cook the oats risotto style, by adding simmering stock bit by bit and stirring. I'd think you would want the oats a bit more toothy for avenotto than you would for porridge.

[Jensen]

Behold the birth of avenotto...

Did you hold it up in the air and shout: "avenoooooooooooooooooottooooooooooooo!" (For the perplexed: see Roots.)

Why, yes, I did! How did you know?

It might be interesting to cook the oats risotto style, by adding simmering stock bit by bit and stirring.  I'd think you would want the oats a bit more toothy for avenotto than you would for porridge.

I think toasting the oats might be a good thing for this dish too.

What exactly does "toothy" texture mean? I tend to cook my porridge so that it's firm and chewy, not mushy. That's how I prepared this.

[slkinsey]

I'd think you would want the oats a bit more toothy for avenotto than you would for porridge.

What exactly does "toothy" texture mean? I tend to cook my porridge so that it's firm and chewy, not mushy. That's how I prepared this.

Exactly. When I think "porridge" I tend to think of grains that have been cooked to the point of a (hopefully) pleasant mushiness. For example, rice in a well cooked ricotto still has a bit of an "al dente" quality to it, whereas the rice in congee has been cooked far beyond that stage. I also tend to think of things in the porridge/gruel family as having a fairly soupy texture. One thing with oats is that they relase a lot of thickeners into the cooking water. So, if you use a lot of water, you end up with something that is more or less little bits of cooked oats suspended in an equal amount of thickened liquid. That's what your picture looks like to me, although of course that may not be what it really turned out to me. My thought in using a risotto-like technique is that it might create an appropriately creamy texture, but that using smaller amounts of liquid might limit the "pudding like" quality that oatmeal can have.

[foodie52]

The last time we were in Scotland we stayed at a B&B in Inverness. On the first morning, the proprietess said, "You've GOT to try my oatmeal brooly: I won first prize for it in a contest."

Mystified, we agreed . Out came a bowl of oatmeal with a sugar crust on top.

It was her famous Oatmeal Brulee!

[helenjp]

I was just thinking...the oats could be nice with yogurt and savory spices/chilis as in this thread...

Curd Rice thread

Talking of fusion...some grains that I can get in Japan make interesting substitutes for the "real" thing...Barnyard Grass Halva, anybody? Actually steelcut oats halva is starting to sound good, if overindulgent!

I have put oats into minestrone type soups and even enjoyed eating them!

How about steelcut oats avgolemno, inspired by Jensen's "avenotto"?

Blondie, I'm sure climate has a lot to do with good oats, glad you've found your favorite!

[helenjp]

Oh, *now* he tells me.

Son1, admittedly feeling grumpy with hayfever plus a slight cold, tells me that he *hates* the coarser steel-cut oats I bought, and can we please get back to the finer pinhead-style pronto. (Some companies call this Irish Oatmeal, some call it Scottish oatmeal...).

Anybody else fond of smooth oatmeal? Fave products? Methods?

[misstenacity]

The wierd thing is that one time, when I took a shower during the simmer stage because I was running late and didn't stir at all, the texture of the oatmeal was just fine when I came back, but there was a greenish residue on the top.  Has anyone else seen this?  It seemed to be one of those natural reactions, like how garlic can change to green or blue in acid.  I haven't found any evidence that oats contain anthocyanins or sulfur compounds that can turn green, but I haven't looked that hard.  Anyway, I just stirred it a couple times and the green was no longer perceptible.  Mmm, green oats.

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I just had the same thing happen to me today, and came to eGullet to search for the "answer", finding your post instead.

I guess it must be something on the grain - I was using whole oat groats from the bin at Wild Oats. Perhaps if I had rinsed/washed the grains before cooking that wouldn't have happened, but who knows....

I'll take it that there was no subsequent food poisoning and/or unpleasantness, and I'll have my oats for breakfast here shortly. :-)

Andrea

http://tenacity.net

[...tm...]

I'll take it that there was no subsequent food poisoning and/or unpleasantness, and I'll have my oats for breakfast here shortly. :-)

Yes. The incindent remains a mystery but I remain very much alive and well.

[Peachpie9]

We had a lot of oatmeal growing up, but it was the domestic rolled oats variety. I read about the pinhead/steel cut varieties some time ago, then was shopping in the World Market and saw them. I bought them, and they have been taking up space in the pantry ever since.

This morning, I roasted some of the steel cut oats and then simmered them in water, nothing else, for 30 minutes. Threw in a handful of IQF raspberries and a spoonful of plain yogurt. Delicious!

I am required to take a certain med first thing each morning, and cannot eat for at least an hour after I do. So there's a perfect window to make the steel cut oats every morning, which I plan to do for the forseeable future.

Thank you for the information.

Catherine