Bacon Cheddar Oatmeal?
The idea of savory oatmeal might sound weird to people used to sweetened packets of oatmeal or simple Old Fashioned oats with brown sugar, etc. If done wrong, savory oatmeal is weird. If you use the right oats and treat them like rice or other grains associated with savory dishes, the result is pretty cool.
This post started when I tested a recipe submitted to the site called Billbo’s Cheddar Oatmeal. It received a handful of positive comments and I wanted to try it for myself.
The ingredients were super simple: Old Fashioned oats, milk, cheese and sugar. It’s a microwave recipe that takes only 2 minutes.
The recipe worked and I understood why some people liked it. Unfortunately, I personally didn’t like it that much. My mental association of Old Fashioned oats with sweet ingredients is very strong and it took a few spoonfuls to accept that I was eating something savory.
As I was trying it, my overriding thought was that it would be better with steel-cut oats. Steel-cut oats have a firmer, rice-like texture. That kind of texture makes more sense in a savoy dish than the mushy texture you get from Old Fashioned or quick cooking oats.
From experience, I know that steel-cut oatmeal always benefits from the savory flavors of butter and salt. It seemed totally feasibly that they would get along with cheese.
I also thought… as I always do… that the dish would be better with bacon… which everything always is.
So I set out to experiment with steel-cut oats, hoping to achieve something that would transcend oatmeal as we commonly know it.
Steel-cut oats require about 30 minutes cooking time. I found that if I let the oats set for an additional 10 minutes, the texture became a bit more creamy and reminiscent of risotto.
I was right. When mixed with cheese and bacon, steel-cut oats are 100 times better than Old Fashioned oats. I used LOTS of cheese and bacon. The oat flavor worked with the savory ingredients, but it worked best when it was overpowered by the cheese and bacon… leaving the oats to act as more of a texture agent than an equal flavor component.
The thing that brought the dish together was a sunny-side-up egg in each serving. Breaking the yolk and allowing that extra bit of richness to permeate the oats was like putting salt on popcorn… It just needed it.
In theory, you could add any cheese, herbs, sautéed vegetables or cooked meat to any prepared oatmeal. But I’d urge you to take the time to use steel-cut oats. After you try it, it opens the door to many more flavor combinations: Tex-Mex Pepper Jack Oatmeal, Gruyère & Sausage Oatmeal, Parmesan Pizza Oatmeal… and on and on.
This post is a companion piece to 2 recipes from MrBreakfast.com:
Bacon Cheddar Steel-Cut Oatmeal
For over 150 other oatmeal breakfast ideas, visit our Oatmeal Recipe Collection.
Recipe Realities:
My experiments with savory oatmeal brought me to an interesting conclusion. It made me realize how much I love grits. You can make oats work in a savory context, but it will always feel like an experiment. The corn porridge cousin of oatmeal is grits. When you pair grits with cheese, butter and bacon, it’s like pairing a bird with the sky. Some things are just naturally meant to be together.
I started this post with the title question, “Bacon Cheddar Oatmeal?” I had hoped that the answer would be a resounding “yes.” As it turns out, the answer is “sure… but if you have grits, make Bacon Cheddar Grits instead.”
Here’s 25 grits recipes you might want to try.
Try it with polenta for an Italian twist. Add proscuitto and some mozzarella and top with your egg.
Mister Breakfast – a little disappointed with you on this recipe. Sacory oatmeal can be done soooo much better. No need to mask the flavor with cheese and such. I have the recipe you *should* have used (
) but didn’t. I’ll try to post – but will email if that doesn’t work.
I hope my other comment posts. Here is my take on that recipe. Please try.
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1 lb bacon (about 12 slices and applewood works well in this recipe).
4 servings rolled or steel cut oats
Low sodium chicken broth to replace water called for in oats cooking instructions
8 to 16 oz mushrooms , sliced thin.
Minced garlic
Salt to taste
Scallions, chopped semi-fine
~3/4 oz finely grated cheddar (helps with melting) per serving oatmeal.
1 egg, over easy (or served with runny yoke) per dish (or how ever many eggs your guests ask for)
Cook bacon on stovetop. IMPORTANT – do not cook in oven or microwave as the fat is needed in the following steps. Anyhow, make sure bacon is crispy.
Remove bacon and let cool.
Leaving bacon fat on the pan, sautée mushrooms in it. Add ~ teaspoon or so garlic while sautéing. Salt to taste (don’t add too much!). Once mushrooms are done, remove from pan, let cool.
Cook oats on stovetop per instructions, using the broth instead of water . The rest of the ingredients here aligns with four servings. Scale up or down as needed.
Once oats are done, add cheese and let melt. Add mushrooms. Add chopped scallions. Stir until incorporated. Take ~8 slices of bacon and crumble in, stir.
Dish out servings. Fry up some eggs, over easy or how your guests prefer. Put on top of oatmeal and serve with a strip of bacon on top.
Notes – this recipe can be healthier by not using bacon fat to sautée mushrooms. Other than bacon can be used – pulled pork, anyone? Last – consider other cheeses. Goat cheese is delicious, but that is my personal preference.