Porridge

For other uses, see Porridge (disambiguation).
Porridge

A bowl of Porridge
Alternative names Oatmeal
Serving temperature Hot
Main ingredients grain, water or milk
Cookbook: Porridge  Media: Porridge

Porridge (also spelled porage, porrige, parritch)[1] is a dish made by boiling ground, crushed, or chopped starchy plants - typically grain - in water or milk. It is often cooked or served with flavorings such as sugar, honey, etc. to make a sweet dish, or mixed with spices, vegetables, etc. to make a savoury dish. It is usually served hot in a bowl.

The term is often used specifically for oat porridge (called oatmeal in the U.S. and parts of Canada), which is eaten for breakfast with salt, sugar, milk, cream, or butter, and sometimes other flavorings. Oat porridge is also sold in ready-made or partly-cooked form as an instant breakfast.

Other grains used for porridge include semolina, rice, wheat, barley, corn, and buckwheat. Many types of porridge have their own names, such as polenta, grits, and kasha.

Porridge is a staple food in much of Africa, and historically was so in much of Northern Europe and Russia.

Porridge is easy to digest, so it is used traditionally in many cultures as a food for the sick, and is also often eaten by athletes in training.[2][3][4]

Varieties

Further information: List of porridges
Porridge oats before cooking
Porridge as sold as a convenience product in German supermarkets
Millet porridge

Oat porridge

Types of oats

Porridge by William Hemsley (1893)

Oats for porridge may be whole (groats), cut into two or three pieces (called 'pinhead', 'steel-cut' or 'coarse' oatmeal), ground into medium or fine oatmeal, or steamed and rolled into flakes of varying sizes and thicknesses (called 'rolled oats', the largest size being 'jumbo'). The larger the pieces of oat used, the more textured the resulting porridge. It is said that, because of their size and shape, the body breaks steel-cut oats down more slowly than rolled oats, reducing spikes in blood sugar and keeping you full longer.[12] The US Consumer Reports Web site found that the more cooking required, the stronger the oat flavor and the less mushy the texture.[13]

Oats are a good source of dietary fibre; health benefits are claimed for oat bran in particular, which is part of the grain.

Preparation

The oats are cooked in milk, water or a mixture of the two. Scottish traditionalists allow only oats, water and salt.[14] Traditionally, it is left overnight on a banked-up (barely alight) cooking range or in smouldering fire ashes, possibly due to religious (sabbatarian) restrictions spreading to daily usage. Other religious factors in preparation have included the admonition to stir only clockwise, as "anti-clockwise stirring will encourage the devil into your breakfast". There are techniques suggested by cooks, such as pre-soaking, but a comparative test documented in an article in The Guardian found very little difference in the end result.[14]

Various flavorings can be used, and can vary widely by taste and locality. Demerara sugar, golden syrup, Greek yoghurt and honey, even langoustine tails and scallops have been employed for this purpose. A girdle of very cold milk or single cream is believed to be essential (by some 'experts'), traditionally served in a separate bowl to keep it cold.[14] Glaswegians typically use canned evaporated milk, jam. Use of whisky, rum, or sherry have been reported. Cooking time can be adjusted to preference, but simmering for ten minutes is typical for non-instant oatmeal. Instant oatmeal, including flavored instant oatmeal, is common and can be prepared with the application of hot water.

History

Northern Europe

Historically, porridge was a staple food in much of Northern Europe and Russia. It was often made from barley, though other grains and yellow peas could be used, depending on local conditions. It was primarily a savoury dish, with meats, root crops, vegetables and herbs added for flavor. Porridge could be cooked in a large metal kettle over hot coals or heated in a cheaper earthenware container by adding hot stones until boiling hot. Until leavened bread and baking ovens became commonplace in Europe, porridge was a typical means of preparing cereal crops for the table.

Porridge was also commonly used as prison food for inmates in the British prison system, and so "doing porridge" became a slang term for a sentence in prison.

See also

References

  1. porridge (pronunciation: /ˈpɒrɪdʒ/), Oxford English Dictionary, retrieved 4 April 2013
  2. Fisher, Roxanne. "Eat like an athlete - Beckie Herbert". BBC Good Food. BBC Worldwide. Retrieved 29 April 2014.
  3. Chappell, Bill (25 July 2012). "Athletes And The Foods They Eat: Don't Try This At Home". The Torch. NPR. Retrieved 29 April 2014.
  4. Randall, David (19 February 2012). "Cursed! The astonishing story of porridge's poster boy". The Independent. Retrieved 29 Apr. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  5. Lloyd, J & Mitchinson, J: "The Book of General Ignorance". Faber & Faber, 2006.
  6. "Nutrition diva: Are Steel Cut Oats Healthier?". Nutritiondiva.quickanddirtytips.com. 31 May 2011. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  7. Nasty-Face, Jack (1836). Nautical Economy, or Forecastle Recollections of Events during the last War. London: William Robinson.
  8. "Last male WWI veteran dies". abc.net.au.
  9. "Artes culinarias/Recetas/Gachas manchegas". wikibooks.org.
  10. "Cómo preparar gachas de maíz". wikiHow.
  11. Grant, Mark (1999). Roman Cookery. London: Serif. ISBN 978-1897959602.
  12. "Steel Cut, Rolled, Instant, Scottish? (Marisa's comment, November 10, 2012 at 9:46 am)". Bob's Red Mill. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
  13. "For best oatmeal taste, be patient". Consumer Reports. November 2008. Archived from the original on 10 April 2012. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
  14. 1 2 3 How to cook perfect porridge, Felicity Cloake, The Guardian, 10 November 2011. An article by an expert who has systematically tried many variants to get the best result.

External links

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