Hey, all! Today I'd like to examine the frugal breakfast enjoyed (tolerated?) by millions of Americans every day: oatmeal. It's packed with vitamins and minerals, loaded with fiber, and relatively easy to prepare; it's filling and warming; and it's easy to amend with such pleasant additions as walnuts, shredded coconut, or even (my guilty pleasure) chocolate chips, to help keep the boredom at bay. There are dozens of "recipes" online now for overnight oatmeal that you don't have to cook, mix-ins to make your oatmeal resemble your favorite dessert (oatmeal brulee is a thing, y'all, I wish I was kidding), and oatmeal baked in a muffin tin.
So with all these recipes to make the morning gruel more interesting, what could possibly possess me to think yet another oatmeal recipe is necessary? The answer lies where, you will find, it usually does: there's a less wasteful way. More specifically, there are three main ways in which oats could be used with more frugality than simply "boil Quaker oats for 10 minutes in the morning," and I would like to share them.
This idea is hardly unheard of, and is the basis of all those overnight no-cook oatmeal recipes. Soaking your oats overnight (especially if you add a bit of yogurt to help them ferment just a little) increases their bulk, allowing you to eat a smaller volume and still feel full; mitigates the phytic acid content of the oatmeal, allowing your body to absorb more of those much-touted minerals; and, when you do choose to cook the oats afterward, it permits a much shorter boil, meaning both a quicker morning routine and less BTU expenditure.
A quick caveat: I do believe in boiling after soaking. Lectins, inflammatory and potentially disease causing proteins found in many grains, are destroyed by even a brief boil, leading me to believe that it's still a good idea to cook those oats even if they're nice and soft after a night of soaking. in addition, the oats will gain volume as they boil, meaning once more a larger bulk and a fuller belly. For me, two cups of oats, soaked, plus maybe a handful of dry thrown in for texture, feeds all five of the solid food eaters in my home. It would take closer to four cups to feed all of them if I started from dry.
Quaker oats are pricey, folks. At well over $2/lb in most stores, it's very possible to do much better pricewise. The best I've found so far is IFS Bulk, with a 12 lb bag for only $6.30. The shipping to my location is $8.86, which raises the total price per pound to $1.26--still better than in store, but wait! There's more! Buy two bags and the shipping stays the same--twenty four pounds of oats are yours for the low, low price of $0.89 per pound. Buy more bags for even more savings.
So with all these recipes to make the morning gruel more interesting, what could possibly possess me to think yet another oatmeal recipe is necessary? The answer lies where, you will find, it usually does: there's a less wasteful way. More specifically, there are three main ways in which oats could be used with more frugality than simply "boil Quaker oats for 10 minutes in the morning," and I would like to share them.
Soak Them
This idea is hardly unheard of, and is the basis of all those overnight no-cook oatmeal recipes. Soaking your oats overnight (especially if you add a bit of yogurt to help them ferment just a little) increases their bulk, allowing you to eat a smaller volume and still feel full; mitigates the phytic acid content of the oatmeal, allowing your body to absorb more of those much-touted minerals; and, when you do choose to cook the oats afterward, it permits a much shorter boil, meaning both a quicker morning routine and less BTU expenditure.
A quick caveat: I do believe in boiling after soaking. Lectins, inflammatory and potentially disease causing proteins found in many grains, are destroyed by even a brief boil, leading me to believe that it's still a good idea to cook those oats even if they're nice and soft after a night of soaking. in addition, the oats will gain volume as they boil, meaning once more a larger bulk and a fuller belly. For me, two cups of oats, soaked, plus maybe a handful of dry thrown in for texture, feeds all five of the solid food eaters in my home. It would take closer to four cups to feed all of them if I started from dry.
Buy Them Cheaper
Quaker oats are pricey, folks. At well over $2/lb in most stores, it's very possible to do much better pricewise. The best I've found so far is IFS Bulk, with a 12 lb bag for only $6.30. The shipping to my location is $8.86, which raises the total price per pound to $1.26--still better than in store, but wait! There's more! Buy two bags and the shipping stays the same--twenty four pounds of oats are yours for the low, low price of $0.89 per pound. Buy more bags for even more savings.Cook Extra
My kids love oatmeal, so it's rare for me to have leftovers. It's a shame, because leftover oatmeal is great. I like to mix it into yeast and quick breads for added bulk, increased fiber, and texture. It combines easily into the wet ingredients of banana bread, especially, and since it was already pre-soaked it's an easy way to add whole grains when I didn't think ahead enough to soak wheat flour or corn meal. On a related note, I'll also stir them into the wet ingredients for pancakes the next morning, and you can even find oatmeal cookie recipes that call for cooked oatmeal. They even whirl into a filling, nourishing smoothie if that's your jam and/or you can't chew your food.
Recipe: Soaked Oatmeal
Serves 2 (or one with leftovers)
1 cup rolled oats
desired nuts and/or grains, optional
1 tsp plain yogurt
enough water to moisten
2 cups boiling water
dry oats as necessary
butter, brown sugar, desired fruits, milk (optional)
In the evening: put oats in a bowl. Now's the best time to add walnuts, chia or flax seeds, sliced almonds, or whatever phytic acid rich mix-ins you crave, as the same fermentation that mitigates the phytates in your oats will also influence on the other seeds, meaning your body will absorb more of the nutrition. Put in the yogurt, add some water, and stir until all the oats are damp.
In the morning: bring the 2 cups of water to a boil. Add soaked oat mixture. If it looks like the final product is going to be too thin, drop in some dry oats, a scant handful at a time. The oatmeal will thicken more even after the heat is turned off, so be cautious--you may not need as much as you think!
If you believe in bone broth and you're a sneak, oatmeal is a good place to slip some unseasoned broth into your unsuspecting family. just replace half or all the boiling water with boiling broth; with a little brown sugar and cinnamon they'll never notice, and it could just be the difference between an awful cold and perfect health.
I like to add some butter and brown sugar to the everyday oatmeal. I have a strong preference against boiled raisins so if I'm adding them I do it after the cooking is complete. A splash of milk is plenty for me; my husband likes to make it swim. At this point any add-ins are a matter of personal preference (and, of course, budget) so I'll let you take it from here...
1 cup rolled oats
desired nuts and/or grains, optional
1 tsp plain yogurt
enough water to moisten
2 cups boiling water
dry oats as necessary
butter, brown sugar, desired fruits, milk (optional)
In the evening: put oats in a bowl. Now's the best time to add walnuts, chia or flax seeds, sliced almonds, or whatever phytic acid rich mix-ins you crave, as the same fermentation that mitigates the phytates in your oats will also influence on the other seeds, meaning your body will absorb more of the nutrition. Put in the yogurt, add some water, and stir until all the oats are damp.
In the morning: bring the 2 cups of water to a boil. Add soaked oat mixture. If it looks like the final product is going to be too thin, drop in some dry oats, a scant handful at a time. The oatmeal will thicken more even after the heat is turned off, so be cautious--you may not need as much as you think!
If you believe in bone broth and you're a sneak, oatmeal is a good place to slip some unseasoned broth into your unsuspecting family. just replace half or all the boiling water with boiling broth; with a little brown sugar and cinnamon they'll never notice, and it could just be the difference between an awful cold and perfect health.
I like to add some butter and brown sugar to the everyday oatmeal. I have a strong preference against boiled raisins so if I'm adding them I do it after the cooking is complete. A splash of milk is plenty for me; my husband likes to make it swim. At this point any add-ins are a matter of personal preference (and, of course, budget) so I'll let you take it from here...
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