Did anyone else forget how to keep a calendar during the pandemic? Because I wasn’t scheduling things for over a year, I sort of forgot how to keep my calendar organized. My summer has quickly filled up with so many travel plans, and between all that excitement, I’ve definitely forgotten about a few things I’ve needed to do. Like, you know, post on my blog? I think this is the first time I went over a week and completely forgot about it. Anyways, here I am today, back in action, to tell you all about savory oatmeal. So let’s get into it, shall we?
Don’t be alarmed by the phrase “savory oatmeal.” At first, I was put off by the idea of it…until I tried it. Typically when one makes a bowl of oatmeal it’s full of all sorts of delicious sweet things—fruit, peanut butter, maple syrup, and more. But the idea of savory oatmeal is to top the bowl of oats with all kinds of savory toppings—like eggs, vegetables, and breakfast meats.
I usually gravitate towards eating a bowl of sweet oatmeal (particularly a bowl of my favorite overnight oats, or pumpkin oatmeal). But given that I didn’t have any fruit in the fridge the other day and I was craving a bowl of oatmeal after a hard workout, I decided to give savory oatmeal a try. And I was not disappointed.
So cooking a bowl of savory oats is similar to cooking a bowl of sweet oats at first. You cook 1/2 cup of rolled cut oats with 1 cup of water or milk over a stovetop. You could also use unsweetened almond milk, which is typically what I gravitate towards when making a bowl of oatmeal.
Once the oatmeal is cooked, you throw it in a bowl and top it with your savory toppings. The savory toppings will likely need to be cooked in a separate pan while cooking up the oats in a pot. Oats take about 3 to 5 minutes to cook over the stove, so be sure to time accordingly based on the toppings you would like to make.
Some ideas for savory oatmeal toppings include:
- Eggs
- Bacon
- Breakfast sausage (pork, turkey, or chicken)
- Pork roll
- Garlic
- Spinach
- Bell peppers
- Onions
- Tomatoes
- Cheese
- Hot sauce
Honestly, toppings for savory oatmeal can work similarly to fill-ins for an omelet. Think of your favorite omelet you love to make, and throw those types of fillings on top of your bowl of oats.
You can also throw some fresh vegetables on top that aren’t cooked, like a handful of arugula, pico de gallo, or sliced avocado.
Here’s a combination I recently made that I really enjoyed recently. But again, you can make your savory oatmeal however you want! This is just me writing a blog post to inspire you to try a bowl of savory oatmeal this week. Because some mornings you wake up and you realize you’re out of fresh fruit and you just have to improvise, ya know?
Savory Oatmeal
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup rolled cut oats
- 1 cup milk or water plant-based milk also works
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup bell peppers diced small
- 2 tbsp yellow onion diced small
- Herbs, salt, pepper, hot sauce optional
- Butter for cooking
Instructions
- Add the rolled-cut oats and milk (or water) to a small saucepan. Cook over medium-low, stirring occasionally, until the oats are cooked through and soaked up a majority of the liquid—about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Heat up a teaspoon of butter in a small skillet. Add the bell peppers and onion and cook until the veggies are softer and slightly transluscent, about 3 minutes. Set aside.
- In that same skillet, heat up another teaspoon of butter. Crack open the egg and cook how you desire—scrambled, over-easy, or sunny-side up.
- Scoop the oatmeal into a bowl, top with veggies and the egg, and add any other desired topping—fresh herbs, hot sauce, etc.
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