🥣 Porridge

Porridge is a dish of grain or flakes boiled in water, milk or a mix of both. It is made from oats, rice, buckwheat, millet, semolina or maize. According to USDA, 100 g of oat porridge made with milk and no added fat contains 116 kcal, 5.6 g of protein, 3.3 g of fat and 135 mg of calcium.

The dish is very old. In Neolithic pots from Scottish crannogs, dated to about 3600–3300 BC, researchers found traces of cereals together with milk fat. The authors of a 2022 article in Nature Communications believe that cereals were regularly boiled in milk there — as a thin porridge.

Oat porridge has a proven benefit: oat beta-glucan helps maintain normal blood cholesterol levels. In the EU this claim is permitted if a portion provides at least 1 g of beta-glucan and the daily intake is 3 g; in the US a similar claim concerns 3 g of beta-glucan from oats or barley a day. One bowl provides only part of that amount.

Milk porridge is a familiar breakfast in many countries. Milk adds protein and calcium, and butter, honey, berries or fruit go on top of the finished porridge. There is also savoury porridge — with vegetables or cheese.

Porridge or oatmeal? The USDA table lists the same dish as oatmeal made with milk; «porridge» is the wider word for any grain or flakes boiled in water, milk or a mix of both, whether oats, rice, buckwheat, millet, semolina or maize. Water or milk? Milk adds protein and calcium, and butter, honey, berries or fruit go on top of the finished porridge, not into the pot. The dish is very old: Scottish pots from about 3600–3300 BC held traces of cereals with milk fat.

For porridge you buy oats, usually as flakes, and other grains such as rice, buckwheat, millet or semolina. If you must avoid gluten, look for «gluten-free» on the pack: under EU rules that means no more than 20 mg/kg, whereas ordinary oats are often contaminated with wheat, rye or barley. Supermarkets stock them in the cereals aisle, and health-food shops carry certified gluten-free oats.

Why it matters to you. Do not leave leftover porridge on the table: the UK Food Standards Agency advises cooling it and putting it in the fridge within 1–2 hours, and eating it within two days or freezing it. If you have to avoid gluten, choose oats labelled “gluten-free”: most people with gluten intolerance tolerate oats themselves, but they are often contaminated with wheat, rye or barley.