the quest for the perfect easy bowl of oatmeal

[michelem]

Has anybody tried the fuzzy logic rice cooker? I've heard it works well, but haven't seen the specifics...

CA

I don't know about the "fuzzy logic rice cooker," but I do make steel cut oats in a rice cooker/steamer combo thing made by Sunbeam (unfortunately, it appears to be discontinued -- we got ours as a wedding gift over 8 years ago and we use it at least once a week). I've found I do need to add more water than is called for in the usual boil-on-the-stove method, or it comes out like a brick!

[badgercat]

I guess this is sacrilegious, but I love my oatmeal sweet. I buy "regular" rolled oats and and usually add a couple pinches of brown sugar and/or a splash of (real) maple syrup. I don't often have them around, but my real favorite is to add chopped pecans on top of that. I usually cook my oatmeal in the microwave (another travesty!) in rice milk, or water if I don't have any rice milk on hand. This works very well for someone who doesn't have a slow cooker and likes having a hot breakfast that is a. ready in 5 minutes, b. very tasty, c. and requires next to no work.

[TahoeDirtGirl]

I switch bfast around alot and one of the things I like to do is take the oatmeal (steelcut or old fashioned or even scottish) and add skim milk to it and refrigerate. I also add in whatever else I would of if I was cooking it, brown sugar, berries, nuts, etc. I leave it in there over night and then microwave it. The micro way is okay but sometimes I put it in a pot and refrigerate overnight and put the pot, lid and all, on the stove while I"m getting ready. Either way you put it in the fridge, put a cover on it or the fridge is going to suck the moisture out of it. Just a warning, it's pretty soft and creamy, some people don't like that.

[OakLeaf]

Nobody has trouble with cleanup of your rice cooker?

Oats get so foamy and gummy on the stovetop - and when rice is foamy (seems to be worst with short grain regular brown rice) it's a real PITA to clean my Zojirushi cooker.

I tried barley in the cooker once and it sent foam all over my kitchen counters, the inside and outside of the cooker top, it was ugly.

So I've been afraid to try anything but plain rice.

[Blueberry]

I haven't had any cleaning problems - white rice, brown rice, quinoa, soup, risotto, and pretty much everything else you can think of. I'm usually cooking for 2 - maybe I don't fill it up enough to have a problem?

CA

[Tuckervill]

While I'm waiting for the water in the tea kettle to heat, I put old-fashioned oats in a bowl with raisins and walnuts and a hint of brown sugar, and pour hot water over it from the tea kettle. While my tea steeps, I eat the oatmeal, and then the I drink my tea. This is an every single morning ritual. I don't care that the oatmeal is not cooked to a creamy mush. I think it's better chewy.

I started doing it this way when a friend gave me some oatmeal mix for xmas. It had powdered milk in it, too. She has a big family and keeps this homemade mix (oats, raisins, walnuts, powdered milk, brown sugar) in a container on the counter for the kids to make when they want. I don't put the powdered milk in it because I don't need it, and I mix it by the bowl. When I travel, though, I do mix up a big container and take my electric tea kettle with me.

Karen

[roadie gal]

Another nuker here...

1/2 cup rolled oats in 1 cup water. Microwave for 2 1/2 minutes. I usually add 1 tsp of nutritional yeast and about 1 tbsp of honey.