My first experience with savory oatmeal was maybe a decade ago. Date night at the now defunct 3 Boars in Edmonton, Alberta. I remember the dish like it was yesterday: savory oats risotto with short ribs. It blew my mind and really reinterpreted what that bag of oats sitting in the back of my closet could really do.

If you’re going to make this dish, I highly recommend using steel cut oats. I love the texture that steel cut oats lend to the dish. If time is an issue, I like to make a large batch of oats on Sunday and just reconstitute them as needed throughout the next few days.

You really can add any topping you prefer and this combination allows for a very umami forward dish without overwhelming the palate first thing in the morning.

This recipe serves two and if you are watching your fat intake can halve the amount of avocado. It’s already a lush dish with the poached egg. But, I literally put avocado and hot sauce on everything haha!

While this recipe was inspired for a breakfast option do NOT let that stop you from incorporating savory oats for lunch or dinner! That dish, a decade ago, with the short ribs and oat risotto, left me speechless!

Give it a try and let me know what you think!