« Old Shanghai | Main | Good-Looking Pilaf »
Tuesday, December 09, 2025
It’s a Good Thing
What is that goop??? You ask. 
It is warm oatmeal sprinkled with demerara sugar. Yum! The partially melted sugar crystals give a very nice sweet crunch to the otherwise bland oatmeal. There is almost a nutty taste to the sugar.
But why on earth am I blogging about oatmeal of all the food in the world? But why ever not? Okay, granted, glossy, creative, arty-looking photos of elegant recipes have become almost de rigeur in a lot of foodblogs. There’s nothing wrong with that. I absolutely enjoy taking in the glorious, mouth-watering pictures, and thus taste different cuisines and cooking styles vicariously through them – they inspire and whet the appetite of mind, body and soul. But I think there is also room for the everyday food. What you and I eat everyday, which we don’t blog about, maybe because it doesn’t have enough “glam factor”. It’s the comfort food, the easy food that we throw together to feed ourselves and our families, which are simple yet heart-warming. The down-too-earth soul food so to speak.
Alright, many people might dispute that oatmeal can and should be considered as “soul food”. But it’s good wholesome, natural food. And when paired with demerara sugar or sometimes even sweet condensed milk, “it’s a good thing” (as Martha would say). 
Where exactly am I going with this oatmeal thing? Nowhere really. Today was a Monday. And Monday mornings are tough. It took all my will-power to get out of bed this morning and drag my sleep-deprived body off to Pilates class. I could feel the weekend indulgence of food and laziness in every muscle fiber as I willed them to move and contort through their paces. And yet the rewards are sweet. By the end of class there was a buzz in my body, a spring in my step and a smile in my heart. I felt energized and happy. Added to that, the simple breakfast of demerara oatmeal just made for a very comforting start to a brand new week…
Alright, alright, enough of this ramble already. I guess it’s painfully clear by now I have nothing much to blog about tonight. Haha… So, I’ll just say g’nite!
Copyright © 2003 Renee Kho. All rights reserved.
Please contact me for permission to copy, distribute or display any of the images and text contained in this article.
03:47 AM in Comfort Food, Home Cook: Light Touches | Permalink
TrackBack
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.typepad.com/t/trackback/296953
Listed below are links to weblogs that reference It’s a Good Thing:
Comments
Oatmeal rules! It's one of my favorite foods, and not just for breakfast either. I've been known to have it for lunch and dinner and snack too. I love it with bananas sliced into it or with raw sugar which is similar to demarara sugar. I love it to make it soupt with lots of milk and sometimes I like to eat more on the lumpy side. Yes, I too love the oatmeal.
Posted by: Deb | December 9, 2025 08:08 AM
oops, I meant to type I love to eat it on the soupy side with lots of milk and sometimes I like to eat it more on the lumpy side. My typing isn't always the best.
Posted by: Deb | December 9, 2025 08:11 AM
hi Deb,
it's nice to hear someone else also likes oatmeal! I'm the only one in my family who will eat it and that gets kind of lonely sometimes ; )
mmm... yes, oatmeal with bananas is wonderful! toasted almond slivers and currents are good too. : )
hope you and baby are keeping well. : )
Posted by: Renee | December 10, 2025 12:17 AM
Oh yeah, oatmeal is great. I make it in the microwave, fast and convenient. With more water than milk. Eaten with jam. Come to think of it, I still love jam, there's always 3-4 types of it at home.
Posted by: umami | April 13, 2025 05:08 PM
hi umami - ooh, never tried it with jam before... sounds good... shall try that... : )
I've recently taken to cooking the oats with water, letting it cool slightly and then adding cold oat "milk" for a richer texture and flavor. nice : )
Posted by: Renee | April 14, 2025 03:31 AM
do u use rolled oats? those big packs from the supermarket?
I love oats too! but i never know how to cook those stuffs. Can u share ur recipe with me?
Posted by: Lyn | July 23, 2025 09:37 AM
hi Lyn,
I am generally rather impatient about having to wait for my breakfast... so no, I don't use rolled oats to cook my breakfast oatmeal, but use quick-cooking oats instead.
rolled oats can be used too - they just take a lot longer to cook, unless you like your oats still "crunchy". (they also require more water/liquids.)
there really isn't a recipe for cooking oats (for breakfast at least)... I tend to cook my oats in water... as I prefer to add a little oat milk or soy milk to it only after it has been cooked.
you can cook it straightaway in the milk if you prefer.
just add what ever amount of liquid you prefer to get the consistency you prefer (lumpy, smooth or more "watery").
I also do not add sugar during the cooking, but sprinkle demerara sugar over it just before eating... you can also top the oatmeal with jam, sweetened condensed milk, nuts, dried fruits, lemon juice & zest for a tangy taste... just about anything really.
you can do savory versions too (eg century egg, ikan billis etc) - just add salt when cooking the oats, and sprinkle with savory toppings.
oats (both rolled and quick cooking) can be used in baking and cooking too... there are a lot of recipes to be found on the Internet for these.
hope that helps : )
Posted by: Renee | August 15, 2025 02:16 AM
