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To acquire a box of Scott's porridge (I'm refusing to call it 'porage', because that's just not the right word at all) not dissimilar to this you can either a) befriend my mother (in which case good luck, and bring strong drink. You'll need it), or b) go to your local supermarket and ... Read review
Advantages: Cheap, filling, nutritious. Disadvantages: None really, unless you hate the taste of porridge.
...To acquire a box of Scott's porridge (I'm refusing to call it 'porage', because that's just not the right word at all) not dissimilar to this you can either a) befriend my mother (in which case good luck, and bring strong drink. You'll need it), or b) go to your local supermarket and peruse the cereal aisle until you find it. It costs £1.28 for 1kg, or £2.16 for 1.5kg. On opening the box it really doesn't smell too enticing, just a bit musty and ... ...various other bits and bobs Scott's Porage (porridge, damn them and their odd spelling) will keep you full until lunchtime. It's cheap, it's reasonably easy to prepare (admittedly, I injured myself in a porridge-related manner this morning, but don't let that put you off. I'm a bit of a spacker), it tastes nice in an inoffensive kind of way, and it's pretty good for you.
One last thing though, if you do decide to enter into the heady ... more
Surprised to see me writing a review on porridge, aren't you? Well, frankly, so am I. Healthy breakfast foodstuffs generally aren't my forte, and until fairly recently breakfast consisted of 2 cups of espresso and 9 cigarettes. Maybe I'm getting old. Christ, I'm even drinking green tea. Anyway: porridge. Much beloved of Scottish people and the elderly. And, by all accounts, somewhat better for you than a big bowl of Crunchy Nut cornflakes liberally doused in chocolate milk.
Porridge comes from, erm, oats I think. Probably. I don't think there's a porridge plant, but I'm prepared to be proven wrong on that. As far as I know they're good for you because they're relatively unprocessed and contain lots of fibre, making you feel fuller for longer than refined cereals do. Normally I'd be arsed to Google this, but it's early in the morning and I'm a wee bit hungover, so you're just going to have to take my word for it.
Moving swiftly on. I have porridge in the house only because my mother bought it for me in one of her random acts of kindness. I wanted her to give me £20 to buy fags and vodka, she gave me porridge. I'm still not entirely sure how the hell that happened. She acquired it only because the funny spelling of 'porridge' confused her. Apparently she thought it was borage. (For those of you without an Irish mother, Borage: green herby plant. Porage: porridge. You can see how that particular mistake was made). Anyway, once she'd overcome her disappointment that the box of oaty things she'd purchased was not, in fact, going to be suitable for planting in the front garden, she offloaded it onto me with the hearty recommendation that 'porridge is really good for you. It makes your bones strong….wait; no, that might be milk, now that I'm thinking about it. Anyway, I don't like it, so you can have it. Love you.'
To acquire a box of Scott's porridge (I'm refusing to call it 'porage', because that's just not the right word at all) not dissimilar to this you can either a) befriend my mother (in which case good luck, and bring strong drink. You'll need it), or b) go to your local supermarket and peruse the cereal aisle until you find it. It costs £1.28 for 1kg, or £2.16 for 1.5kg. On opening the box it really doesn't smell too enticing, just a bit musty and vaguely floury. Looks wise, it ain't too pretty either, not unlike that dried pale brown mix you can get for guinea pigs. You know, I was going to explain exactly what porridge looks like for a moment there. Sod that. If you don't know yet it'll only spoil the surprise for when you do excitedly rip open your very first box of the stuff.
Having ventured into the world of healthy eating via green tea (tastes like leaves. It is entirely possible to choke on twigs whilst drinking it. If you're at all like me the tea bag version is a much safer option) I decided I'd give the porridge a go. To make it edible you combine about half a cup of oats and a cup and a half of milk or water (milk makes it marginally tastier) and either make it in a saucepan or in a bowl in the microwave. A word of warning; it tells you on the packet to leave it in the microwave for a set amount of time. Don't accidentally add on a couple of minutes to that time. Porridge, as I have found, will explode when microwaved for long enough. And Jesus, the stuff really burns when you spill it down you. Also, if cooking it on the hob, give it a wee stir every so often. Neglect in this scenario leads to a small fire.
After the prescribed amount of time you will be left with a big (it expands when it's cooking) bowlful of warm beige mush. Texturally it's like a bowl of cornflakes that have been left to go soggy in milk for ages - a bit sloppy and slimy. The taste is quite bland and nondescript but strangely comforting. If you're posh, you can add things to your porridge. Cream and honey is one option, but may negate the health benefits a bit. Chopped fruit is another, but is a bit of a pain in the arse, unless you can persuade someone else to do the chopping for you.
With or without the addition of fruit and various other bits and bobs Scott's Porage (porridge, damn them and their odd spelling) will keep you full until lunchtime. It's cheap, it's reasonably easy to prepare (admittedly, I injured myself in a porridge-related manner this morning, but don't let that put you off. I'm a bit of a spacker), it tastes nice in an inoffensive kind of way, and it's pretty good for you.
One last thing though, if you do decide to enter into the heady world of porridge eating, make sure you rinse your bowl as soon as you've finished eating it. Otherwise the leftover bits set like concrete and nothing short of a turbo charged pressure washer will shift them.
"A grain which in England is generally given to horses, but in Scotland supports the people."
Dr Johnson (circa 1700s)
This is how oats were described by the famous Dr Johnson, and although it sounds, and was probably meant, as a put-down, was actually true. So before all you non-Scots reading this nip out to donate your packet of Scotts Porage Oats to the local riding school, lets look at why this was the case.
Way back in medieval times, wild ... ...of wheat, and in some areas, taking over. Now although wheat was quite capable of holding its own in the warm lowlands, at higher, cooler altitudes the oats choked out the wheat. Oats were also able to extract more nutrients from the soil. So in effect, the farmers in Scotland tended to harvest more oats than wheat and so the staple grain of Scotland was born.
Oats at this time, also had another use. Most of the food eaten back then, was heavily ...
shabbie 31.10.2001 (01.11.2001)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Scott's Porage Oats
Advantages: Tasty, nutritious Disadvantages: Some may think its bland?!
I've 'experimented' with oats, strictly in a non-smoking manner, a few years back while I was at university. Waking up first thing in the morning in the midst of a lazy student life, you've hardly got the time or energy to go through the then laborious process of pouring the oats in a suitable plate, adding milk and sugar, and whatever else takes your fancy (I stuck to the first three components, being on a student budget and all that), heating it ... ...one's gob. The effect waned after a little while, and I vividly remember pouring a half-full box in the bin a little while after.
Then came our dear friend Brianlfc's op on Ready Brek oats and all those wonderful memories came flooding back. The late nights (out), the long lies (in), lectures, books, MTV.........oops, lost track for a minute there. Back to the oats. As I was saying, the aforementioned op triggered a sensation in me, one I have not ...
kleft 14.12.2001 (25.12.2001)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Scott's Porage Oats
Advantages: Tasty, Healthy, Disadvantages: few black bits
Winters coming with a vengeance: The nights are getting darker as too are the mornings, the once hot sunny days are now freezing cold sunny days, the green leaves that donned the trees have turned golden and yellow and our eating habits often change.
It’s time to start making those stews – complete with dumplings, warming up the curries, and forgetting the salads! But if you want to be healthier than the tasty Great British Fry up, what options ... ...or marmite, or Weetabix with warmed milk, but my personal preference is Porridge. I really don’t mind who makes my porridge but as t happens this time I chose Scott’s traditional porridge oats.
Scotland is probably best known for its haggis (of which I’m a fan), but next to that must come the porridge oats? There are many brands of porridge available-Quaker being the other main runner.
My packet of Scott’s porridge oats cost me around £1.60 for ...
dabmim 18.10.2003
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Scott's Porage Oats
•DISCLAIMER The spelling of Porage!!! Has nothing to do with me.... Blame Scotts PORRIDGE Oats and chow...Sorry ciao, for letting them get away with it!
Porridge! That stuff of legends. The greatest food known to man. The giant among cereals. The very first “fast food” known to man, and described by Robert Burns as “chief o Scotia's food”.
Why do I make these claims? And what is so special about this vastly under-rated ... ...you are no doubt aware is made from oats. Nothing else is added apart from water and salt making it the most economical of foods that can be imagined. Thousands of years ago our ancestors spotted wild oats growing, and no doubt tried eating them in various ways. It only required a simple bruising of the grain and boiling in water, and BINGO, porridge was born.
Wild oats were harvested and over the years strains improved until we have crops today ...
RobinLawrie 10.11.2001 (11.11.2001)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Scott's Porage Oats
Advantages: Healthy. Nutritional. Inexpensive Disadvantages: Not Many except some mystiques
Scott’s Porage Oats are made by a Fife-based company, A.R. Scott and I guess along with haggis,oatmeal and cock a ' leekie, porridge is one of Scotland’s renowned culinary gifts to the world.Oatmeal has been described as "..the backbone of many a sturdy Scotsman." The canny Scots revere oats and don’t just feed it to horses like the English. In olden days,porridge was one of the main ways for eating oats.No less a famous personage ... ...invented the telephone among others - insisted on having his porridge every day, even when he lived in the USA and Canada.
Scott’s Porage Oats are arguably the finest breakfast cereal available and is part of my staple breakfast diet. To make a steaming hot bowl of porridge you need 1 cup of Scott’s Porage Oats, 2 cups of water, a pinch of salt, a saucepan and a wooden spoon. Heat the porage oats for about 4 minutes, stirring with the ...
ashford 13.11.2001 (24.03.2002)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Scott's Porage Oats
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