Are grits groceries?
Then oatmeal must be groceries, too. And good for you, they say.
I’ve made grits or oatmeal for breakfast a few ways. They are almost always savory, and almost always involve a poached egg, on top. So, perhaps the subject of this piece is the poached egg.
Here are some savory grits topped by a poached egg.
I can assure you those grits were good, but I don’t remember what I put into them. For another gritty breakfast, I took the opportunity to lay out the ingredients, so there’s no doubt.
Here, I have a packet of instant grits, a bowl of leftover ham, and vegetables, to which I will add the grits and boiling water and stir. An egg to poach, and a saucepan to poach it in.
This is the result.
Thing is, I’m not fond of sweets… oatmeal is often served with sugar or syrup or something sweet like apples and cinnamon. I prefer savory with leftover (LO) bits of meat, fish or vegetables — or all of those. On the other hand, Carol made some baked apples — hollow out the core and stuff the apple with chopped nuts, butter, brown sugar and maybe cream and bake. I would chop up a LO stuffed apple — filling and all — and add to oats. That’s sweetness that I can get my mouth around.
But never mind that, here’s another breakfast with grits, not sweet.
A sprout of broccoli and a small potato.
Chop those guys up with some bacon bits.
Finish it off with a poached egg, another yummy breakfast.
The difference with this one, is that I paid a visit to Ohio and learned from sister-in-law, Jan — picture — how to poach an egg in the microwave. It takes only 23 seconds.
take that egg and break it into a custard cup
And this is really important, stick a toothpick into the yolk… this will keep the yolk from exploding in the microwave.
The trouble is — for me — the white gets a bit overcooked when the yolk is just right.
One of the references I used for beet and tomato salad had a link to Savory Oatmeal. She called it Sexed Up Savory Oatmeal and went on and on about what a discovery it was and “the easiest thing on earth to make.” I would have to agree… I’ve been doing it for years, although the use of shaved, hard cheese is a new, interesting and quite good addition, to me. So, I made her recipe:
A piece of hard cheese; Parmigiano Reggiano is what I had, a pasture raised egg, instant oatmeal, a cheese shaver. Not shown are salt and pepper.
The copper ring is part of a set of three that I have. This is the medium; I use it to keep the poached egg from flying all over the place in the water.
Here is the egg in the ring in the pot. At one minute, I take the ring out of the water — it’s done its job — and at 3 minutes, I take the egg out with a slotted spoon.
Looks yummy, doesn’t it.
And it tastes yummy, too.
eats for one 
I make steel-cut oatmeal, served with chopped fruit like apples and some nuts. It’s an effort, but worth it.
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YIKES! My foodie bro with pics of Quaker grits? You might as well use the instant stuff. Get OFF the Quaker Grits! Use good (South Carolina) stone ground grits. You’ll find a completely different texture and flavor.
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Of course you are both right about the proper grains… I was going for quick n easy everyday breakfast.
m
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I’m behind in my “Eats for One” reading. Thanksgiving with local family, and getting ready for a vacation adventure (far-flung family) to New Orleans (3-days) then western Caribbean cruise (7 days).
Ah yes, grits. Never developed a taste for them. It’s a southern thing along with black eyed peas and greens.
Tommy & I have something in common. I too fix three or four servings of steel cut oats at a time and refrigerate the leftover. When ready to eat again, I decide what I’m going to add — slivered almonds or walnuts’ applesauce or other fruit on hand; brown sugar or cinnamon sugar, perhaps a dash of nutmeg???
I’m going to have to try the microwave poached egg. Sounds like my kind of shortcut. Maybe slightly less time will cook the white and yolk satisfactorily. It’s worth a try. I usually poach one egg and add 1/4 cup of liquid egg white for extra nutrition.
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