Can anyone help with how much water to use in my porridge swapped from making it with milk to water but can’t get consistency right I use 50 grams of oats but just can’t get mix right with the water normally cook in the microwave as don’t have a stove at work . Also any ideas of what to put in it banana if getting a bit repetitive at mo and I know if I get bored with food type I will stop eating it which I don’t want to do.
Many thanks 🙏
Why not just put milk in it? Or cream? Or, frankly, if you feel you're getting bored with it, why eat it at all? Personally I can't think of anything worse for breakfast than oatmeal made with water. Apart from the fact that it just doesn't taste nice, it's incredibly unhealthy. Anyway, weren't you starting on the low-carb plan? 
Remember, there's no law that says you have to eat certain things for breakfast. You can have liver and onions if you want, or chicken gyros, or pumpkin soup. Most countries don't make any distinction between "breakfast" food and the food eaten at other times. I realise you're a bit constrained preparing food at work, but there are definitely plenty of options other than porridge. For example ... have you tried one of Lytham's famous scotch eggs? Portable and tasty!
Why do you say it's unhealthy? OK, if you're on a low carb diet I accept that but for the rest of us the beta glucan in oats is very good protection against high cholesterol.
I'm wary of hijacking someone's thread to debate the clinical meaning of "high cholesterol". To be brief:
(a) You don't need to be "protected" against something that isn't an illness. High cholesterol is simply a proxy marker for metabolic disease, and a very poor one at that (its predictive value is virtually nil). It is not the proximate cause of anything unpleasant; in fact older people with low cholesterol are at significantly higher risk of dying (all-cause mortality) than those with high cholesterol.
(b) Oats+water is metabolised very quickly to sugar - the GI is somewhere between 55 and 75, depending on the type of oats and preparation method. For comparison, sliced white bread is 75. Adding a source of fat (eg., full-fat milk) actually reduces the overall glycemic load. High-GI foods aren't a problem for active, young people, but people with metabolic disorders or an inactive lifestyle really need to minimize this sort of thing. Even NICE attempted to get this idea out there for a while, before retracting it again due to influences unknown.
Bottom line is that there are far better things to eat for breakfast. If one is out all day herding sheep in the Scottish Highlands, I wouldn't have anything to say about porridge. But most of us aren't
It's my understanding that 3-5gm of soluble fibre, in this case oats, can reduce the effects of LDL (bad) cholesterol in the body.
That apart, I enjoy my porridge - jumbo oats with water, topped up with a little milk, agave syrup and ground ginger.
Don't know if they were shepherds but I do have some Scottish ancestry so maybe that accounts for it.
If you enjoy your porridge I'm not going to tell you to stop eating it Just be aware of the negative effects that it may have on your body (especially if you're over 40) and treat it as, um, a treat, rather than something that's super-healthy. Metabolically speaking a bowl of porridge with agave syrup is indistinguishable from a glazed donut by the time it hits your small intestine.
If you ever find yourself on the top of a hill with blue paint on your face and an inexplicable urge to bellow "freeedoom!" or "there can be only one!", you'll know you're eating too much porridge.
I'll save the rant about LDL-C for another day! Perhaps suffice to say that eye-watering sums of money have been made by successfully attaching the epithet 'bad' to a nanomachine that your body carefully constructs to perform a well-understood function, and recycles via a sophisticated and frugal set of mechanisms.
Lol, i am doing the keto to a degree, I had to sort of stop it due to fact that i was getting severe dizzy spells after visitng doctor they think its a mix of the keto diet and change in medication he has told me now just to do a couple of days a week on keeto which i have done which in 5 days i have lost 4 lbs so will see how it goes, Ii have still cut out bread potatoes etc on normal keto days and having poached egg with mushrooms for breakfast which i love i think at the minute with health every day is a learning day.
ohhh OK. Understood.
Blood-pressure medication, yes?
I suggest you try it this way: instead of having carb-based meals 3 days out of 5 (which will completely prevent your body from switching to fat-burning), try keeping your carbs at a constant, modest level each day. Aim for the 50-100g mark, which is "maintenance" level. For example, try your standard low-carb breakfast with a small bowl of muesli on the side.
If you get dizzy spells on keto, it's often a sign you need to increase electrolytes - if you're still experiencing dizzy spells, then try an electrolyte drink and/or increasing sea salt within your diet
I drink electrolyte drinks daily before my health issues started use to do Ironman triathlons and got into habit of drink these daily. I have continued with these as it keeps my coffee and tea intake down (And works out a lot cheaper as well 🤪)
I'll check them out more I find the odd electrolyte drink helps me too - I can often feel dehydrated even after drinking plenty, which I think is a sign you need more.
Hello gasp1 with 50g of oats you want 350ml of water and a pinch of salt bring it to the boil and simmer for 4 or 5 mins.
And you should have a bowl of delicious porridge. 😊
My mom used to put a pinch of salt and it worked wonders
I used to use the same amount of water as I did milk although when I started stirring yogurt through it after cooking I had to use less water. I stir greek yogurt through mine and then add berries, I also add sugar free syrups
I don't think anyone can help you with the water because people like different consistencies (and quantities, I only use 30g oats) ... and it depends what you re putting with it.
I switched to water, not least because it doesn't boil over. I just cover the oats in the bowl.
As to what I put on - cream and maple syrup, nut butter, apple and cinnamon, chocolate hazelnut spread (a 'good' one tastes better), berry compote (if at Premier Inn) are the favourites... but I am able to vary my breakfasts quite a lot. The only thing I really can't have is cereal and milk (dairy or plant) - makes no sense to me but makes me very ill, unless I have a substantial cooked breakfast on top.
I use water and the perfect ratio for me is 1 cup oats to 2.5 cups of water. I start with half teaspoon of cinnamon heated to bring out the oils, add oats and very lightly toast, add water slowly until all absorbs, 1 teaspoon of salt (I need to take more than 6g salt daily), add handful of sultanas as sweetners and cook on low heat for about 5 mins. Top with Blueberries. Perfect healthy porage for 2 people. Halve quantities for 1. Enjoy.
I avoid all dairy and all sugars and sweetners as much as possible so the sweetness of the sultanas and the blueberries are quite adequate and no toppings.
If you are lactose intolerant, which most people are even though they don’t know it, you cannot digest the sugars in milk. You may, however, be able to tolerate kefir, cream and butter because in kefir most of the sugars will have been eaten by the grains and cream and sugar have such high fat content.
You could also try milk substitutes - Almond milk - but make your own as the bought versions have almost no almonds and way too much additives. Almonds being high protein and fat are really good - soak tablespoon of blanched almonds in spring water overnight, blend in a good blender until very milky. Makes great porage.
I also have a great recipe for porage with pear, carrot and cinnamon — delicious.
I can also explain why cereal and any milks make you very ill, they do me as well. Any simple carbohydrates need alkaline environment to be digested ie: colon. When you eat cereal in the morning your stomach acid goes alkaline, your sphincter muscles in the lower stomach don’t open so you the only way for acid to go is up - causing acid reflux, pain and indigestion. Avoid all cereals that come in packets - period.
We use half a cup of oats and just shy of a cup of water, but it may also depend on the type of oats. If they are undercooked but still runny, you might benefit from soaking them in the water overnight.
Add a pinch of salt too before cooking, it brings out the sweetness of the oats.
I use unsweetened almond and coconut milk when I make porridge. I also add a few cranberries, sultanas, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds and slivered almonds which gives it a bit of sweetness and texture.
For me it's 30g oats (I prefer Scott's Old Fashioned), a pinch of salt in a deep bowl then just cover with water. Two and half minutes in my 900W microwave then top with any assortment of fruits you like (plus a splash of milk, yogurt or kefir). As well as banana and grapes, strawberry, raspberry and blueberry work well for me.
Water based porridge is brill. Same quantity as per milk (dairy or plant-based.) How much water may depend on the oats you use. So put it in the microwave and stop 1/2 way through cooking and give it a stir. Then you can add more water if need be. My guide is to just cover the oats (and any additional ingredient eg blueberries) with water.
When eating my porridge if I find it is too sticky I will pour a bit of my cup of tea into the porridge and stir it in.
Unlike the awful toad, given that one of the main nutritional problems identified is a shortage of fibre, then porridge is a bonus that anyone would do well to add to their daily diet.
To add interest to the bowl, try from a range of fruit, eg chopped apples, dates, blueberries. Apples add a lot more fibre. Blueberries are packed with antioxidants and phytoflavinoids, these berries are also high in potassium and vitamin C, making them the top choice of doctors and nutritionists. Dates give a lovely sweetness of course but also have great nutritional benefits.
If you want to ensure great omega-3 then a spoon of ground flaxseed and/or chia seeds.
If you want to help reduce inflammation then add some turmeric and black pepper for what I now call sunshine porridge.
I'm happy to see you're still with us, andyswarbs I'll have to argue with you (because that's what I do) on the fibre issue, though. It's true that a lot of people aren't eating their five-a-day, but that's largely because they're heaping up their plates with starchy glop (as per expert advice) and don't have room for anything else.
It's a myth that those starchy foods are loaded with fibre. For example the fibre in 50g of porridge is insignificant - less than a gram. The fibre in an average baked potato is almost zero, unless you eat it with the skin on (3-5g). Leafy veg (cabbage, spinach and the like) contain 2-4g per 100g portion. Starchy foods are not the only, or even the best, source of dietary fibre.
If you base your meals on vegetables (as low-carbers do) then lack of fibre is unlikely to be a problem.
Potatoes with the skin on is a must. It's lovely to agree on something.
Certainly can't disagree with you there!
I tend to soak overnight with water enough to cover porridge then add a little milk in the morning
I eyeball mine. I got good at that now I wait until there is at least half a centimeter submergeance of the oats if that makes any sense, good luck.
Quinoa flake porridge with raisins and Manuka honey 🍯
