Perk up your porridge: the best oat recipes for a healthy breakfast (2024)

Gone are the days of gruel. Porridge is not just a sachet of Quaker Oats any more, nor a half-filled pot of watery oaty soup, but instead, a chance to get inventive and experimental.

And oats aren't just delicious, but even better for us than previously thought.A large bowl of porridge each day may also protect against death from cancer, the biggest ever analysis of the benefits of whole grains has shown.

The #oats feed on Instagram is a thing of pure beauty, with 1,343,452snaps and counting. Prepare to be overwhelmed with options. Coconut-banana porridge. Fig-topped peanut butter porridge. Carrot cake porridge, even. In London, cafes are going wild and throwing eggs and squash in the mix too.

Though there’s still a long way to go before porridge outshines the likes of avocado as everyone’s breakfast favourite (there’s a whopping 4,050,295posts for #avocado), it’s on its way up, storming over granola and yoghurt parfaits, thanks to all sorts of new weird and wonderful creations and combos.

Where to start? Here are some options.

If you’ve got a sweet tooth:

All hail carrot cake porridge! Half oats, half grated carrot, milk, with cinnamon, nutmeg and ground ginger, it’s basically carrot cake in a bowl, but far easier to make - and healthier, too.

If you're suffering with a cold:

Fighting off flu? Pile your bowl high with Vitamin C toppings. Keen Instagrammer Siobhan O’Brien is the queen of this tactic. Everyday it’s something different, from mulberries to mango, nectarines and pecans. (There’s often peanut butter on there too.) Be inspired.

If you’re headed out on a run:

Oats mean energy, but why stop there? Accelerate your pace by filling your bowl with all sorts of energy hits— mix in peanut butter, top with sliced banana, or sprinkle with cacao nibs. Go crazy.

If you’re a courgetti fan, or looking for a low-calorie option:

Yes, 'Zoats' is very much a thing - there are over 19,000 tagged Instagrams. It’s short for 'zucchini oats'. Adding shredded courgettes to your oats sounds weird, but makes for a far fresher, greener morning bowl. Some are adding peanut butter for nuttiness, while others are adding matcha tea powder for extra luminous greenness.

If you just can’t let the avocado go:

For a [articularly creamy, smooth and nutritious breakfast bowl, cook your porridge without any sugar but with mango chunks, and then serve with half an avocado sliced on top. Be wowed by the combo and embrace those wonderful healthy oils.

If you don’t want oats:

If you can’t eat oats, porridge doesn’t have to be a write off. Chia porridge is healthy, full of nutrients, different and delicious. Make with almond milk for extra creaminess, and top with all sorts of treats.

LONDON'S BEST PORRIDGE

Bread Street Kitchen

Gordon Ramsay’s creamy, thick porridge is served with a hearty dollop of delicious apple compote.

One New Change, 10 Bread St, London EC4M 9AJgordonramsayrestaurants.com

NOPI

Not technically a porridge, in the sense that there’s no oats, but NOPI’s version, with black rice, coconut milk, banana and mango (£9) will warm your heart and soul.

21-22 Warwick St, London W1B 5NEottolenghi.co.uk

26 Grains

26 Grains in Neal’s Yard has a mighty eight porridges on its menu, with both sweet and savoury options. (Egg and kale porridge, anyone?) On the sweeter side of the menu, we like the salted caramel pear porridge, with coconut milk, oats, salted caramel pears, cinnamon greek yoghurt, and a pistachio and sesame seed sprinkle.

Neal's, 2 Neal's Yard, London WC2H 9DP26grains.com

Arabica

The Middle Eastern restaurant in Borough Market warms up weekday mornings with its wonderful spiced porridge, made with apple, tahini, almonds and pecans.

3 Borough High St, London SE1 9AFarabicabarandkitchen.com

Snaps & Rye

Notting Hill’s Danish eatery, Snaps & Rye, serves a fine bowl of buttermilk oat porridge, topped with berry compote, toasted hazelnuts and seeds.

93 Golborne Rd, London W10 5NLsnapsandrye.com