[Savory Oat Hash is a super quick and easy breakfast option that’s vegan, sugar-free, gluten-free, dairy-free, egg free, soy-free and yeast-free. Suitable for Stage 3 and beyond on an anti-candida diet.]
[Savory Oat Hash. Photo credit: Richa Hingle.]
Growing up with a dad who owned a neighborhood butcher shop meant that we never really experienced the classic “family dinner” in our house (or “family breakfast,” or “family lunch,” either, for that matter). Dad was out of the house at 6:30 AM or so and didn’t return home until after 9:00 PM for 6 days of the week. So it’s no surprise that Sundays in our family became sacrosanct.
Whether my sisters and I had been out partying the night before, whether we had a cold and felt like death warmed over, whether we’d been sneaking an all-night phone call with our boyfriend on Saturday night and really needed the extra rest Sunday morning–none of it mattered. There was an unspoken rule: no extenuating circumstances permitted. You were required to appear for the Sunday “family brunch” (which, in our house, was called for 9:00 AM), no matter what.
[Yummy side dishes with beans and cabbage, from Vegan Richa’s Indian Kitchen. Photo credit: Richa Hingle]
Because it was basically the only meal we got to share with my father, my mom went all out serving up the best, most delectable, most extensive meal of the week on Sunday morning. Sometimes we’d fill our forks with scrambled eggs with extra crispy bacon; sometimes we’d chomp on bagels with smoked salmon and cream cheese; sometimes we’d feast on pancakes freshly made from everyone’s favorite, Aunt Jemima pancake mix; and other times, particularly in the spring and summer, we’d be treated to Dad’s specialty, “mixed grill,” in which we sampled all the meats, deli and otherwise, that only his customers normally got to enjoy throughout the week.
[Masala Lentils. How good does that look? Photo credit: Richa Hingle]
Perhaps for that reason, breakfast and brunch have retained a special place in my heart to this day. In fact, anyone who knows me (or has followed this blog for more than a week or so) knows that breakfast is my very favorite meal of the day. And pancakes are my favorite breakfast.
Nevertheless, even I can’t eat pancakes every day of the week (nope. Six times, max). I’m always looking for new ways to start the day with a nutritious meal within the boundaries of my anti-candida diet. In recent years, I’ve also begun to explore the wide world of savory breakfasts. In fact, I’m now utterly amazed that those of us in North America are so stuck on sweet morning foods like cereal, muffins, donuts, pancakes, waffles and the like. Sure, they’re oh-so-tasty (see my comment about pancakes, above), but in the end, there’s an entirely different world of savory available, too. So why not explore?
[My version of the oat hash. Mmmm!]
Today’s treat is one of those savory breakfasts. This dish was so good, in fact, that I had to hold myself back from eating the entire batch at once. And the concept is so easy: you take regular old-fashioned rolled oats and soak them in room-temperature water just long enough to soften, then sauté with other ingredients for a toothsome, hearty dish. The oats remain as distinct flakes and aren’t the least bit mushy (though, as Richa notes, you can cook this more like a conventional porridge if you prefer that texture). I loved it this way, though, almost like a pilaf with aromatic, fragrant spices and veggies sprinkled throughout.
I’ve been blogging for a long time now (since 2008–yikes!), which means that I’ve seen a lot of other bloggers arrive on the scene and disappear quietly a few years later. I’m always so delighted when I see a deserving blogger’s trajectory from newbie to pro to acclaimed cookbook author. Today, I’m thrilled to share a recipe from one of those very bloggers, Richa Hingle of Vegan Richa.
You may have noticed that I adore Indian food. I have no fewer than 13 Indian (or Indian–inspired) recipes on the blog and devote an entire Pinterest board to the topic; and one of the favorite haunts the HH and I frequent in our neighborhood is an Indian restaurant. Of course, part of this love affair is due to my affinity for spicy foods, and Indian cuisine abounds in spices. The fact that so many of them also confer health-boosting properties is a welcome bonus.
Richa’s book offers a plethora of authentic and some nouvelle Indian dishes that are easy to make at home. She explains the spices and techniques so you don’t have to worry if you’ve never cooked anything Indian-inspired before. And with the amazing variety in the book, I’ve got dozens of recipes I can’t wait to make! Though some of the recipes do contain gluten or sugar, I was able to easily find many I could use as-is, or make simple substitutions as well.
So eat up the benefits of antioxidant-rich spices and get ready for a whole new way to enjoy oats in this savory breakfast hash. I’m delighted to have a new recipe in my morning rotation!
Savory Breakfast Oat Hash from Vegan Richa’s Indian Kitchen
[Richa’s note]: We rotate our breakfasts among chilla, upma, bread pakora, dosa, chickpea omelets, and poha for busy weekdays. No one in my house likes sweet or cold breakfast; we all want something hearty. So savory and hot breakfast it is. Kanda poha is usually made with thick rice flakes that are reconstituted with water to make a pasta-like dish. Rice flakes are not easily available in regular grocery stores, so we started making poha with oats. Old-fashioned oats are soaked and cooked just enough so they are tender but are separate grains. The recipe works as-is using thick rice flakes as well. If you have never tried oats this way, you may be surprised by how good they taste. Soak them longer if you like them cooked softer. The result will be more of a scramble than separate grains.
1 1/2 cups (360 ml) old-fashioned oats
3 tablespoons (45 ml) raw peanuts or other nuts (omit to make nut-free)[I used walnuts]
1 teaspoon (5 ml) safflower or other neutral oil [I used coconut oil]
1/2 teaspoon (2.5 ml) mustard seeds
10 curry leaves, chopped
1/8 teaspoon (.5 ml) asafetida (omit to make gluten-free)
1 hot green chile, finely chopped
1/2 cup (120 ml) finely chopped red onion
1/2 teaspoon (2.5 ml) turmeric
1/4 teaspoon (1 ml) cayenne
3/4 to 1 teaspoon (3.5 to 5 ml) salt
1/3 cup (80 ml) fresh or frozen green peas, thawed if frozen
1/4 teaspoon (1 ml) sugar [I used 3 drops stevia liquid]
2 tablespoons (30 ml) chopped cilantro, for garnish
1 teaspoon (5 ml) lemon juice, for garnish (not optional)
1. Wash the oats and soak in 2 cups of water for 7 to 8 minutes. (Steps 2 through 4 take about the same time, so the oats do not have to be soaked in advance.)
2. Heat a skillet over medium heat. Add the peanuts and dry roast until they change color slightly, about 2 minutes. Remove from the skillet and set aside.
3. In the same skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the mustard seeds and curry leaves. Let the mustard seeds start to pop, 30 seconds. Add the asafetida and chile, then stir in the onions and cook until translucent, 5 to 6 minutes.
4. Add the salt, turmeric, cayenne, peas, and sugar and mix well. Cook for 1 minute.
5. Drain the oats and add to the pan, then stir in the roasted nuts. Mix well. Cover, reduce the heat to medium-low, and cook for 5 minutes or until the oats are tender, but not mushy like oatmeal. Stir to mix and fluff. Taste and adjust salt and spice. Cover and set aside for 2 minutes. Serve warm, garnished with cilantro and a generous drizzle of lemon juice.
(Recipe from Vegan Richa’s Indian Kitchen Copyright © 2015 by Richa Hingle. Used by permission Vegan Heritage Press, LLC.)
Suitable for: ACD Stage 3 and beyond; refined sugar-free, gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free, egg free, soy-free, nut free, yeast-free, vegan, low glycemic.
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Lovely post ricki! I love hearing about your childhood breakfasts. I too love breakfast and especially savoury – it always surprises me to see someone recommend cake for breakfast and always makes me sad that so many breakfasts have eggs – I love this idea for a savoury breakfast – Vegan Richa has lots of great idea
Glad you liked it, Johanna. I knew you preferred the savory brekkies, too. 🙂 Thought I have to admit I was all over that “breakfast cake” idea when it first came out! I really enjoyed this one. Definitely on permanent rotation now!
Thank you for the lovely review Ricki! i am so happy you are loving the book! Savory was the way to go with us while growing up. there was probably 2 days in the year that we would opt for sweet breakfast and my Dad would still ask for a savory side with it 🙂
It’s such a great book, Richa! Thank you for sharing. 🙂 Funny that your dad would ask for savory along with the sweet! In our house, with my sisters and me, it was more like, “Can we have some more sweet with the sweet?” LOL!
I love a savory breakfast! this was one recipe I have marked to try from this lovely book – you reminded me to do so!
I think you’ll love it, Kristina! 🙂
This looks so hearty and delicious; thank you for sharing!
Glad you like it! 🙂