Oatmeal Gruel
Ingredients
Directions
Make the porridge
Put four tablespoonfuls of the best grits (oatmeal coarsely ground) into a pint of boiling water.
Let it boil gently, stirring often, until it becomes as thick as desired.
Then strain it, and while warm add butter, wine, nutmeg, or other flavorings.
If using fine oatmeal, sift it.
Mix it first to a thick batter with a little cold water. Then put it into a sauce-pan of boiling water.
Stir it all the time it is boiling, lifting the spoon gently up and down, letting the gruel fall slowly back into the pan.
Make the bread version
Boil some slices of bread in a quart of water for about five minutes. Take out the bread, beat it smooth in a deep dish, mixing in a little of the water it has boiled in.
Mix it with a bit of fresh butter, sugar, and nutmeg to taste.
Another way: grate some bread, or grate or pound a few crackers. Pour boiling water over, beat well, and add sugar and nutmeg.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures. See the original page.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Grits or oatmeal
- Starch that thickens the water into a porridge as it cooks.
- Bread (in the method)
- Soaked and beaten to thicken the water into a smooth gruel.
- Butter (in the method)
- Adds richness and a smooth, rounded flavor to the warm porridge.
The step that matters
Stirring the mixture while it boils. Starch granules can settle and scorch on the bottom of the pan, and constant stirring keeps the grits or oatmeal evenly suspended so the porridge thickens smoothly without lumps or burning.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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