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Water Gruel

A simple oatmeal gruel made by mixing oatmeal with water, boiling, then seasoning with salt and butter.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 5 ingredients
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Water Gruel

Water Gruel

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare

  1. Rub the oatmeal smooth with the water.

  2. Pour the mixture into the boiling water.

  3. Stir well and boil quickly, ensuring it does not boil over.

  4. After 15 minutes, strain it off.

Serve

  1. Add salt and a bit of butter when serving, stirring until the butter is incorporated.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it

Explore the science

What each ingredient does

Oatmeal
Thickens the water into a light gruel as its starch cooks.
Butter
Adds richness and a smooth, silky mouthfeel to the finished gruel.

The step that matters

Stir well and boil quickly without boiling over. Oatmeal starch can settle and scorch on the bottom or foam over if not stirred well, so the mixture needs steady attention while it cooks.

“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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