This Savory Oatmeal recipe features oats cooked in chicken stock, lemongrass & coconut milk, and pork cooked to a crisp, golden brown and then coated with a sweet & spicy orange chili sauce, and topped with a fried egg.
This savory oatmeal bowl is a quick-prep, easy meal for ANY time of the day!
Savory oatmeal
You know what they say about oats… it’s one amazing ingredient that is a true powerhouse! Oats make for a lot of flavor-packed breakfast recipes in our household. Even brunch and lunch too.
We have tried all the different types of Quaker Oats out there, and my favorite is the old-fashioned while Mr K prefers the quick one minute oats (maybe because he’s a little lazy!)
So if you love oats, what would you say about savory oatmeal? 🙂 Would you turn your nose up at the mere thought of it? 🙂 Well, if you’re the skeptical sort, I’m here to change your mind today!
This Savory Oatmeal with Orange Chili Pork is without a doubt one of my favorite recipes for a hearty, invigorating brunch or lunch idea, and I know you’re going to love it too.
Savory breakfast ideas
You see, savory breakfasts aren’t a new thing for us because my husband and I both grew up eating savory breakfasts, and anything with a hint of sweetness before 5pm was a precious and rare thing for us as kids.
Sri Lankan breakfast recipes (and most other places in South Asia) on most days consist of rice (or rice pancakes or rice porridge or noodles) and a savory side dish like a curry. This curried potato hash, pol roti (coconut roti), curried beef buns, roti canai (roti paratha), breakfast fried rice etc., are popular options.
Since introducing oats to our breakfast, we have tried adding fruits, fruit syrups, brown sugar, almond butter, nuts etc. to our oats to make it more flavorful and exciting every day.
We still LOVE eating oats in any form we can get to eat it – We have even made smoothies with oats. And then one day, I made a version of this savory oatmeal bowl and things have never been the same since! 🙂
This savory oatmeal bowl is inspired by Asian flavors. The oats are cooked in chicken stock, lemongrass and coconut milk for a wonderfully flavorful and creamy dish.
The pork is cooked till it’s browned and a little crisp and then tossed in an orange and chili sauce that complement the creamy oatmeal so damn well! The crispy fried egg is optional, but oh so recommended! 🙂
Why I love this savory oatmeal recipe
This is a quick prep meal that’ll go well for breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner! You can even skip the pork and make it strictly breakfast with lemongrass oatmeal and the fried egg OR add other wholesome ingredients to change it up. Either way, this is one of our favorite easy breakfast recipes.
We love adding spinach or kale, or breakfast sausages to our savory oatmeal too.
Like I said, this is a great canvass to try different options, so go ahead, get creative and make it your own! 🙂 Hard to think of a more delicious and hearty way to start your day!
Recipe video
Recipe
Savory Oatmeal (with Orange Chili Pork)
US based cup, teaspoon, tablespoon measurements. Weight measurements are recommended for accurate results whenever available.
Common Measurement ConversionsIngredients:
Lemongrass Oatmeal
- 1 cup Quaker old-fashioned oats
- 1 cup good-quality seasoned chicken stock
- 2 pcs lemongrass (white part) 2 tbsp of lemongrass paste
- 1/2 cup coconut milk
- ½ tbsp chilli flakes/crushed red pepper optional
Pork Marinade
- 200 g pork (I prefer using pork shoulder or pork belly) cut into small chunks
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper ½ tsp if you like it spicy. Leave it out, if you don't like it spicy.
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tsp cornstarch / cornflour
Orange Chili Sauce
- ½ tsp cornflour
- ⅓ cup orange juice
- 1 -2 tsp chilli flakes/crushed red pepper (adjust to you liking)
To serve (optional)
- Fried egg
- Honey
- Chopped spring onions
Instructions:
- Mix all the ingredients for the pork marinade together in a large bowl and let the pork marinate for a few minutes. (You can marinate it in the fridge overnight, or about 30 minutes, or if you’re pressed for time, you can skip it altogether).200 g pork, ¼ tsp cayenne pepper, 3 tbsp soy sauce
- Whisk all the ingredients for the orange chilli sauce until there are no lumps left from the cornflour. Set aside.½ tsp cornflour, ⅓ cup orange juice, 1 -2 tsp chilli flakes/crushed red pepper
- Heat a pan with about 2 tbsp of vegetable oil over medium heat. Add 2 tsp of cornstarch to the pork and mix it through. Add the pork to the hot pan and cook until the pork has turned golden brown, about 15 minutes. You can turn up the heat a little higher for this.2 tsp cornstarch / cornflour
- While the pork is cooking, combine the stock, lemongrass and coconut milk in a saucepan and bring it to a boil. Stir in the oats and let it simmer over medium to medium-high heat for 5 minutes, uncovered. Stir occasionally. When cooked, divide the oats into two bowls.1 cup Quaker old-fashioned oats, 1 cup good-quality seasoned chicken stock, 2 pcs lemongrass (white part), 1/2 cup coconut milk, ½ tbsp chilli flakes/crushed red pepper
- Optional step – Fry an egg, sunny side up.Fried egg
- When the pork has turned golden brown, remove it from the heat (or just push it to the side in the pan). Add the orange chilli sauce to the pan, and it'll immediately start to thicken. Toss the pork in the sauce to coat. Add a pinch of salt, IF needed. Spoon the pork over the oatmeal in the bowl.
- Top with a fried egg, chopped spring onions and a drizzle of honey (optional). Enjoy while still hot!Honey, Chopped spring onions
Nutrition Information:
“This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.”
The sweet and spicy orange chili sauce is something that I highly recommend because it goes so well with anything really. It’s super fast and easy to make, and works as a marinade for different kinds of meat. Savory oatmeal isn’t a new concept of course, but not many people seem to be sold by the idea yet. 🙂
But with those beautiful Asian flavors of lemongrass and coconut, and the orange chili sauce coated pork, the fried egg, and maybe some spring onions and a drizzle of honey mixed through with the creamy oatmeal, there’s a little bit for everyone here, and when you’re looking ahead at a cold, long day, this will hit the spot just right!
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